document_title: The Daily Show

question_text: where does the daily show with trevor noah film

question_tokens: where does the daily show with trevor noah film

text: The Daily Show

text: Format[edit]

text: Opening segment[edit]

text: Each episode begins with announcer Drew Birns announcing the date and the introduction, "From Comedy Central's World News Headquarters in New York, this is The Daily Show with Trevor Noah".[6][7] Previously, the introduction was "This is The Daily Show, the most important television program, ever." The host then opens the show with a monologue drawing from current news stories and issues. Previously, the show had divided its news commentary into sections known as "Headlines", "Other News", and "This Just In"; these titles were dropped from regular use on October 28, 2002 and were last used on March 6, 2003. Some episodes will begin with a 1-3 minute intro on a small story (or small set of stories) before fully transitioning into the main story of the night.

text: Correspondent segments[edit]

text: The monologue segment is often followed by a segment featuring an exchange with a correspondent—typically introduced as the show's "senior" specialist in the subject at hand—either at the anchor desk with the host or reporting from a false location in front of a greenscreen showing stock footage. Their stated areas of expertise vary depending on the news story that is being discussed, and can range from relatively general (such as Senior Political Analyst) to absurdly specific (such as Senior Religious Registry Correspondent). The cast of correspondents is quite diverse, and many often sarcastically portray extreme stereotypes of themselves to poke fun at a news story, such as "Senior Latino Correspondent", "Senior Youth Correspondent" or "Senior Black Correspondent". They typically present absurd or humorously exaggerated takes on current events against the host's straight man.[citation needed]

text: While correspondents stated to be reporting abroad are usually performing in-studio in front of a greenscreen background, on rare occasions, cast members have recorded pieces on location. For instance, during the week of August 20, 2007, the show aired a series of segments called "Operation Silent Thunder: The Daily Show in Iraq" in which correspondent Rob Riggle reported from Iraq.[8] In August 2008, Riggle traveled to China for a series of segments titled "Rob Riggle: Chasing the Dragon", which focused on the 2008 Beijing Olympics.[9]

text: Jason Jones traveled to Iran in early June 2009 to report on the Iranian elections, and John Oliver traveled to South Africa for the series of segments "Into Africa" to report on the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In March 2012, John Oliver traveled to Gabon, on the west African coast, to report on the Gabonese government's decision to donate $2 million to UNESCO after the United States cut its funding for UNESCO earlier that year. On July 19, 2016, Roy Wood Jr. reported live from the Republican National Convention and talked about Donald Trump's African-American support.

text: Correspondent segments feature a rotating supporting cast, and involve the show's members travelling to different locations to file comedic reports on current news stories and conduct interviews with people related to the featured issue. Topics have varied widely; during the early years of the show they tended toward character-driven human interest stories such as Bigfoot enthusiasts. Since Stewart began hosting in 1999, the focus of the show has become more political and the field pieces have come to more closely reflect current issues and debates.[10] Under Kilborn and the early years of Stewart, most interviewees were either unaware or not entirely aware of the comedic nature of The Daily Show. However, as the show began to gain popularity—particularly following its coverage of the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections—most of the subjects now interviewed are aware of the comedic element.[11]

text: Recurring segments[edit]

text: Some segments have recurred periodically throughout different tenures, such as "Back in Black" (segments hosted by comedian Lewis Black) & "Your Moment of Zen". Since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, a common segment of the show has been dubbed "Mess O' Potamia", focusing on the United States' policies in the Middle East, especially Iraq.[12] Elections in the United States were a prominent focus in the show's "Indecision" coverage throughout Stewart & Noah's time as host (the title "InDecision" is a parody of NBC News' "Decision" segment). Since 2000, under Stewart's tenure, the show went on the road to record week-long specials from the cities hosting the Democratic and Republican National Convention.[13] For the 2006 U.S. midterm elections, a week of episodes was recorded in the contested state of Ohio.[14] The "Indecision" & "Democalpyse" coverage of the 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016 elections all culminated in live Election Night specials.[15]

text: With Noah as host, one new recurring segment has been "What the Actual Fact", with correspondent Desi Lydic examining statements made by political figures during speeches or events. Under Noah, the continuation of "Democalypse" and "Indecision" also took place with live shows after the Republican National Convention and Democratic National Convention.[16] For the first time, under Noah, the show also went live after all three U.S. presidential debates in 2016.

text: Interviews[edit]

text:
In the show's third act, the host conducts an interview with a celebrity guest. Guests come from a wide range of cultural sources, and include actors, musicians, authors, athletes, pundits, policy experts and political figures.[17] During Stewart's tenure, the show's guests tended away from celebrities and more towards non-fiction authors and political pundits, as well as many prominent elected officials.[12] In the show's earlier years it struggled to book high-profile politicians. (In 1999, for an Indecision 2000 segment, Steve Carell struggled to talk his way off Republican candidate John McCain's press overflow bus and onto the Straight Talk Express).[citation needed]
However its rise in popularity, particularly following the show's coverage of the 2000 and 2004 elections, made Stewart according to a Rolling Stone (2006) article, "the hot destination for anyone who wants to sell books or seem hip, from presidential candidates to military dictators". Newsweek labeled it "the coolest pit stop on television".[18][19]

text: Prominent political guests have included U.S. President Barack Obama,[20] Vice President Joe Biden,[21] former Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, former British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Bolivian President Evo Morales, Jordanian King Abdullah II, Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and former Mexican President Vicente Fox.[22]

