document_title: Shea Stadium

question_text: who played the first concert at shea stadium

question_tokens: who played the first concert at shea stadium

text: Shea Stadium

text: History[edit]

text: Planning and construction[edit]

text: The origins of Shea Stadium go way back to the Brooklyn Dodgers' and the New York Giants' relocations to the U.S. west coast, which left New York without a National League baseball team. New York City official Robert Moses tried to interest Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley in the site as the location for a new stadium, but O'Malley refused, unable to agree on location, ownership, and lease terms. O'Malley preferred to pay construction costs himself so he could own the stadium outright. He wanted total control over revenue from parking, concessions, and other events. New York City, in contrast, wanted to build the stadium, rent it, and retain the ancillary revenue rights to pay off its construction bonds.[7] Additionally, O'Malley wanted to build his new stadium in Brooklyn, while Moses insisted on Flushing Meadows. When Los Angeles offered O'Malley what the City of New York wouldn't—complete ownership of the facility—he left for southern California in a preemptive bid to install the Dodgers there before a new or existing major league franchise could beat him to it. At the same time, Horace Stoneham moved his New York Giants to the San Francisco Bay Area (although he originally considered moving them to Minneapolis), ensuring that there would be two National League West Coast teams, and preserving the longstanding rivalry with the Dodgers that continues to this day.

text: In 1960, the National League agreed to grant an expansion franchise to the owners of the New York franchise in the abortive Continental League, provided that a new stadium be built. Mayor Robert Wagner, Jr. had to personally wire all National League owners and assure them that the city would build a stadium.

text: On October 6, 1961, the Mets signed a 30-year stadium lease,[8] with an option for a 10-year renewal. Rent for what was originally budgeted as a $9 million facility was set at $450,000 annually, with a reduction of $20,000 each year until it reached $300,000 annually.

text: The Mets' inaugural season (1962) was played in the Polo Grounds, with original plans calling for the team to move to a new stadium in 1963. In October 1962, Mets official Tom Meany said, "Only a series of blizzards or some other unforeseen trouble might hamper construction."[citation needed] That unforeseen trouble surfaced in a number of ways: the severe winter of 1962–1963, along with the bankruptcies of two subcontractors and labor issues. The end result was that both the Mets and Jets played at the Polo Grounds for one more year.

text: It was originally to be called "Flushing Meadow Park Municipal Stadium"[9] – the name of the public park on which it was built – but a movement was launched to name it in honor of William A. Shea, the man who brought National League baseball back to New York.[10]

text: Opening[edit]

text: After 29 months and $28.5 million, Shea Stadium opened on April 17, 1964, with the Pittsburgh Pirates beating the Mets 4–3 before a crowd of 50,312.[11] There were no prior exhibition games or events, and the stadium was barely finished in time for opening day. Because of a jurisdictional dispute between Local 3 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Local 1106 of the Communications Workers of America, the telephone and telegraph wiring was not finished in time for opening day.[10][12] The stadium opened five days before the 1964-65 New York World's Fair, across Roosevelt Avenue. Although not officially part of the fair grounds, the stadium sported steel panels on its exterior in the blue-and-orange colors of the Fair. The panels were removed in 1980.

text: Demolition[edit]

text: In accordance with New York City law, Shea Stadium was dismantled, rather than imploded.[13] The company with the rights to sell memorabilia was given two weeks after the final game to remove seats, signage and other potentially saleable and collectable items before demolition was to begin. The seats were the first ($869 per pair plus tax, a combination of '86 and '69, the team's two World Series championship years),[14] followed by other memorabilia such as the foul poles, dugouts, stadium signage, and the giant letters that spelled out "SHEA" at the front of the building.

text: After salvaging operations concluded, demolition of the ballpark began on October 14, 2008. On October 18, the scoreboard in right field was demolished, with the bleachers, batter's eye and bullpens shortly thereafter.[15]

text: By November 10, the field, dugouts and the rest of the field level seats had been demolished.[16]

text: By mid-December, all of the loge level seats and a good portion of the mezzanine level seating were gone as well, leaving only the outer shell remaining.

text: Demolition work on the upper deck began by January 1, 2009. The next day, all that remained of sections 26–48 of the upper deck was the steel framework. By January 8, the steel framework for sections 36–48 of the upper deck had been completely removed; all that remained of the "Live & In Person" advertising banner at the top above Gate A was the extreme right portion with the Shea Stadium Final Season logo. As of January 15, the far left field portion of Shea was completely demolished and the left field upper deck (sections 25–47) was stripped to its steel framework. The remaining letters at the top of the ballpark behind home plate were taken down on January 21. Approximately two-thirds of the stadium's outer superstructure was gone by January 24.

text: On January 31, Mets fans all over New York came to Shea Stadium for one final farewell. Fans took a tour of the site, told stories, and sang songs.[17] The last remaining section of seats was demolished on February 18. Fans stood in awe as the remaining structure of Shea Stadium (one section of ramps) was torn down at 11:22 that morning.[18][19]

text: The locations of Shea's home plate, pitcher's mound, and bases are marked in Citi Field's parking lot. The plaques feature engravings of the neon baseball players that once graced the exterior of the stadium.[20]

text: Redevelopment[edit]

text: On October 9, 2013, the New York City Council approved a plan to build a mall and entertainment center called Willets West in the Citi Field parking lot where Shea Stadium stood, as part of an effort by the city to redevelop the nearby neighborhood of Willets Point.[21][22] However, in 2015, the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court ruled that the site, considered parkland, could not be used for commercial development without permission from the New York state government.[23]

text: Stadium usage[edit]

text: Sports[edit]

text: Baseball[edit]

text: Shea Stadium was the home of the New York Mets starting in 1964, and hosted the Major League Baseball All-Star Game that year, with Johnny Callison of the Philadelphia Phillies hitting a home run in the ninth inning to win the only Mid-Summer Classic held in the Queens ballpark. A month earlier, on Father's Day, Callison's teammate, future Hall of Fame member and United States Senator Jim Bunning, pitched a perfect game against the Mets.[24]

text: The stadium was often criticized by baseball purists for many reasons, even though it was retrofitted to be a baseball-only stadium after the Jets left. The upper deck was one of the highest in the majors. The lower boxes were farther from the field than similar seats in other parks because they were still on the rails that swiveled the boxes into position for football.[25] Outfield seating was sparse, in part because the stadium was designed to be fully enclosed.

text: At one time, Shea's foul territory was one of the most expansive in the majors. This was very common for ballparks built during the 1960s, in part due to the need to accommodate the larger football field.[25] However, seats added over the years in the lower level greatly reduced the size of foul territory by the dawn of the 21st century. On the plus side, Shea always used a natural grass surface, in contrast to other multi-purpose stadiums such as Three Rivers Stadium, Veterans Stadium, and Riverfront Stadium, which were built in the same era and style and used artificial turf instead of natural grass.

text: Shea Stadium hosted postseason baseball in 1969, 1973, 1986, 1988, 1999, 2000, and 2006; it hosted the World Series in 1969, 1973, 1986, and 2000. It had the distinction of being the home of the 1969 "Miracle Mets"—a team led by former Brooklyn Dodger Gil Hodges that defied 100–1 odds and won the World Series, after seven straight seasons in last or next-to-last place. Shea became famous for the bedlam that took place after the Mets won the decisive Game 5 of the 1969 World Series, as fans stormed the field in celebration. Similar scenes took place a few weeks earlier after the Mets clinched the National League East title, and then defeated the Atlanta Braves in the first National League Championship Series to win the pennant.

text: Tommie Agee, Lenny Dykstra, Todd Pratt, Robin Ventura, and Benny Agbayani hit post-season, game-winning home runs at Shea.

text: Tommie Agee was the only player in the history of the ballpark to hit a home run into the upper deck in left field. The spot was marked with a sign featuring Agee's number, and the date, which was April 10, 1969. Teammate Cleon Jones said the ball was still rising when it hit the seats, so it very likely could have been the longest home run ever hit at Shea Stadium.[citation needed]

text: In 1971, Dave Kingman – then with the San Francisco Giants and later to play for the Mets on two occasions – hit a home run that smashed off the windshield of the Giants' team bus, parked behind the left field bullpen.