text: The show has played host to former and current members of the Administration and Cabinet as well as members of Congress. Numerous presidential candidates have appeared on the show during their campaigns, including John McCain, John Kerry, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.[23]

text: Closing segment[edit]

text: In a closing segment, there is a brief segue to the closing credits in the form of the host introducing "Your Moment of Zen", a humorous piece of video footage without commentary that has been part of the show's wrap-up since the series began in 1996.[24] The segment often relates to a story covered earlier in the episode, but occasionally is merely a humorous or ridiculous clip. Occasionally, the segment is used as a tribute to someone who has died.[25]

text: Sometimes, before the "Your Moment of Zen", this segment is used for quick promotions. The host might promote the show that follows right after their broadcast, such as promoting the show @midnight. This time has also been used to promote films, books or stand-up specials that are affiliated with the host.[26][27][28]

text: In October 2005, following The Colbert Report's premiere, a new feature (sometimes referred to as the toss) was added to the closing segment in which Stewart would have a short exchange with "our good friend, Stephen Colbert at The Colbert Report", which aired immediately after. The two would have a scripted comedic exchange via split-screen from their respective sets. In 2007, the "toss" was cut back to twice per week, and by 2009 was once a week before gradually being phased out. It was used on the 2014 mid-term election night and again just before the final episode of The Colbert Report on December 18, 2014, and returned upon the premiere of The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. Stewart then regularly tossed to Wilmore at the end of his Monday night episodes. Under Noah, the "toss" has been used for The Opposition with Jordan Klepper.

text: Studio[edit]

text:
The host sits at his desk on the elevated island stage in the style of a traditional news show. The show relocated from its original New York studio in late-1998 to NEP Studio 54 in New York City's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, where it remained until 2005, when the studio was claimed by The Colbert Report.[29] On July 11, 2005, the show premiered in its new studio, NEP Studio 52, at 733 11th Avenue, a few blocks west of its former location.[30]
The set of the new studio was given a sleeker, more formal look, including a backdrop of three large projection screens. The traditional guests' couch, which had been a part of the set since the show's premiere, was done away with in favor of simple upright chairs. The change was initially not well-received, spawning a backlash among some fans and prompting a "Bring Back the Couch" campaign. The campaign was mentioned on subsequent shows by Stewart and supported by Daily Show contributor Bob Wiltfong.[31][32] The couch was eventually featured in a sweepstakes in which the winner received the couch, round-trip tickets to New York, tickets to the show, and a small sum of money.[33]

text: On April 9, 2007, the show debuted a new set. The projection screens were revamped (with one large screen behind Stewart, while the smaller one behind the interview subject remained the same), a large, global map directly behind Stewart, a more open studio floor, and a J-shaped desk supported at one end by a globe. The intro was also updated; the graphics, display names, dates, and logos were all changed.[34]

text: On September 28, 2015, the show debuted a new set alongside the debut of Trevor Noah's tenure. According to Larry Hartman, Noah took a lot of inspiration from Stewart's set.[35] A second on-stage 'jumbo-tron' was added and the colours of the set were made lighter. The graphics, intro, theme music, lower thirds, logo, etc. were also all revamped.[36] On July 19, 2016, the set and graphics were given another change to reflect Democalypse 2016 and denote The Daily Show's RNC and DNC coverage (which was taped in the conventions' respective cities).[37] The new temporary sets had a Washington theme, and was meant to show that Washington is "a little broke" and needs "repair".[38] Though the studio was reverted to its former self after the election week in 2016, the changes to the graphics were kept.

text: Production[edit]

text: The show's writers begin each day with a morning meeting where they review material that researchers have gathered from major newspapers, the Associated Press, cable news television channels and websites, and discuss headline material for the lead news segment. Throughout the morning they work on writing deadline pieces inspired by recent news, as well as longer-term projects. By lunchtime, Noah — who describes his role as that of the captain of a team[39] — has begun to review headline jokes. The script is submitted by 3 pm, and at 4:15 there is a rehearsal. An hour is left for rewrites before a 6 pm taping in front of a live studio audience.[6][19]

text: The Daily Show typically tapes four new episodes a week, Monday through Thursday, forty-two weeks a year.[40] The show is broadcast at 11 PM Eastern/10 PM Central, a time when local television stations show their news reports and about half an hour before most other late-night comedy programs begin to go on the air. The program is rerun several times the next day, including a 7:30 PM Eastern/6:30 PM Central prime time broadcast.

text: History[edit]

text: Craig Kilborn's tenure (1996–98)[edit]

text: The Daily Show was created by Lizz Winstead and Madeleine Smithberg[41] and premiered on Comedy Central on July 22, 1996, having been marketed as a replacement for Politically Incorrect (a successful Comedy Central program that had moved to ABC earlier that year).[42] Madeleine Smithberg was co-creator of The Daily Show as well as the former executive producer. A graduate of Binghamton University, she was an executive producer of Steve Harvey's Big Time and a talent coordinator for Late Night with David Letterman.[41]

text: Aiming to parody conventional newscasts, it featured a comedic monologue of the day's headlines from anchor Craig Kilborn (a well-known co-anchor of ESPN's SportsCenter), as well as mockumentary style on-location reports, in-studio segments and debates from regular correspondents Winstead, Brian Unger, Beth Littleford, and A. Whitney Brown.[43]

text: Common segments[edit]