text: For many years, the Mets' theme song, "Meet the Mets", was played at Shea before every home game. Jane Jarvis, a local jazz artist, played the popular songs on the Thomas organ at Mets games for many years at the stadium.[26]

text: On October 3, 2004, the stadium was the venue for the last game in the history of the Montreal Expos when the Mets defeated the Expos 8–1.[27] Their story ended where it had started 35 years earlier: at Shea Stadium.[28] The following year, the Expos relocated to Washington, D.C., where they were renamed the Nationals.

text: As of June 10, 2005, the Mets had played more games at Shea Stadium than the Brooklyn Dodgers did at Ebbets Field.[citation needed]

text: The last game played at Shea Stadium was a loss to the Florida Marlins on September 28, 2008. However, the Mets were in the thick of the playoff chase until the last day. A win would have meant another game for Shea as the Mets were scheduled to play the Milwaukee Brewers in a one-game playoff for the National League Wild Card had they won. Following the game, there was a "Shea Goodbye" tribute in which many players from the Mets' glory years entered the stadium and touched home plate one final time so that fans could pay their last respects to the players and the stadium the Mets called home for 45 years. The ceremony ended with Tom Seaver throwing a final pitch to Mike Piazza, then, as the Beatles "In My Life" played on the stadium speakers the two former Met stars walked out of the centerfield gate and closed it behind them, followed by a display of blue and orange fireworks.[29][30]

text: Three National League Division Series were played at Shea Stadium. The Mets won all three, and never lost a Division Series game at Shea.

text:
1999 against the Arizona Diamondbacks – Mets won 3 games to 1
2000 against the San Francisco Giants – Mets won 3 games to 1
2006 against the Los Angeles Dodgers – Mets won 3 games to 0

text: Seven National League Championship Series were played at Shea Stadium.

text:
1969 against the Atlanta Braves – Mets won 3 games to 0
1973 against the Cincinnati Reds – Mets won 3 games to 2
1986 against the Houston Astros – Mets won 4 games to 2
1988 against the Los Angeles Dodgers – Dodgers won 4 games to 3
1999 against the Atlanta Braves – Braves won 4 games to 2
2000 against the St. Louis Cardinals – Mets won 4 games to 1
2006 against the St. Louis Cardinals – Cardinals won 4 games to 3[3]

text: ^ The decisive seventh game of this series was played at Shea Stadium, marking the only time that the Mets ever lost the deciding game of a National League Championship Series at Shea.

text: Four World Series were played in Shea Stadium.

text:
1969 against the Baltimore Orioles – Mets won 4 games to 1
1973 against the Oakland Athletics – A's won 4 games to 3
1986 against the Boston Red Sox – Mets won 4 games to 3
2000 against the New York Yankees – Yankees won 4 games to 1

text: The Yankees' World Series win in 2000 was the only time that visiting teams won a World Series at Shea Stadium. The Mets won both their World Series titles at Shea Stadium (in Game 5 in 1969, and Game 7 in 1986).

text: The New York Yankees played their home games in Shea Stadium during the 1974 and 1975 seasons while Yankee Stadium was being renovated. The move to Shea had been proposed earlier in the decade, but the Mets, as Shea's primary tenants, refused to sign off on the deal. However, when the city stepped in to pay for renovating Yankee Stadium, the Mets had little choice but to agree to share Shea with the Yankees.[citation needed]

text: On the afternoon of April 15, 1998, the Yankees also played one home game at Shea, against the Anaheim Angels after a beam collapsed at Yankee Stadium two days before, destroying several rows of seats.[31][32] With the Mets playing a game at Shea that evening against the Chicago Cubs, the Yankees used the visitor's locker room and dugout and the Angels used the home dugout and old locker room of the New York Jets.[33] Former Mets star Darryl Strawberry, then playing for the Yankees, hit a home run during the game. Stadium operators partially raised the Mets' home run apple signal before lowering it back down, to the delight of the crowd.[34]

text: Shea Stadium also hosted the first extra-inning regular season baseball opener ever played in New York, on March 31, 1998,[35] when the Mets opened their season against their rival Philadelphia Phillies, playing the longest scoreless opening day game in the National League and the longest one in Major League Baseball since 1926.[36][37] The Mets won the game 1–0 in the bottom of the 14th inning.[37]

text: During the 1977 New York City blackout the stadium was plunged into darkness at approximately 9:30 p.m. during a game between the Mets and the Chicago Cubs. It occurred during the bottom of the sixth inning, with the Mets losing 2–1 and Lenny Randle at bat. Jane Jarvis, Shea's organist (affectionately known as Shea's "Queen of Melody") played "Jingle Bells" and "White Christmas".[38] The game was eventually completed on September 16, with the Cubs winning 5–2.[39]

text: Boxing[edit]

text: Shea Stadium held boxing matches in the mid-sixties.[40]

text: Football[edit]

text: The New York Jets of the American Football League and later, the National Football League played at Shea for 20 seasons, from 1964 to 1983 (excluding their first home game in 1977 played at Giants Stadium). The stadium hosted three Jets playoff games: the American Football League Championship in 1968 (beat the Oakland Raiders, 27–23), an AFL Divisional Playoff in 1969 (lost 13–6 to the Kansas City Chiefs) and the 1981 AFC Wild Card Playoff game (lost 31–27 to the Buffalo Bills).

text: For most of the Jets' tenure at Shea, they were burdened by onerous lease terms imposed at the insistence of the Mets. Until 1978, the Jets could not play their first home game until the Mets' season was finished. For instance, in 1969, the defending Super Bowl champion Jets didn't play a home game until October 20 due to the Mets advancing to (and winning) the World Series. As a result, the 1969 Jets opened with five consecutive road games, and then played all seven home games in consecutive weeks before closing with two road games. Even after 1978, the Mets' status as Shea's primary tenants would require the Jets to go on long road trips (switching Shea from baseball to football configuration was a complex process involving electrical, plumbing, field and other similar work). The stadium was also not well maintained in the 1970s. The Jets moved to Giants Stadium for the 1984 season, enticed by the more than 15,000 additional seats there. Fans ripped apart Shea after the last game of the 1983 season, which also was the last game for Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Terry Bradshaw, who threw two touchdown passes to lead the Pittsburgh Steelers to a 34–7 victory.[41] Even the scoreboard operator had a field day, displaying the home team as the "N.J. Jets".[42]

text: It was at Shea Stadium on December 16, 1973 that O.J. Simpson became the first running back to gain 2,000 yards in a single season[43] (and, to date, the only player to do it in 14 games or fewer). In the 1983 season, a Jets game against the Los Angeles Rams featured an 85-yard touchdown run by rookie Eric Dickerson, as well as a brawl between Rams offensive tackle Jackie Slater and Jets defensive end Mark Gastineau when Slater blindsided Gastineau after the Jet performed his infamous "Sack Dance" over fallen Rams quarterback Vince Ferragamo.

text: The NFL's New York Giants played their 1975 season at Shea while Giants Stadium was being built. The Giants were 5–9 that year (2–5 at Shea). Their coach was Bill Arnsparger and their quarterback was Craig Morton. The Giants played their final five home games of 1973 and all seven in 1974 at the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut after Yankee Stadium was closed on October 1, 1973 for a massive rebuilding, which was completed in time for the 1976 baseball season.

text: On the night of October 9, 1965, Shea Stadium hosted the football rivalry between Army and Notre Dame for the first and only time. The Fighting Irish blanked the Cadets, 17-0, beginning a 15-game winning streak for Notre Dame in the storied series.

text: In 1966, the Brooklyn Dodgers of the minor Continental Football League unsuccessfully sued the Jets in an attempt to use the stadium; the team wound up playing on Randall's Island and soon folded. In 1974, the New York Stars of the nascent World Football League also made inquiries to play at Shea, whose schedule was already overcrowded by the Mets, Jets and Yankees (and the following year, the Giants; see below). The Stars also moved out to Randall's Island, playing only a handful of games before shifting to Charlotte.

text: The football field at Shea extended from around home plate to centerfield, with the baseline seating rotating out to fill left and right fields.

text: Soccer[edit]

text: The first soccer game at Shea Stadium occurred during International Soccer League tournament play on June 17, 1965.[44]

text:
Date
Winning Team
Result
Losing Team
Tournament
Spectators

June 17, 1965
 Portuguesa
6-3
 West Ham United
International Friendly
—

text: The original New York Cosmos beat the Washington Diplomats, 2-0, in an NASL playoff game at Shea on August 17, 1976.[45]

text: New York United of the American Soccer League called Shea home in 1980.[46]

text: Concerts[edit]

text: On Sunday, August 15, 1965, the Beatles opened their 1965 North American tour there to a record audience of 55,600.[47] "Beatlemania" was at one of its peaks at their Shea concert. Film footage shows many teenagers and women crying, screaming, and even fainting. The crowd noise was such that security guards can be seen covering their ears as the Beatles entered the field. The sound of the crowd was so deafening that none of the Beatles (or anyone else) could hear what they were playing. Nevertheless, it was the first concert to be held at a major stadium and set records for attendance and revenue generation, demonstrating that outdoor concerts on a large scale could be successful and profitable, and led the Beatles to return to Shea for a successful encore on August 23, 1966. The attendance record stood until 1973 when it was broken by Led Zeppelin with 56,800 fans at Tampa Stadium.[48]

text: The next major music event to play Shea Stadium after the Beatles successful appearances was the Summer Festival for Peace on August 6, 1970.[38] It was a day-long fundraiser, which featured many of the era's biggest selling and seminal rock, folk, blues and jazz performers including: Janis Joplin, Paul Simon, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Steppenwolf, The James Gang, Miles Davis, Tom Paxton, John Sebastian, and others.

text: The next music show at Shea Stadium was the historic 1971 concert by Grand Funk Railroad in 1971, which broke the Beatles' then-record for fastest ticket sales. Humble Pie was the opening band. The same filmmakers for the documentary of the Rolling Stones concert at Altamont were commissioned to film it, but to date, a final film has not been released.

text: The stadium hosted numerous concerts since then, including Jethro Tull with opening act Robin Trower in July 1976 (billed as Tull v. Boeing because of the proximity to LaGuardia Airport), The Who with opening act The Clash in October 1982, and Simon & Garfunkel in August 1983. On August 18, 1983, The Police played in front of 70,000 fans at Shea, a concert that the band's singer and bassist Sting described as "like playing the top of Everest", and announced near the end of the concert: "We'd like to thank the Beatles for lending us their stadium."[49] The Rolling Stones performed at Shea for a six-night run in October 1989, and Elton John & Eric Clapton played a concert in August 1992. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed at Shea in early October 2003.[38]

text: The last concert event was a two-night engagement by Billy Joel on July 16 and July 18, 2008. The concert was dubbed The Last Play at Shea, and featured many special guest appearances, including former Beatle Paul McCartney who closed the second show with an emotional rendition of the Beatles classic "Let It Be". Other artists that joined Joel on stage for the shows were former Shea performer Roger Daltrey of The Who, Tony Bennett, Don Henley, John Mayer, John Mellencamp, Garth Brooks, and Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. The concert was the subject of a documentary film of the same name, which is used along with Shea's history to tell the story of changes in American suburban life.[50]

text: Other events[edit]

text: The 1978 International Convention of Jehovah's Witnesses was held at Shea Stadium from July 12 to July 16, 1978.[38]

text: During his tour of America in October 1979, Pope John Paul II was also among those hosted by Shea Stadium.[51] On the morning of the Pontiff's visit, Shea Stadium was awash in torrential rain, causing ankle-deep mud puddles, and threatened to ruin the event. But as the Popemobile entered the stadium, the rain stopped although the deep mud remained.

text: On December 9, 1979, as part of the halftime show of a National Football League game between the New York Jets and New England Patriots, a model airplane group put on a remote control airplane display. The grand finale was a remote control airplane, weighing 40 lbs, made to look like a red flying lawnmower. The pilot lost control of the airplane, and it crashed into the stands, hitting Kevin Rourke, of Lynn, Massachusetts and John Bowen of Nashua, New Hampshire. Both suffered serious head injuries; Rourke survived but Bowen died four days later.[52]

text: Between 1972 and 1980, Shea also hosted 3 wrestling events held by the then World Wrestling Federation. In 1980, it hosted a simulcast of the first fight between Roberto Duran and Sugar Ray Leonard, won by Duran.

text: In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, the stadium became a staging area for rescuers, its parking lots filled with food, water, medical supplies, even makeshift shelters where relief workers could sleep. Ten days later Shea reopened for the first post-attack sporting event in New York where the Mets beat the Braves, behind a dramatic home run by Mets catcher Mike Piazza.[53]

text: In popular culture[edit]

text: In the television serial drama, Mad Men, the main character, Don Draper, has his secretary buy a pair of tickets for the Beatles' concert at Shea Stadium in 1965.[54]

text: Shea Stadium was parodied as "Che Stadium" for The Rutles film All You Need is Cash for a sequence that spoofed the Beatles' concert at the stadium.

text: Shea Stadium was parioded as Spray Stadium in an episode of Batman 66

text: In 1987, Marvel Comics rented Shea Stadium to re-enact the wedding of Spider-Man/Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson.[55]

text: Recently on VH1's documentary series 7 Ages of Rock, Shea Stadium was named the most hallowed venue in all of rock music.

text: In Godzilla: The Series the stadium was destroyed in a fight between Godzilla and Crackler.

text: Shea Stadium was used in the 1970s for filming the 1973 movie Bang The Drum Slowly starring Robert De Niro and Michael Moriarty and the 1978 film The Wiz. In the latter film, the exterior pedestrian ramps were used for a motorcycle chase scene with Michael Jackson & Diana Ross.

text: A scene in the 2002 movie Two Weeks Notice takes place at Shea.

text: In Men in Black, a Mets game at Shea was featured in the film, with outfielder Bernard Gilkey dropping a fly ball after being distracted by an alien spacecraft in the sky. Shea was also featured in Men in Black 3 which is where K and J intercept Griffin and the ArcNet in 1969 before Boris the Animal can capture it.

text: 1975: Four teams, one stadium[edit]

text: The Mets, Yankees, Jets and Giants all called Shea home in 1975, the only time in professional sports history that two baseball teams and two football teams shared the same facility in the same year.[4]

text: As Yankee Stadium was being renovated and Giants Stadium was nearing completion, there were scheduling clashes between the New York teams in baseball from April through September and both football teams from October through December. The Jets and also the Giants could not play "home" games at Shea Stadium until the baseball season ended for the main tenant Mets and the temporary incumbent Yankees. In 1975, there was only a two-week overlap between the baseball and football seasons (the NFL season started on Sunday, September 21 that year, and the Major League Baseball season ended on Sunday, September 28). This meant the Jets opened at home on Sunday, October 5, the third week of the season, and the Giants on Sunday, October 12, the season's fourth week. It also meant that the Giants and Jets had to play a combined 14 home games in the final 12 weeks of the 14-week NFL season. To do so, the Giants played two Saturday afternoon home games, neither of which were televised, and both of which were played the day before a Jets' Sunday home game. Either the Jets or the Giants had a Sunday home game every weekend from October 5 through December 21.[56]

text: In total, the "Big Four" drew 3,738,546 customers to Shea: 1,730,566 by the Mets (76 home dates); 1,288,048 by the Yankees (71 home dates); 361,102 by the Jets (seven home games) and 358,830 by the Giants (also seven). Having both the Giants and Jets share Shea Stadium for one season foreshadowed what was to come in the future with the Meadowlands (a.k.a. Giants Stadium) after the Jets left Flushing Meadows for New Jersey following the 1983 NFL season.