text: Common segments included "This Day in Hasselhoff History" and "Last Weekend's Top-Grossing Films, Converted into Lira", in parody of entertainment news shows and their tendency to lead out to commercials with trivia such as celebrity birthdays.[44] Another commercial lead-out featured Winstead's parents, on her answering machine, reading that day's "Final Jeopardy!" question and answer.[45] In each show, Kilborn would conduct celebrity interviews, ending with a segment called "Five Questions" in which the guest was made to answer a series of questions that were typically a combination of obscure fact and subjective opinion.[46] These are highlighted in a 1998 book titled The Daily Show: Five Questions, which contains transcripts of Kilborn's best interviews.[47] Each episode concluded with a segment called "Your Moment of Zen" that showed random video clips of humorous and sometimes morbid interest such as visitors at a Chinese zoo feeding baby chickens to the alligators.[48] Originally the show was recorded without a studio audience, featuring only the laughter of its own off-camera staff members. A studio audience was incorporated into the show for its second season, and has remained since.[49]

text: Differences between Kilborn's version and Stewart's version[edit]

text: The show was much less politically focused than it later became under Jon Stewart, having what Stephen Colbert described as a local news feel and involving more character-driven humor as opposed to news-driven humor.[10] Winstead recalls that when the show was first launched there was constant debate regarding what the show's focus should be. While she wanted a more news-driven focus, the network was concerned that this would not appeal to viewers and pushed for "a little more of a hybrid of entertainment and politics".[50] The show was slammed by some reviewers as being too mean-spirited, particularly towards the interview subjects of field pieces; a criticism acknowledged by some of the show's cast.[by whom?] Describing his time as a correspondent under Kilborn, Colbert says, "You wanted to take your soul off, put it on a wire hanger, and leave it in the closet before you got on the plane to do one of these pieces."[51] One reviewer from The New York Times criticized the show for being too cruel and for lacking a central editorial vision or ideology, describing it as "bereft of an ideological or artistic center... precocious but empty."[52]

text: Craig Kilborn's departure[edit]

text: There were reports of backstage friction between Kilborn and some of the female staff, particularly the show's co-creator Lizz Winstead. Winstead had not been involved in the hiring of Kilborn, and disagreed with him over what direction the show should take. "I spent eight months developing and staffing a show and seeking a tone with producers and writers. Somebody else put him in place. There were bound to be problems. I viewed the show as content-driven; he viewed it as host-driven", she said.[53] In a 1997 Esquire magazine interview, Kilborn made a sexually explicit joke about Winstead. Comedy Central responded by suspending Kilborn without pay for one week, and Winstead quit soon after.[54]

text: In 1998, Kilborn left The Daily Show to replace Tom Snyder on CBS's The Late Late Show. He claimed the "Five Questions" interview segment as intellectual property, disallowing any future Daily Show hosts from using it in their interviews.[55] Correspondents Brian Unger and A. Whitney Brown left the show shortly before him, but the majority of the show's crew and writing staff stayed on.[56] Kilborn's last show as host aired on December 17, 1998, ending a 386-episode tenure. Reruns were shown until Jon Stewart's debut four weeks later.[57] Kilborn made a short appearance on Jon Stewart's final edition of the Daily Show saying "I knew you were going to run this thing into the ground."[58]

text: Jon Stewart's tenure (1999–2015)[edit]

text: Shift in content[edit]

text: Comedian Jon Stewart took over as host of the show, which was retitled The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, on January 11, 1999.[59] Stewart had previously hosted Short Attention Span Theater on Comedy Central,[60] two shows on MTV (You Wrote It, You Watch It and an eponymous talk show), as well as a syndicated late-night talk show, and had been cast in films and television.[61] In taking over hosting from Kilborn, Stewart initially retained much of the same staff and on-air talent, allowing many pieces to transition without much trouble, while other features like "God Stuff", with John Bloom presenting an assortment of actual clips from various televangelists, and "Backfire", an in-studio debate between Brian Unger and A. Whitney Brown, evolved into the similar pieces of "This Week in God" and Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell's "Even Stevphen". Since the change, a number of new features have been, and continue to be, developed. The ending segment "Your Moment of Zen", previously consisting of a random selection of humorous videos, was diversified to sometimes include recaps or extended versions of news clips shown earlier in the show.[24] The show's theme music, "Dog on Fire" by Bob Mould, was re-recorded by They Might Be Giants shortly after Stewart joined the show.[62][63]

text: Stewart served not only as host but also as a writer and executive producer of the series.  He recalls that he initially struggled with the Kilborn holdover writers to gain control of the show and put his own imprint on the show's voice, a struggle that led to the departure of a number of the holdover writers.[64] Instrumental in shaping the voice of the show under Stewart was former editor of The Onion Ben Karlin who, along with fellow Onion contributor David Javerbaum, joined the staff in 1999 as head writer and was later promoted to executive producer. Their experience in writing for the satirical newspaper, which uses fake stories to mock real print journalism and current events, would influence the comedic direction of the show; Stewart recalls the hiring of Karlin as the point at which things "[started] to take shape". Describing his approach to the show, Karlin said, "The main thing, for me, is seeing hypocrisy. People who know better saying things that you know they don't believe."[11]