text: Features[edit]

text: Design[edit]

text: Shea was a circular stadium, with the grandstand forming about two-thirds of a circle around the field and ending a short distance beyond the foul lines. The remainder of the perimeter was mostly empty space beyond the outfield fences. This space was occupied by the bullpens, scoreboards, and a section of bleachers beyond the left field fence. The stadium boasted 54 restrooms, 21 escalators, seats for 57,343 fans, and a massive 86' x 175' scoreboard. Also, rather than the standard light towers, Shea featured lamps along its upper reaches. Some deemed Shea a showplace, praised for its convenience, even its "elegance".[53] The stadium's scoreboard in right field, one of the largest in MLB when it opened, weighed over 60 tons. One of its distinctive features was a giant rearview slide projector screen on the top center of the scoreboard; it was intended to display a picture of the current player at bat (a very groundbreaking innovation at the time); however, due to lighting issues (it only worked at night when the light was really low; during day games, the picture would not show up at all), it was not used very often and was eventually covered with a giant Mets logo (or a Jets logo when they played).[57][58]

text: The stadium was located close to LaGuardia Airport. For many years, interruptions for planes flying overhead were common at Shea, and the noise was so loud that radio and television broadcasts couldn't be heard. Later, flight plans were altered to alleviate the noise problem.

text: Shea was originally designed with two motor-operated stands that allow the field level seats to rotate on underground tracks, allowing the stadium to be converted between a baseball and an American football/soccer configuration. In 1982, a new Mitsubishi DiamondVision screen was installed in left field; the messageboard on the main scoreboard subsequently became covered with a Budweiser advertisement for the rest of the stadium's life.[59] After the New York Jets football team moved to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey in 1984, the Mets took over operation of the stadium and retrofitted it for exclusive baseball use. As part of the refitting, Shea Stadium's exterior was painted blue and neon signs of baseball player silhouettes were added to the windscreens prior to the 1988 season. The original scoreboard was removed, and a new one installed in its place (fitting into the shell left behind by the old one), in 1988. The original (wooden) outfield wall was removed also removed at that time, and replaced by a padded fence.[4]

text: Banks of ramps that provided access from the ground to the upper levels were built around the outside circumference of the stadium. The ramps were not walled in and were visible from outside the stadium. The ramps were originally partly covered with many rectangular panels in blue and orange, the Mets' colors. These panels can be seen in the 1970s movie The Wiz, which used the exterior pedestrian ramps for a motorcycle chase scene with Michael Jackson and Diana Ross. The 1960s-style decorations were removed in 1980.[4] The banks of ramps resulted in the outer wall of the stadium jutting out where the banks existed.

text: The design also allowed for Shea Stadium to be expandable to 90,000 seats, simply by completely enclosing the grandstand. It was also designed to be later enclosed by a dome if warranted. In March 1965, a plan was formally announced to add a glass dome and add 15,000 seats.[25][60] The Mets strongly objected to the proposal.[61] The idea was later dropped after engineering studies concluded that the stadium's foundation would be unable to support the weight of the dome.[25]

text: The distances to the right and left field foul poles were initially both 341 feet (104 m). There was a horizontal orange line that determined where a batted ball was a home run or still in play. In 1978, Manager Joe Torre suggested moving in the fences to 338 feet (103 m) in the corners with a wall in front of the original brick wall, to decrease the number of disputed calls.[62]

text: Originally, all of the seats were wooden, with each level having a different color. The field boxes were yellow, the loge level seats were brown, the mezzanine seats were blue, and the upper deck seats were green. Each level above the field level was divided into box seats below the entrance/exit portals and reserved seats above the portals. The box seats were a darker shade than the reserved seats. The game ticket was the same color as the seat that it represented, and the signs in the lobby for that section were the same color as the seat and the ticket. Before the 1980 baseball season, they were replaced with red (upper deck), green (mezzanine), blue (loge), and orange (field level) plastic seats.

text: Unlike Yankee Stadium, Shea was built on an open field, so there was no need to have it conform to the surrounding streets.

text: Before Shea Stadium closed in 2008, it was the only stadium in the major leagues with orange foul poles. This tradition is carried on at Citi Field as the foul poles there are the same color.

text: After the Jets left Shea, the exterior of the stadium was painted blue and white, two of the Mets' team colors.

text: In 2003, large murals celebrating the Mets' two world championships were added, covering the two ends of the grandstand. The 1986 mural was removed after the 2006 season because of deterioration (the wall was re-painted solid blue, and a window was opened on the mezzanine level where fans could view the progress of Citi Field), but the 1969 mural survived until the final game at the end of 2008.

text: The scoreboard was topped by a representation of the New York Skyline, a prominent part of the team logo. After the September 11 terrorist attacks, the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were kept unlit, with a red-white-and-blue ribbon placed over them. The scoreboard was demolished in October 2008, but the skyline was preserved and is now located on the Shake Shack in Citi Field's "Taste Of The City" food court behind the giant scoreboard in center field.[63]

text: During the 2007 and 2008 seasons, the construction of Citi Field was visible beyond the left and center field walls of Shea.

text: From 1973 to 1979, fans could estimate the distance of home run balls, since there were several signs beyond the outfield wall giving the distance in feet from home plate, in addition to the nine markers within the field.[4]

text: Home Run Apple[edit]

text: The Home Run Apple came out of a magic hat after every Mets home run at Shea Stadium. It was first installed in May 1980 as a symbol of the Mets' advertising slogan "The Magic Is Back!" (the hat originally said "Mets Magic" in script but was changed in the mid-1980s to a simple "Home Run" in block capital letters).[64] A bigger apple was placed in center field at Citi Field. The original apple was installed inside Citi Field's bullpen gate and was visible from outside, on 126th Street. In 2010, the original Shea apple was relocated outside the Citi Field, in front of the Jackie Robinson Rotunda.[65]

text: Seating capacity[edit]

text:
Baseball

Years
Capacity

1964–1984
55,300[10]

1985–1993
55,601[66]

1994–2001
55,777[67]

2002–2003
56,749[68]

2004
57,405[69]

2005
57,369[70]

2006–2008
57,333[71]

Football

Years
Capacity

1964–1983
60,372[72]

text: Homages[edit]

text: Four players in the National League named their children after Shea Stadium.[73]

text:
Former Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones named his second son Shea after Jones' success in Shea Stadium against the Mets; he hit 19 home runs there, more than any other road park.[73]
Former Cincinnati Reds shortstop Barry Larkin named his eldest daughter Brielle D'Shea, as he enjoyed playing at Shea Stadium.[73]
Former Houston Astros third baseman Gary Cooper named his youngest daughter Shea after Shea Stadium. He also named his son Camden after Camden Yards in Baltimore.
Current New York Mets third baseman David Wright named his first daughter Olivia Shea. Wright began his career playing everyday in Shea Stadium for the Mets.

text: Actor Kevin James, who is a devoted Mets fan named his youngest daughter, Shea Joelle after the ballpark.[74]


document_title: Doctor of Business Administration

question_text: how many years is a doctorate degree in business administration

root

text: Doctor of Business Administration

text: Structure and format[edit]

text: Doctor of Business Administration programs have a dual purpose: contribute to business theory and further develop the professional practice (e.g. contribute to professional knowledge in business). Universities generally require candidates to have significant experience in business, particularly in roles with leadership or other strategic responsibilities. D.B.A. candidates specialize in areas such as management science, information technology management, organizational behaviour, economics, finance and the like. As with other doctorate programs, curricula may be offered on a full-time or part-time basis. According to the European higher education standards set by the Bologna Process, the normal duration of doctorate programs like the D.B.A. and Ph.D is 4 years of full-time study.

tag: p

text: The responsibility for the structure of doctoral programs resides within the graduate research committees or their equivalent within the university. As such, D.B.A programs have a specific set of university regulations and are subject to quality approval processes. Regulations include references to protocols for treating ethical issues in research. These regulations are widely used in Australian Universities. For instance, a D.B.A student cannot embark on the research phase before passing all his or her coursework. Furthermore, upon passing the proposal stage, he or she must clear ethics-related issues with an Ethics Committee. The D.B.A candidate must go through numerous internal moderations of the dissertation before submitting to external examinations (usually at least two). Successful candidates usually revise their dissertations numerous times before final approval is granted from the doctoral committee.

text: Relationship between D.B.A. and Ph.D[edit]

text: The Doctor of Business Administration and the Ph.D in Business Administration are equivalent degrees.[2] Both doctorates are research doctorates representing the highest academic qualification in business in the United States. As such, both D.B.A. and Ph.D programs require students to develop original research leading to a dissertation defense.[4] Furthermore, both doctorates enable holders to become faculty members at academic institutions. The D.B.A. and Ph.D in Business Administration are terminal degrees, allowing the recipient to obtain a tenure-track position.

text: In some cases, as in that of Harvard University, the distinction is solely administrative (Harvard Business School is not authorized to issue Ph.Ds; only the Faculty of Arts and Sciences may do so).[5] In other cases,the distinction is one of orientation and intended outcomes. The Ph.D is highly focused on developing theoretical knowledge, while the D.B.A. emphasizes applied research.[4][6][7] Upon completion, graduates of Ph.D programs generally migrate to full-time faculty positions in academia, while those of D.B.A. programs re-emerge in industry as applied researchers or executives. If working full-time in industry, graduates of D.B.A. and Ph.D programs often become adjunct professors in top undergraduate and graduate degree programs.

text: Geographic distribution[edit]

text: D.B.A. programs are offered worldwide. The majority, however, are offered in Europe (42 percent), followed by North America (28 percent) and the Asia-Pacific region (22 percent). 6 percent of the programs are offered in Africa and 2 percent in Latin America and the Caribbean.

text: Notable persons with a D.B.A. degree[edit]

text:
Hugh T. Broomall – Major General, USAF, Special Assistant to the Director, Air National Guard
Robert F. Bruner – Dean Charles C. Abbott Professor of Business Administration and Distinguished Professor of Business Administration at the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia
Clayton M. Christensen – Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School
Scott Cowen – president of Tulane University of Louisiana
Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries – Raoul de Vitry d'Avaucourt Professor of Leadership Development at INSEAD and director of the INSEAD Global Leadership Centre
Tony Newton - President and Board Chair, British Dental Health Foundation and International Dental Health Foundation [8] Durham University Business School
CK Prahalad – Paul and Ruth McCracken Distinguished University Professor of Corporate Strategy at University of Michigan, Ross School of Business
Michael E. Raynor – Canadian management expert and consultant with Deloitte Consulting LLP, the Distinguished Fellow with Deloitte Research
Lenos Trigeorgis – Real options pioneer; Professor of finance, University of Cyprus
John Quelch – Dean, Vice President and Distinguished Professor of International Management at CEIBS, previously Senior Associate Dean and the Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School
Birger Wernerfelt – J. C. Penney Professor of Management and Chair of PhD Committee, MIT Sloan School of Management
Robert B. Wilson – Adams Distinguished Professor of Management, Emeritus, Graduate School of Business, and Professor of Economics (by courtesy), School of Humanities and Sciences, Stanford University
Dave Yeske – Co-Founder,[9] Managing Director, Yeske Buie; National President[9] (2003), Financial Planning Association (FPA); Distinguished Adjunct Professor,[10] Ageno School of Business, Golden Gate University

tag: ul

text: Business Schools offering a D.B.A. Degrees[edit]

text:
Baker College
Cass Business School
Durham University Business School
Felician University
Grenoble Ecole de Management
Harvard Business School
IE Business School
Kennesaw State University
Manchester Business School
Sacred Heart University
SDA Bocconi School of Management
Singapore University of Social Sciences
Swiss Business School
Staffordshire University
Trident University International[11]
University of Florida
University of South Florida
University of Wales Trinity Saint David
Edinburgh Business School


document_title: List of Atlantic Coast Conference football champions

question_text: who has the most acc championships in football

text: Early era[edit]

text: The charter members of the ACC were Clemson, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Carolina, and Wake Forest.[3] The seven ACC charter members had been aligned with the Southern Conference, but left due in part to the conference's ban on postseason play.[4] The ACC officially came into existence on June 14, 1953.[3] The 1953 college football season, the first under the new conference, saw Duke and Maryland crowned conference co-champions. Maryland later went on to be crowned national champions before losing the 1954 Orange Bowl.[5]

text: On December 4, 1953, conference officials convened in Greensboro, North Carolina, and admitted the University of Virginia as the eighth member of the conference.[3] Virginia was the first non-Southern Conference member to join the new conference, as Virginia had played football with no conference affiliation since 1936.[4] The conference operated with eight members until June 30, 1971, when the University of South Carolina left to become an independent.[6]

text: After South Carolina's departure, the ACC operated with seven members until April 3, 1978, when the Georgia Institute of Technology was admitted. The Atlanta, school had withdrawn from the Southeastern Conference in January 1964 and had operated as an independent before joining the ACC.[7] Though the school joined the conference beginning with the 1979 season, it did not become eligible to win the ACC football championship until the 1983 season.[8] Seven years after beginning full ACC play, Georgia Tech won its first ACC football championship en route to winning the 1990 NCAA Division I football championship.[9]

text: In the fall of 1982, Clemson University was put on probation by the NCAA for recruiting violations.[10] The probation forbade the team from participating in any bowl games, reduced the scholarships available to the team, and rendered the team ineligible for ACC football championship competition.[10] Though the team still played its full slate of games during the 1983 season and finished 9–1–1, Maryland, which finished with an 8–4 record, was awarded the ACC football championship.[11]

text: The ACC expanded to nine members on September 15, 1990, with the addition of Florida State.[12] Beginning with the 1992 football season—its first in the ACC—Florida State won or shared the ACC football championship nine consecutive times.[13] The conference expanded to 11 members on July 1, 2004, with the addition of the University of Miami and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.[12]

text: Miami and Virginia Tech began official ACC play with the 2004 college football season,[14] but because the league was forbidden from hosting a championship game, the conference was forced to award a championship based on regular-season play (round-robin scheduling was no longer used beginning that season). Virginia Tech, which had the best conference record at the conclusion of the season, was awarded the ACC championship.[15]

text: Championship game era[edit]

text: Following the admittance of Boston College into the conference beginning with the 2005–2006 season, the conference began to play an annual championship game to conclude the season.[16] The new 12-team conference was divided into two divisions, and the champion of each division (the team with the best conference record in each division) was awarded an invitation to the conference championship game.[17]

text: The first championship game was held in Jacksonville, Florida, on December 3, 2005,[18] with Florida State (champions of the Atlantic Division) defeating Virginia Tech (Coastal Division champions), 27–22.[19] In 2006, Wake Forest faced off against Georgia Tech for the championship. In the lowest-scoring conference championship game in Division I history, Wake defeated Georgia Tech, 9–6.[20] The 2007 game saw Virginia Tech return to the contest, this time facing off against Boston College. In their second ACC Championship Game, Tech defeated Boston College, 30–16.[21]

text: The 2008 ACC Championship Game was held in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on December 6, 2008. Virginia Tech won by a score of 30–12, becoming the first ACC team to win consecutive ACC championship games.[22] Tampa also hosted the 2009 ACC Championship Game which was won by Georgia Tech over Clemson.[23] Poor attendance in both of the Florida locations caused a move to Charlotte, North Carolina's Bank of America Stadium for the 2010 and 2011 games.[23] Charlotte hosted the game again in 2012 and 2013. In February 2014 it was announced that Charlotte would continue to host the game through at least 2019.

text: Champions by year[edit]

text:
Year
Champion(s)[24]
Notes

1953
Duke
Maryland
This was the inaugural ACC football season, and seven teams participated.[3]
Maryland also won the 1953 NCAA Division I college football national championship.[24]

1954
Duke
Virginia participated as an ACC team for the first time. Eight schools participated in the ACC.[3]

1955
Duke
Maryland

1956
Clemson

1957
NC State

1958
Clemson

1959
Clemson

1960
Duke

1961
Duke

1962
Duke

1963
North Carolina
NC State

1964
NC State

1965
Clemson
NC State
South Carolina/Duke originally co-champions. League office made South Carolina forfeit wins against NC State and Clemson which made them co-champions.[24]

1966
Clemson

1967
Clemson

1968
NC State

1969
South Carolina

1970
Wake Forest

1971
North Carolina
South Carolina left the ACC following the 1971 season. Seven teams remained in the ACC.[6]

1972
North Carolina

1973
NC State

1974
Maryland

1975
Maryland

1976
Maryland

1977
North Carolina

1978
Clemson

1979
NC State

1980
North Carolina

1981
Clemson
Clemson also won the National Championship beating Nebraska in the Orange Bowl.

1982
Clemson

1983
Maryland
Clemson finished undefeated against ACC opponents, but was ineligible for the 1983 conference title. Therefore, the championship was awarded to Maryland, whose loss to Clemson did not count against its conference record.[11] Georgia Tech became eligible to win the ACC football championship this season.[8]

1984
Maryland

1985
Maryland

1986
Clemson

1987
Clemson

1988
Clemson

1989
Duke
Virginia
Virginia received the Citrus Bowl bid awarded to the ACC champion in 1989.[24]

1990
Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech also won the UPI National Championship (now the USA Today Coaches' Poll), beating Nebraska in the Citrus Bowl.