text: Under Stewart and Karlin The Daily Show developed a markedly different style, bringing a sharper political focus to the humor than the show previously exhibited. Then-correspondent Stephen Colbert recalls that Stewart specifically asked him to have a political viewpoint, and to allow his passion for issues to carry through into his comedy.[65] Colbert says that whereas under Kilborn the focus was on "human interest-y" pieces, with Stewart as host the show's content became more "issues and news driven", particularly after the beginning of the 2000 election campaign with which the show dealt in its "Indecision 2000" coverage.[10][66] Stewart himself describes the show's coverage of the 2000 election recount as the point at which the show found its editorial voice. "That's when I think we tapped into the emotional angle of the news for us and found our editorial footing," he says.[67] Following the September 11th attacks, The Daily Show went off the air for nine days. Upon its return, Stewart opened the show with a somber monologue, that, according to Jeremy Gillick and Nonna Gorilovskaya, addressed both the absurdity and importance of his role as a comedian. Commented Stewart:

text: They said to get back to work, and there were no jobs available for a man in the fetal position. . . . We sit in the back and we throw spitballs – never forgetting the fact that it is a luxury in this country that allows us to do that. . . . The view from my apartment was the World Trade Center. Now it's gone. They attacked it. This symbol of American ingenuity and strength and labor and imagination and commerce and it is gone. But you know what the view is now? The Statue of Liberty. The view from the south of Manhattan is now the Statue of Liberty. You can't beat that.[68]

text: Gillick and Gorilovskaya point to the September 11 attacks and the beginning of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq as the point at which Jon Stewart emerged as a trusted national figure. Robert Thompson, the director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture at Syracuse University, recalled of this period, "When all the news guys were walking on eggshells, Jon was hammering those questions about WMDs."[68]

text: Broadening the role of the correspondent[edit]

text: During Stewart's tenure, the role of the correspondent broadened to encompass not only field segments but also frequent in-studio exchanges. Under Kilborn, Colbert says that his work as a correspondent initially involved "character driven [field] pieces—like, you know, guys who believe in Bigfoot." However, as the focus of the show has become more news-driven, correspondents have increasingly been used in studio pieces, either as experts discussing issues at the anchor desk or as field journalists reporting from false locations in front of a green screen. Colbert says that this change has allowed correspondents to be more involved with the show, as it has permitted them to work more closely with the host and writers.[10]

text: Popularity and critical respect[edit]

text: The show's 2000 and 2004 election coverage, combined with a new satirical edge, helped to catapult Stewart and The Daily Show to new levels of popularity and critical respect.[69] Since Stewart became host, the show has won 23 Primetime Emmy Awards and three Peabody Awards, and its ratings steadily increased. In 2003, the show was averaging nearly a million viewers, an increase of nearly threefold since the show's inception as Comedy Central became available in more households.[70] By September 2008, the show averaged nearly two million viewers per night.[71] Senator Barack Obama's interview on October 29, 2008, pulled in 3.6 million viewers.[72]

text: In the political spectrum[edit]

text: The move towards greater involvement in political issues and the increasing popularity of the show in certain key demographics have led to examinations of where the views of the show fit in the political spectrum. Adam Clymer, among many others, has argued that The Daily Show is more critical of Republicans than Democrats.[73] Stewart, who voted Democratic in the 2004 presidential election,[74] acknowledged that the show has a more liberal point of view, but that it is not "a liberal organization" with a political agenda and its duty first and foremost is to be funny. He acknowledges that the show is not necessarily an "equal opportunity offender", explaining that Republicans tended to provide more comedic fodder because "I think we consider those with power and influence targets and those without it, not."[75] In an interview in 2005, when asked how he responded to critics claiming that The Daily Show is overly liberal, Stephen Colbert, also a self-proclaimed Democrat,[76] said in an interview during the Bush Administration, when the Republicans held a majority in the House and Senate: "We are liberal, but Jon's very respectful of the Republican guests, and, listen, if liberals were in power it would be easier to attack them, but Republicans have the executive, legislative and judicial branches, so making fun of Democrats is like kicking a child, so it's just not worth it."[77]

text: Stewart is critical of Democratic politicians for being weak, timid, or ineffective. He said in an interview with Larry King, prior to the 2006 elections, "I honestly don't feel that [the Democrats] make an impact. They have forty-nine percent of the vote and three percent of the power. At a certain point you go, 'Guys, pick up your game.'"[78] He has targeted them for failing to effectively stand on some issues, such as the war in Iraq, describing them as "incompetent" and "unable... to locate their asses, even when presented with two hands and a special ass map."[79]

text: Karlin, then the show's executive producer, said in a 2004 interview that while there is a collective sensibility among the staff which, "when filtered through Jon and the correspondents, feels uniform," the principal goal of the show is comedy. "If you have a legitimately funny joke in support of the notion that gay people are an affront to God, we'll put that motherfucker on!"[80]

text: On September 15, 2003, Senator John Edwards became the first candidate to announce that they were running for president on the show, causing Jon Stewart to jokingly inform him that their show was "fake" and he might have to reannounce elsewhere.[81] On November 17, 2009, Vice President Joe Biden appeared on the show, making him the first sitting vice president to do so.[82] On October 27, 2010, President Barack Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to be interviewed on the show, wherein Obama commented he "loved" the show.[83] Obama took issue with Stewart's suggestion that his health care program was "timid."[84]

text: After the United States Senate failed to pass and the media failed to cover the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which would provide health monitoring and financial aid to sick first responders of the September 11 attacks, Stewart dedicated the entire December 16, 2010, broadcast to the issue. During the next week, a revived version of the bill gained new life, with the potential of being passed before the winter recess.[85][86] Stewart was praised by both politicians and affected first responders for the bill's passage. According to Syracuse University professor of television, radio and film Robert J. Thompson, "Without him, it's unlikely it would've passed. I don't think Brian Williams, Katie Couric or Diane Sawyer would've been allowed to do this."[87]