1991
Clemson
Florida State joined the ACC, but did not compete for the football championship until the following season.[13]

1992
Florida State

1993
Florida State
Florida State also won the National Championship that season, beating Nebraska in the Orange Bowl

1994
Florida State

1995
Florida State
Virginia
Florida State received the Bowl Alliance bid awarded to the 1995 ACC football champion.[24]

1996
Florida State

1997
Florida State

1998
Florida State
Georgia Tech
Florida State received the Bowl Championship Series bid awarded to the 1998 ACC football champion.[24]

1999
Florida State
Florida State won their second National Championship that season, beating Michael Vick and Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl

2000
Florida State

2001
Maryland
Maryland became the first team other than Florida State to win the outright conference championship since FSU joined the ACC.

2002
Florida State

2003
Florida State

2004
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech and Miami joined the ACC, which then had 11 teams.[25]

2005
Florida State
This was the first year of the ACC Championship Game. Florida State defeated Coastal Division champion Virginia Tech.[18]

2006
Wake Forest
Wake Forest defeated Coastal Division champion Georgia Tech.[26]

2007
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech defeated Atlantic Division champion Boston College.[21]

2008
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech defeated Atlantic Division champion Boston College.[22]

2009
Vacated
Georgia Tech defeated Atlantic Division champion Clemson in the championship game, but the NCAA later vacated their win.[27]

2010
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech defeated Atlantic Division champion Florida State.

2011
Clemson
Clemson defeated Coastal Division champion Virginia Tech.

2012
Florida State
Florida State defeated Coastal Division champion Georgia Tech.

2013
Florida State
Florida State defeated Coastal Division champion Duke, followed by a victory over Auburn in the BCS National Championship Game for the Seminoles' third title. Pittsburgh and Syracuse joined the ACC, bringing it to its current total of 14 teams.

2014
Florida State
Florida State defeated Coastal Division champion Georgia Tech. Florida State lost to Oregon in the 2014 Rose Bowl Game of the inaugural College Football Playoff.

2015
Clemson
Clemson defeated Coastal Division champion North Carolina. Clemson defeated Oklahoma in the 2015 Orange Bowl of the College Football Playoff. Clemson moved on to play for the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship against Alabama, losing 45 to 40.

2016
Clemson
Clemson defeated Coastal Division champion Virginia Tech and made the College Football Playoff. Clemson defeated Ohio State in the playoff semi-final Fiesta Bowl 31-0. The Tigers then went on to win their second national championship by defeating Alabama 35-31 in the CFP National Championship Game. The Tigers also finished #1 in the AP and Coaches Polls, bringing home the CFP gold trophy, the coaches crystal football trophy and the AP national championship trophy. The CFP National Championship won by the Tigers determines the national championship in this era.

tag: table

text: Championships by school[edit]

text:
School
Championships
Years

Clemson
16
1956, 1958, 1959, 1965*, 1966, 1967, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1991, 2011, 2015, 2016

Florida State
15
1992, 1993, 1994, 1995*, 1996, 1997, 1998*, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2014

Maryland
9
1953*, 1955*, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1983, 1984, 1985, 2001

Duke
7
1953*, 1954, 1955*, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1989*

NC State
7
1957, 1963*, 1964, 1965*, 1968, 1973, 1979

North Carolina
5
1963*, 1971, 1972, 1977, 1980

Virginia Tech
4
2004, 2007, 2008, 2010

Georgia Tech
2
1990, 1998*, 2009**

Virginia
2
1989*, 1995*

Wake Forest
2
1970, 2006

South Carolina
1
1969

Boston College
0

Louisville
0

Miami (FL)
0

Pittsburgh
0

Syracuse
0

text: * Co-champions.

text: ** Georgia Tech was forced to vacate the 2009 ACC Championship in response to NCAA violations.


document_title: Barney Stinson

question_text: when do barney and robin get together again

text: Barney Stinson

text: Development[edit]

text: The show's creators envisioned Barney as what Bays later described as a "large, John Belushi-type character";[3] nonetheless, Megan Branman, the casting director for How I Met Your Mother, invited Harris to audition. He assumed that he was invited solely because the two were friends and did not believe he had a chance of winning the role. Harris later said: "Since I [considered] myself the long shot, I didn't care that much, and I think that allowed a freedom." His audition centered on a scene playing laser tag, and Harris attempted a dive roll, accidentally knocking over a chair and slamming into a wall in the process. CBS executives enjoyed his playing and soon offered Harris the part.[4] The character is named for a heroin dealer in the James Ellroy novel L.A. Confidential.[citation needed]

text: Character[edit]

text: Barney Stinson is one of five main characters on How I Met Your Mother. He is a manipulative, oversexed businessman in his thirties who always wears a suit, likes women with "daddy issues" and is frequently willing to offer his (sometimes hypocritical) opinion.[4] Throughout the earlier seasons, Barney is a huge womanizer, and has been described as a "high-functioning sociopath" by his best friend, Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor). Barney has a plethora of strategies and rules designed to meet women, sleep with them, and discard them.[4] Through several seasons of the show, four (4) of the main characters are couples, as Ted began dating Robin Scherbatsky (Cobie Smulders) and Ted's roommate Marshall Eriksen (Jason Segel) becomes engaged and later married to Lily Aldrin (Alyson Hannigan). This leaves Barney the only single character, and, according to Harris, Barney is "resentful" that the other characters have paired up. Later on, in season 5, he dates Robin. They end up breaking up not long after, once they both realize they are making one another miserable.

text: Harris describes Barney as a man who "likes to create crazy situations and then sit back and watch it all go down."[5] He is an opportunist who manipulates any situation so that it goes his way. He is also highly competitive, and will take on "challenges" to complete outlandish tasks in order to prove his worth. He is proud and stubborn, and attempts to stand by his word no matter what. In "I Heart NJ", for example, he refuses to put down his fist unless someone offers him a fist bump. By the end of the episode, he has the same fist elevated in a sling after struggling to keep his fist up throughout the episode. In "Lucky Penny", when the others do not believe that he can run the New York City Marathon the next day without training, Barney immediately agrees to do so. Although he succeeds, he is unable to walk afterwards. Although he thinks of himself as worldly, Barney is sometimes extremely naive, believing many lies his mother told him well into adulthood, such as believing that Bob Barker is his father.

text: Barney, like Harris himself, is an illusionist. His favorite types of magic tricks involve fire, as seen in the tenth episode of the second season, "Single Stamina" and in the fourth episode of the fourth season, "Intervention". Barney uses magic tricks mostly to pick up women. His most common method of picking up women is telling them elaborate lies about himself, often using an alias. Many of his schemes for picking up women are in a book he has written called "The Playbook", which is exposed in the episode "The Playbook". He has commitment issues, as evidenced in his reluctance to put a label on his relationship with Robin and the fact that she is one of the few women he has actually dated since the show started.