text: Writers' strike[edit]

text: Due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, the show went on hiatus on November 5, 2007. Although the strike continued until February 2008, the show returned to air on January 7, 2008, without its staff of writers. In solidarity with the writers, the show was referred to as A Daily Show with Jon Stewart rather than The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, until the end of the strike.[88] As a member of the Writers Guild of America, Stewart was barred from writing any material for the show himself which he or his writers would ordinarily write.[89] As a result, Stewart and the correspondents largely ad-libbed the show around planned topics.[90]

text: In an effort to fill time while keeping to the strike-related restrictions, the show aired or re-aired some previously recorded segments, and Stewart engaged in a briefly recurring mock feud with fellow late-night hosts Stephen Colbert and Conan O'Brien.[91] The strike officially ended on February 12, 2008, with the show's writers returning to work the following day, at which point the title of The Daily Show was restored.[92]

text: Stewart's absence in 2013[edit]

text: Starting in June 2013 Jon Stewart took a twelve-week break to direct Rosewater, a drama about a journalist jailed by Iran for four months. John Oliver replaced Stewart at the anchor desk for two months, to be followed by one month of reruns.[93] Oliver received positive reviews for his hosting,[94][95] leading to his departure from the show in December 2013[96] for his own show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, which debuted April 27, 2014 on HBO.[97]

text: Jon Stewart's departure[edit]

text: On February 10, 2015, Stewart announced that he would be leaving the show later in the year. Comedy Central indicated in a statement that The Daily Show would continue without Stewart, saying it would "endure for years to come".[98]

text: On June 25, 2015, Comedy Central announced that to lead up to Stewart's final episode, it would hold "Your Month of Zen"—an online marathon streaming every episode of Stewart's tenure from June 26 to August 6, 2015.[99]

text: On August 6, 2015, Stewart's final episode aired as an hour-long special in three segments. The first featured a reunion of a majority of the correspondents and contributors from throughout the show's history as well as a pre-recorded "anti-tribute" (mocking Stewart) from various frequent guests and "friends" of the show. The second segment featured a pre-recorded tour of the Daily Show production facility and studio introducing all of the show's staff and crew. The final segment featured a short farewell speech from Stewart followed by the final "Moment of Zen" (being 'his own' moment of zen): a performance of "Land of Hope and Dreams" and "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.

text: Trevor Noah's tenure (2015–present)[edit]

text: On March 30, 2015, it was announced that Trevor Noah would replace Stewart as host of The Daily Show.[100] Trevor Noah's first show was on September 28, 2015 with comedian Kevin Hart as his first guest. Noah's premiere episode was simulcast by Viacom on Comedy Central, Nick at Nite, Spike, MTV, MTV2, mtvU, VH1, VH1 Classic, BET, Centric, CMT, TV Land and Logo TV.[101]

text: On September 14, 2017, it was announced that Comedy Central had extended Trevor Noah's contract as host of The Daily Show for five years, through 2022.[102]

text: Differences between Stewart's version and Noah's version[edit]

text: In addition to changes in the tone of the show, Noah has also implemented stylistic changes to the show, with an updated set,[103] new graphics[104] and his monologue sometimes taking place while standing in front of a screen as opposed to sitting at the desk. Trevor also increased the usage of more millennial-based references, impersonations and characterizations for his comedy on the show, due to his younger demographic and his ability to speak in multiple accents and eight languages.[105]

text: The debut of The Daily Show with Trevor Noah brought along three new correspondents: Roy Wood Jr., Desi Lydic and Ronny Chieng.[106]

text: Additional correspondents were added in 2017. Michael Kosta became the Senior Constitutional Correspondent and Senior American Correspondent in July 11, 2017. Dulcé Sloan became the Senior Fashion Correspondent in September 7, 2017.[107]

text: In January 2016, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah started to use a modified version of the show's previous theme, composed by Timbaland and King Logan.[108] The theme is a remix of the old theme with the addition of rock.

text: Trevor Noah also avoided talking too much about Fox News, as Stewart was previously known for. "The Daily Show was based on an emerging 24 hour news cycle, that’s everything it was, that’s what inspired The Daily Show. Now you look at news and it’s changed. It’s no longer predicated around 24 hour news. There are so many different choices. Half of it is online now. Now you’ve got the Gawkers, the Buzzfeeds. The way people are drawing their news is soundbites and headlines and click-bait links has changed everything. The biggest challenge is going to be an exciting one I'm sure is how are we going to bring all of that together looking at it from a bigger lens as opposed to just going after one source—which was historically Fox News," Noah said at a press conference before the show's debut.[109]

text: Stewart visits The Daily Show with Trevor Noah; Jordan Klepper guest hosts[edit]

text: On December 8, 2015, former host Jon Stewart returned to The Daily Show for the first time in an extended-length show to return attention to extending the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, otherwise referred to as 9/11 First Responders Bill, which Stewart explained had been blocked by Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell for political reasons.[110][111] On October 20, 2016, Noah was unable to host a scheduled taping of The Daily Show due to illness,[112] so correspondent Jordan Klepper guest hosted.

text: On November 16, 2017, Stewart once again returned to The Daily Show, in part as a parody of the robocalls of fake Washington Post reporter "Bernie Bernstein" and to promote Night of Too Many Stars on HBO.

text: Correspondents, contributors, and staff[edit]

text: The show's correspondents have two principal roles: experts with satirical senior titles that Noah interviews about certain issues, or hosts of field reporting segments which often involve humorous commentary and interviews relating to a current issue. The current team of correspondents collectively known as "The World’s Fakest News Team" (formerly known as "The Best F#@king News Team Ever") includes Ronny Chieng, Michael Kosta, Desi Lydic, Dulcé Sloan, Roy Wood, Jr., Jaboukie Young-White.[113] Contributors appear on a less frequent basis, often with their own unique recurring segment or topic.[113] Current contributors are Lewis Black, Neal Brennan, and Gina Yashere.[114] Ben Karlin says that the on-air talent contribute in many ways to the material they perform, playing an integral role in the creation of their field pieces as well as being involved with their scripted studio segments, either taking part early on in the writing process or adding improvised material during the rehearsal.[40]

text: The show has featured a number of well-known comedians throughout its run and is notable for boosting the careers of several of these. Scott Dikkers, editor-in-chief of The Onion, describes it as a key launching pad for comedic talent, saying that "I don't know if there's a better show you could put on your resume right now."[115] Steve Carell, who was a correspondent between 1999 and 2005 before moving on to a movie career and starring television role in The Office, credits Stewart and The Daily Show with his success.[116] In 2005, the show's longest-serving correspondent, Stephen Colbert, became the host of the spin-off The Colbert Report, earning critical and popular acclaim.[117] Colbert would host the program until he was chosen to replace David Letterman as host of CBS's Late Show in 2015.[118] Ed Helms, a former correspondent from 2002 to 2006, also starred on NBC's The Office and was a main character in the 2009 hit The Hangover.[119]

text: After filling in as host during Stewart's two-month absence in the summer of 2013,[120] John Oliver went on to host his own show on HBO, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. In 2016, former correspondent Samantha Bee launched her own late-night talk show Full Frontal with Samantha Bee. Bee's husband Jason Jones, also a former correspondent, serves as executive producer for the show.[121]

text: In June 2010, actress-comedian Olivia Munn began a tryout period on the show as a correspondent. Her credentials were questioned by Irin Carmon of the website Jezebel, who suggested that Munn was better known as a sex symbol than as a comedian.[122] Carmon's column was denounced by Munn and the Daily Show's female writers, producers, and correspondents, 32 of whom posted a rebuttal on the show's website in which they asserted that the description of the Daily Show office given by the Jezebel piece was not accurate.[123][124] Munn appeared as a Daily Show correspondent in a total of 16 episodes, from June 2010 to September 2011.[citation needed]

text: Wyatt Cenac had a tumultuous tenure on the show, revealing in a July 2015 interview on WTF with Marc Maron, that his departure stemmed in part from a heated argument he had with Jon Stewart in June 2011 over a bit about Republican Presidential candidate Herman Cain.[125][126] However, Cenac did return for Stewart's final episode to bid him farewell and the two exchanged an intentionally awkward conversation.[127][128][129][130]

text: Guest hosts[edit]

text:
Samantha Bee and Jason Jones, 1 episode (October 7, 2014)
Steve Carell, 7 episodes (February 21, 2001, Mar. 27–29, 2001, Apr 2 & 4, 2001, and May 1, 2001)
Stephen Colbert, 11 episodes (January 24, 2001, Feb 20 & 22, 2001, Mar. 26–27, 2001, Apr 3 & 5, 2001, May 2–3, 2001, March 6, 2003, and July 6, 2004)
Rob Corddry, 1 episode (February 9, 2006)
Vance DeGeneres, 2 episodes (Feb. 26–27, 2001)
Jordan Klepper, 1 episode (October 20, 2016)
John Oliver, 33 episodes (June 10, 2013 to August 15, 2013, and November 13, 2014)
Mo Rocca, 1 episode (February 27, 2001)
Nancy Walls, 2 episodes (February 21, 2001 and March 29, 2001)

text: Reception[edit]

text: Ratings[edit]

text:
Season

Nielsen Rank

Nielsen Rating[131]

Tied With

1995–96

7

0.1

1996–97

9

0.2

1997–98

0.3

1998–99

7

0.4

1999–2000

0.5

2000–01

0.6

2001–02

0.8

2002–03

0.9

2003–04

1.0

2004–05

1.3

2005–06

6

1.5

"Last Call with Carson Daly"

2006–07

2007–08

1.4

2008–09

5

1.7

"Jimmy Kimmel Live!"

2009–10

1.5

"Late Night with Jimmy Fallon"

"The Colbert Report"

2010–11

6

2011–12

4

1.7

"Late Night with Jimmy Fallon"

2012–13

5

1.6

2013–14

1.5

2014–15

6

1.3

text: Television ratings from 2008 show that the program generally drew 1.45 to 1.6 million viewers nightly, a high figure for cable television.[132] By the end of 2013 The Daily Show's ratings hit 2.5 million viewers nightly.[133] In demographic terms, the viewership is skewed to a relatively young and well-educated audience compared to traditional news shows. A 2004 Nielsen Media Research study commissioned by Comedy Central put the median age at 35. During the 2004 U.S. presidential election, the show received more male viewers in the 18- to 34-year-old age demographic than Nightline, Meet the Press, Hannity & Colmes and all of the evening news broadcasts.[134]

text: For this reason, commentators such as Howard Dean and Ted Koppel posited that Stewart served as a real source of news for young people, regardless of his intentions.[135][136] In 2016, a The New York Times study of the 50 TV shows with the most Facebook Likes found that The Daily Show was "most popular in cities and other more liberal-leaning areas along the coasts. Peak popularity is in San Francisco; it's least popular in Alabama".[137]

text: As a news source[edit]