text: Barney is very well-connected and is the most affluent member of the group. He frequently buys expensive items—such as a last-minute plane ticket to San Francisco, thousands of dollars in postage stamps, or two televisions specifically for smashing in frustration—in the spur of the moment. He is also something of a metrosexual; he waxes his chest, enjoys manicures and has an extensive knowledge of designer labels and gourmet food. However, he is also seen to have a gambling problem that he occasionally gets under control, only to relapse as seen in several episodes such as "Atlantic City", where he has gambling buddies in the Chinese Triad, and "Monday Night Football".

text: Although The Early Show described him as "Utterly devoid of morality", Barney lives by the "Bro Code", his own code of ethics.[6] Despite his overall questionable character, according to creator Craig Thomas, Barney is "a pretty fragile character who's really afraid of being alone. He just wants people to like him, to be important to people, and to have disciples who follow his word."[7] He has displayed a softer, kinder side on several occasions, however, such as preventing Marshall from sleeping with other women when he and Lily break up, and persuading Lily to come back to Marshall.

text: In "The Slutty Pumpkin Returns", Barney finds out he is one quarter Canadian, much to his horror and embarrassment.

text: Throughout the series, one major character development is apparent in Barney: At the beginning of the show, his character is a womanizer who completely objectifies sex and women and wants nothing to do with dating and relationships. Although he does date Robin in Season 5, he resumes his promiscuous lifestyle immediately after they break up. In Seasons 6 and 7, however, he begins to confront his personal issues, like his relationship with his estranged father and his fear of commitment. By the time late Season 7 rolls around, Barney has finally "grown up," and has now warmed to the idea of a commitment and marriage, culminating in his proposal to his girlfriend, Quinn. Although he briefly retreats to his escapades after he and Quinn break up, he does make one major final leap in his maturity when he burns The Playbook and proposes to Robin in Season 8's two-part episode "The Final Page," after finally admitting to himself that he is still in love with her. Robin accepts and they plan their wedding in the second half of the season.

text: The final season revolves around Barney and Robin's wedding weekend. After some apprehension on both their parts, they get married in "The End of the Aisle" after he vows to always be honest with her. The series finale, "Last Forever", reveals that, three years after their wedding, they get divorced because Robin's hectic travel schedule prevents them from spending any time together. Barney returns to a lifestyle of meaningless sex with multiple women for several years afterward, until he gets one of his one-night stands pregnant. He hates the idea of being a father until the day his child – a girl named Ellie – is born. He falls in love with her at first sight and becomes a devoted father, turning away from his player lifestyle for good.

text: Childhood and family[edit]

text: A few references have been offered to identify Barney's Birthday: In "Natural History", Barney claims he was six years old on July 23, 1981. This puts his birthday somewhere between July 24, 1974 and July 23, 1975; in "Zoo or False", Ted says Barney was born seven years after the moon landing (which occurred in July 1969), In "Columns" set in 2007, Barney gives his age as 31 further confirming his birth year is 1976. In "The Drunk Train" Marshall states Barney is a Scorpio which places his birthday between October 23 - November 21, 1976.

text: He was raised in Port Richmond, Staten Island by his mother Loretta (younger version voiced by Megan Mullally, played by Frances Conroy), who was apparently very promiscuous.[4] His father proved to be an ongoing mystery in the series. When Barney was young, he asked his mother who his father was, and as The Price Is Right happened to be on TV at the time, she pointed to Bob Barker and replied, "Oh, I don't know. That guy." Barney believed the lie wholeheartedly. Years later, as portrayed in the season 2 episode "Showdown", he appears on The Price Is Right with the intention of naming Barker as his father on national television, until he panics at the last minute and cannot go through with it. As a child, Barney was terrible at sports, and from various episodes it is shown he had few friends (one scene shows that no one attended his birthday party). In the episode "The Leap," Lily reveals that Barney planned on being a violinist when he was young.

text: In "Natural History", Barney finds out that a man named Jerome Whittaker, whom Barney believed to be his uncle, signed a form claiming to be Barney's father. Barney finally meets Jerome (John Lithgow) again in the episode "Legendaddy" and learns that he is in fact his father. Upon meeting, Jerome feels pressured to act like the hard-partying womanizer he once was in order to impress Barney, and also because Barney refuses to see him any other way. Barney eventually breaks down and accuses Jerome of walking out on him. Jerome, who can offer no excuse, apologizes and pleads with Barney to allow him to be a part of his life. Later in the sixth season, in "Hopeless", Jerome tries to impress Barney by acting like his old self, but later reveals he was just pretending. Barney, nevertheless, willingly listens to advice from Jerome about settling down. Barney also learns of his Canadian heritage, when he finds out that Jerome's mother was born in Manitoba.

text: Barney has three half-siblings: James (played by Wayne Brady), from his mother's side, a gay African American who is married to a man, with whom he has an adopted son and daughter (as revealed in the season seven episode "The Rebound Girl"); Carly (played by Ashley Benson), a university student from his father's side with whom Ted has a one-night stand in "Ring Up!", and Jerome Jr. (JJ), from his father's side, who is 11. He also has a female cousin named Leslie, with whom he accidentally grinds in a nightclub, as seen in the episode "Okay Awesome".

text: Education[edit]

text: Throughout the series Barney has claimed to have attended MIT; In the final season, Barney explains that MIT is an acronym for the Magicians Institute of Teaneck, not the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has worn a Cornell Big Red T-shirt,[8] indicating that he may have gone there, instead. As evidenced in Season 2 "Atlantic City", Barney learned at least conversational Korean, Chinese at some point, as well as some French. His musical skills include playing the drums, dancing the tango and singing. He is also skilled at juggling and laser tag.

text: Adult life prior to 2005 ("Pilot")[edit]

text: "Game Night" reveals that Barney had once been an innocent, idealistic young man who wanted to join the Peace Corps with his first serious girlfriend, Shannon. When she left him for a suit-wearing womanizer, James arranged for the 23-year-old Barney to lose his virginity to their mother's friend, Rhonda "the Man Maker" French.[9] After he slept with Rhonda and was led to believe he satisfied her, he became a similarly suit-wearing womanizer, even going so far as to adopt some of his rival's catchphrases. He lives by a strict code known as the Bro Code.[10][better source needed]

text: Barney is also revealed to have had a gambling problem, enabled by his mother, who is a bookmaker. However, he assures the group that it is not a problem because he is so good at it. He revealed in "Atlantic City" that he lost his entire life savings playing a Chinese game. He has also apparently lost every one of his many bets on the Super Bowl. He will go to any lengths to win a bet, even if it takes one year for just $10.[11]

text: In the series (2005–2014)[edit]

text: While Barney's softer, generous side is not often apparent,[7] it is not always relegated to flashbacks. When Marshall and Lily break their engagement in season one, Barney lures women away from Marshall so that he can remain faithful to the woman he truly loves.[5] It is revealed that it was Barney who convinced Lily to come back to New York, even buying her a plane ticket home. Barney's relationship with women evolves throughout the series; in the later seasons, he begins to desire a more conventional relationship, as evidenced by his subsequent proposals to both Quinn Garvey and Robin Scherbatsky. He is also known to write a blog.[12] In an allusion to Harris' role in Doogie Howser, M.D., the music played during his blogging sessions is the theme song from the show.

text: Career[edit]

text: Throughout the series, Barney frequently refuses to say what he does for a living, brushing off any questions about his job with a dismissive "Please."

text: Barney is apparently quite wealthy, and is undeniably the richest out of the five. He lives in an upscale apartment and is rich enough to own two 300 inch televisions shipped from Japan as well as expensive memorabilia, including an Imperial Stormtrooper costume from the Star Wars films.[13] Barney is also shown to be a fan of the rock groups AC/DC, Van Halen and Bon Jovi.