text: The show's writers reject the idea that The Daily Show has become a source of news for young people. Stewart argues that Americans are living in an "age of information osmosis" in which it is close to impossible to gain one's news from any single source, and says that his show succeeds comedically because the viewers already have some knowledge about current events. "Our show would not be valuable to people who didn't understand the news because it wouldn't make sense," he argues. "We make assumptions about your level of knowledge that... if we were your only source of news, you would just watch our show and think, 'I don't know what's happening.'"[138]

text: A 2006 study published by Indiana University tried to compare the substantive amount of information of The Daily Show against prime time network news broadcasts, and concluded that when it comes to substance, there is little difference between The Daily Show and other news outlets. The study contended that, since both programs are more focused on the nature of "infotainment" and ratings than on the dissemination of information, both are broadly equal in terms of the amount of substantial news coverage they offer.[139]

text: As the lines between comedy show and news show have blurred, Jon Stewart has come under pressure in some circles to engage in more serious journalism. Tucker Carlson and Daily Show co-creator Lizz Winstead have chastised Stewart for criticizing politicians and newspeople in his solo segments and then, in interviews with the same people, rarely taking them to task face-to-face. In 2004, Winstead expressed a desire for Stewart to ask harder satirical questions, saying, "When you are interviewing a Richard Perle or a Kissinger, if you give them a pass, then you become what you are satirizing. You have a war criminal sitting on your couch—to just let him be a war criminal sitting on your couch means you are having to respect some kind of boundary."[140] She has argued that The Daily Show's success and access to the youth vote should allow Stewart to press political guests harder without fearing that they will not return to the show.[141] In 2010, Winstead had changed her views, commenting that since 2004, Stewart did some of the hardest-hitting interviews on TV.[142] Stewart said in 2003 that he does not think of himself as a social or media critic and rejects the idea that he has any journalistic role as an interviewer.[143]

text: During Stewart's appearance on CNN's Crossfire, Stewart criticized that show and said that it was "hurting America" by sensationalizing debates and enabling political spin. When co-host Carlson argued that Stewart himself had not asked John Kerry substantial questions when Kerry appeared on The Daily Show, Stewart countered that it was not his job to give hard-hitting interviews and that a "fake news" comedy program should not be held to the same standards as real journalism. "You're on CNN!" Stewart said, "The show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls! What is wrong with you?"[144] Media critic Dan Kennedy says that Stewart came off as disingenuous in this exchange because "you can't interview Bill Clinton, Richard Clarke, Bill O'Reilly, Bob Dole, etc., etc., and still say you're just a comedian."[141]

text: A 2004 study into the effect of The Daily Show on viewers' attitudes found that participants had a more negative opinion of both President Bush and then Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry. Participants also expressed more cynical views of the electoral system and news media.[145] Political scientists Jody Baumgartner and Jonathan Morris, who conducted the study, state that it is not clear how such cynicism would affect the political behavior of the show's viewers. While disillusionment and negative perceptions of the presidential candidates could discourage watchers from voting, Baumgartner and Morris say it is also possible that discontent could prompt greater involvement and that by following the show, viewers may potentially become more engaged and informed voters, with a broader political knowledge.[146]

text: Rachel Larris, who has also conducted an academic study of The Daily Show, disputes the findings of Baumgartner and Morris. Larris argues that the study measured cynicism in overly broad terms, and that it would be extremely hard to find a causal link between viewing The Daily Show and thinking or acting in a particular way.[147] Bloggers such as Marty Kaplan of The Huffington Post argue that so long as Stewart's comedy is grounded in truth, responsibility for increased cynicism belongs to the political and media figures themselves, not the comedian who satirizes them.[148]

text: Stewart himself says that he does not perceive his show as cynical. "It's so interesting to me that people talk about late-night comedy being cynical," he says. "What's more cynical than forming an ideological news network like Fox and calling it 'fair and balanced'? What we do, I almost think, is adorable in its idealism."[149] Stewart has said that he does not take any joy in the failings of American government, despite the comedic fodder they provide. "We're not the guys at the craps table betting against the line," he said on Larry King Live. "If government suddenly became inspiring... we would be the happiest people in the world to turn our attention to idiots like, you know, media people, no offense."[78]

text: In July 2009, Time magazine held an online poll entitled "Now that Walter Cronkite has passed on, who is America's most trusted newscaster?"[150] Jon Stewart won with 44% of the vote, 15 points ahead of Brian Williams in second place with 29%.[151] Stewart downplayed the results on the show stating "It was an Internet poll and I was the 'None of the above' option".[citation needed]

text: In December 2013, TV Guide ranked Jon Stewart's run on the show at #53 on its list of the 60 Best Series of All Time.[152]

text: Effectiveness[edit]

text: In late 2004, the National Annenberg Election Survey at the University of Pennsylvania ran a study of American television viewers and found that fans of The Daily Show had a more accurate idea of the facts behind the 2004 presidential election than most others, including those who primarily got their news through the national network evening newscasts and through reading newspapers.[153] However, in a 2004 campaign survey conducted by the Pew Research Center those who cited comedy shows such as The Daily Show as a source for news were among the least informed on campaign events and key aspects of the candidates' backgrounds while those who cited the Internet, National Public Radio, and news magazines were the most informed. Even when age and education were taken into account, the people who learned about the campaigns through the Internet were still found to be the most informed, while those who learned from comedy shows were the least informed.[154]