text: In his blog, he writes that he is the Director of WHO DID THIS.[14] The company he works for, Altrucell,[15] advertises itself as the world's largest producer of the felt covers of tennis balls; however, Future Ted implies that the company's main profits come from other, less innocent sources, such as logging, oil drilling, small arms, tobacco farming and missile construction. Barney states in "Cupcake" that, as a lawyer for Altrucell, Marshall would make more money in three months than he and Lily make in a year because his company has so many lawsuits against it.[6] In the season 3 episode "The Bracket," he says that he is good enough at lying to avoid perjury charges. As of Season 4, his company is involved in a hostile takeover of Goliath National Bank (GNB) and consequently shifts him to the management team of the bank, but he remains a powerful executive and continues to use the same office he has had since it was first shown in Season 1. Despite this, he has suggested there is the possibility he will one day wash up on shore with no teeth or fingerprints and supposedly has come under attack by ninjas in the past during work. In Season 4, during the episode "Happily Ever After", Barney states to a woman that he is an "Attorney in Law", though this was probably just part of a pick-up line as he immediately followed it with "Let's talk about getting you off". His video resume was published in Season 4 episode "The Possimpible".[16] In a season 8 episode, it was implied that the full extent of Barney's career might never be revealed.

text: In the Season 9 episode "Unpause", he drunkenly reveals that his job is to "Provide Legal Exculpation And Sign Everything" (P.L.E.A.S.E.), setting him up to be the fall guy for his company's nefarious activities. Unknown to his company, he has been conspiring with the federal government as part of a long-term plan to get revenge on his boss, who stole his girlfriend prior to the start of the series.

text: Friends[edit]

text: Ted Mosby[edit]

text: Ted is Barney's self-proclaimed best friend and "wing man". They meet in 2001 at MacLaren's, and Barney takes it upon himself to "teach Ted how to live". While Ted is often annoyed by Barney's antics, he considers him a good friend, and in "Miracles," says that Barney is like a brother to him. Their friendship has been tested, however; in "The Goat", Ted finds out that Barney and Robin slept together and ends their friendship, and refuses to speak to him for several episodes. In the third-season finale, "Miracles", however, Ted forgives Barney after Barney severely injures himself while trying to help him. They remain an important part of each other's lives for the rest of the series, with Barney comforting Ted after he is left at the altar in "Shelter Island" and Ted teaching Barney how to be a good boyfriend to Robin in "Robin 101" . Ted is the best man at Barney's wedding, and, along with the other main characters, is present for the birth of his child.[17]

text: Marshall Eriksen[edit]

text: Barney meets Marshall around the same time as Ted, and takes it upon himself to give Marshall unwanted advice on picking up women. While Marshall makes fun of Barney's promiscuity and ethical lapses, however, Barney has helped him many times throughout the series. For example, Barney gets him an internship at Altrucell in "Life Among the Gorillas", keeps him from sleeping with other women in "The Scorpion and the Toad", persuades Lily to come back to him in "Bachelor Party", and gets him a job at Goliath National Bank in "The Best Burger in New York". Barney is "co-best man" with Ted at Marshall's wedding. Along with the other main characters, Marshall is present for the birth of Barney's daughter. In the episode "Slap Bet", Barney loses a bet with Marshall and agrees to let Marshall slap him five times at random occasions "throughout eternity". This is later extended to eight slaps in the episode "Disaster Averted". Marshall administers these slaps in the episodes "Slap Bet", "Stuff", "Slapsgiving", "Slapsgiving 2: Revenge of the Slap", "Slapsgiving 3: Slappointment in Slapmarra", and "The End of the Aisle".

text: Lily Aldrin[edit]

text: Barney makes many unwelcome sexual advances toward Lily throughout the series, and frequently implies that Lily is secretly attracted to him, despite all evidence to the contrary. Nevertheless, he considers Lily a confidante, seeking her advice on winning Robin over and telling her deeply personal secrets, such as his failed ambition to be a concert violinist. He also admires her skill at lying and manipulating people, considering it to be on par with his own. While Lily calls Barney "the world's biggest pervert" and a "womanizing creep", she also considers him one of her best friends. Along with the other main characters, Lily is present for the birth of Barney's daughter.[17]

text: Robin Scherbatsky[edit]

text: Barney and Robin start out as friends, but he falls in love with her after they impulsively sleep together in "Sandcastles in the Sand". Throughout Season 4, he struggles with his feelings for her, until they finally get together in the season finale "The Leap". They become a full-fledged couple in season 5, but they break up in "The Rough Patch" when they find that they are making each other miserable. They never truly get over each other, however, even while they are dating other people. In the eighth season, he launches an elaborate plan to win Robin's heart (encouraged by Ted's future wife) that ends with Barney proposing to her. She accepts, and they get engaged. The final season revolves around their wedding weekend. After much doubt and soul-searching, they get married in "The End of the Aisle". The series finale, "Last Forever", reveals that, after three years of marriage, they get divorced because Robin's work schedule prevents them from spending any time together. They do not see each other again for several years, until Ted's wedding.[17]

text: Romantic relationships[edit]

text: Robin Scherbatsky[edit]

text: Others[edit]

text: Barney has two other serious girlfriends throughout the series: Nora (Nazanin Boniadi), on whom he cheats with Robin; and Quinn (Becki Newton), a stripper to whom he proposes, but with whom he breaks up upon realizing that they don't trust each other.

text: Appearances outside How I Met Your Mother[edit]

text: In 2008, the book The Bro Code, ostensibly written by Barney, was published. Three other books ostensibly written by Barney, Bro on the Go (2009), The Playbook (2010), and Bro Code for Parents: What to Expect When You're Awesome (2012), were also published.

text: In 2010, Barney was featured in a Super Bowl commercial that showed him in the stands at the Super Bowl with a sign stating "Hey Ladies Call Barney Stinson 1-877-987-6401." A recorded message by Neil Patrick Harris was played if the number was dialed.[18]

text: Catchphrases[edit]

text: In the show's pilot, Barney first utters the phrase, "Suit up!", as he tells others to dress like him to go out. The phrase "Suit up!" came from an ad for a suit sale in a later episode about his past with Shannon. According to creator Thomas, this is a sign that Barney "thought of his suit as some kind of superhero outfit that separated him from the pack."[7] The phrase is repeated in many episodes, and is often modified to fit whatever clothing Barney is wearing, such as "Flight suit up", "Snow suit up", and even "Birthday suit up". He also uses the word "awesome" to describe anything that he finds remotely pleasing, and invents different kinds of "high-fives" for every occasion. However, Barney's arguably most famous catch phrase is "Legendary!" which he uses to describe anything and everything fun and exciting (In fact, Ted says that he over-uses it). When saying something is legendary, he typically says "it's going to be Legen... wait for it... dary! Legendary!" He also says "wait for it" quite often. And also he often uses the word "Nice" to express when he glad in something or someone.

text: In the show Barney frequently approaches attractive women with Ted in tow and asks "Haaaaaave you met Ted?" as a way to start a conversation with strangers. Thomas says that this phrase is based in real life, as a one-time friend of his often used a similar line to meet women.[7] He is also prone to saying "Daddy's Home" as either a chat-up line or for grand entrances, and "True Story" as an ending to stories or theories that are generally erroneous.

text: Barney often uses the phrase "Challenge accepted" when someone mentions an outlandish task that supposedly cannot be done; he takes this as a personal challenge and attempts, usually successfully, to perform the task.

text: Reception[edit]

text: According to The Early Show, Barney is one of the main reasons that the show has been a success.[6] Maclean's stated that Barney is the show's most popular character and explains that the most likeable characters are often those with the best catchphrases.[7] In 2006, TV Land named Barney's "Suit Up" one of the 100 Best Catchphrases. Barney's signature phrase is one of only four from contemporary television shows, as writers are now less likely to have a character repeat a phrase in many episodes.[7] In June 2010, Entertainment Weekly named him one of the 100 Greatest Characters of the Last 20 Years.[19] Paste included him in their list of the 20 Best Characters of 2011, ranking him No. 4.[20]

text: From 2007–10, Harris was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his work playing Barney.[21] In 2008, Fireside published The Bro Code. Ostensibly written by Stinson, although actually penned by Matt Kuhn, a writer for the show, the book reveals the code by which the character supposedly lives his life (though he has been shown disregarding and/or violating a large portion of the articles in the book).[22] Oxford Dictionaries recognized Stinson as "the quintessence of a certain iteration of the contemporary bro" and noted how his language uses the word liberally.[23]