text: In a survey released by the Pew Research Center in April 2007, viewers who watch both The Colbert Report and The Daily Show tend to be more knowledgeable about news than audiences of other news sources. Approximately 54% of The Colbert Report and The Daily Show viewers scored in the high knowledge range, followed by Jim Lehrer's program at 53% and Bill O'Reilly's program at 51%, significantly higher than the 34% of network morning show viewers. The survey shows that changing news formats have not made much difference on how much the public knows about national and international affairs, but adds that there is no clear connection between news formats and what audiences know.[155] The Project for Excellence in Journalism released a content analysis report suggesting that The Daily Show comes close to providing the complete daily news.[156]

text: Episodes[edit]

text: Awards and nominations[edit]

text: Under host Jon Stewart, The Daily Show rose to critical acclaim. It has received two Peabody Awards for its coverage of the 2000[157] and 2004 presidential elections.[158] Between 2001 and 2015, it has been awarded 24 Primetime Emmy Awards in the categories of Outstanding Variety, Music, or Comedy Series (winner for 10 consecutive years from 2003 to 2012) and Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music, or Comedy Program, and a further seven nominations. The show has also been honored by GLAAD, the Television Critics Association, and the Satellite Awards. America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, the 2004 bestseller written by Stewart and the writing staff of The Daily Show, was recognized by Publishers Weekly as its "Book of the Year", and its abridged audiobook edition received the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album.[159]

text: In September 2010, Time magazine selected the series as one of "The 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME".[160] In 2015, the show received its third Peabody Award for the show's "lasting impact on political satire, television comedy and even politics itself."[161] At the 69th Emmy Awards The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, also added yet another emmy award to the show's many Emmy's.

text: Global editions[edit]

text: The Daily Show airs on various networks worldwide; in addition, an edited version of the show called The Daily Show: Global Edition is produced each week specifically for overseas audiences. It has been airing outside of the U.S. on CNN International and other overseas networks since September 2002.[162] This edition runs for half an hour and contains a selection of segments including one guest interview from the preceding week's shows, usually from the Monday or Tuesday episode. Noah provides an exclusive introductory monologue in front of an audience, usually about the week's prevalent international news story, and closing comments without an audience present.[163] When aired on CNN International, the broadcast is prefaced by a written disclaimer: "The show you are about to watch is a news parody. Its stories are not fact checked. Its reporters are not journalists. And its opinions are not fully thought through."[citation needed]

text: Since February 27, 2017, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah has been regularly simulcast on Black Entertainment Television.

text: Between 2001 and 2006, Westwood One broadcast small, ninety-second portions of the show to various radio stations across America.[164]

text: In Canada, The Daily Show is aired on The Comedy Network (a cable channel similar to Comedy Central), in simulcast with the Comedy Central airing, as well as on the CTV broadcast network at 12:05 a.m. local time, following late local newscasts.

text:
In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the digital television channel More4 used to broadcast episodes of The Daily Show Tuesday through Friday evenings with the Global Edition, which is uncensored, airs on Mondays; regular episodes air the evening following their U.S. airing. More4 was the first international broadcaster to syndicate entire Daily Show episodes, though they made edits to the program due to content, language, length or commercial references. The program was also available to watch via the internet video on demand service 4oD. However, the 'toss' to The Colbert Report was usually included even though it was aired on FX, another channel.[165] In addition, the placement of commercial breaks followed the UK format, with one break midway through the show rather than several short breaks at various points. When The Daily Show was on hiatus, either re-runs or alternative content were aired. Since January 2011, only the Global Edition is broadcast.[166]
In July 2012 Comedy Central announced that The Daily Show would be shown on Comedy Central Extra in the same format as previously on More4, with episodes shown 24 hours after airing in the U.S.[167] The show aired on the channel from July 2012 to April 2015.

text: The Global Edition of the week of July 20, 2011 was not aired in the UK as it included a segment mocking Rupert Murdoch's appearance before the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee in relation to the News International phone hacking scandal.[168] Parliamentary rules ban parliamentary proceedings from being broadcast in a satirical context.[168] Stewart dedicated a segment of the show on August 2, 2011 to lampooning the censorship of the episode in Britain.[169] In May that year, The Daily Show mocked the ban on using footage of the Royal Wedding in a satirical context with an animated video that showed Paddington Bear, Gollum and Adolf Hitler as guests at the wedding, and depicted its attendants engaging in various forms of violent and sexual behavior.[170] Stewart later discussed the ban with guest Keira Knightley.[171]

text: The Daily Show used to be aired in India on Comedy Central India.[172]

text: The Daily Show is aired on Australian Pay TV channel, The Comedy Channel, weeknights at 6:30pm. Free-to-air digital channel ABC2 began broadcasting the show without commercial breaks in March 2010, but discontinued in January 2011 when The Comedy Channel obtained exclusive rights;[173] episodes were also available on the network's online service ABC iView shortly after airing.[174] The Comedy Channel (as well as ABC2 during 2010) used to air the show together with The Colbert Report, and both air the Global Edition on Mondays and the regular edition Tuesday through Friday. The Global Edition was previously shown weekend late nights on SBS before moving to Network TEN.

text: In North Africa and the Middle East, the Daily Show was broadcast on Showtime Arabia starting in 2008 and ending in 2015. When the show transitioned under Noah, OSN decided to wait a bit before airing the new show.[175] Now, the Global Edition of Noah's show is broadcast on OSN's Comedy Central HD channel.[176] Episodes are often edited if they contain topics deemed inappropriate for the region.

text: Episodes of the U.S. version are also available online the next day at Comedy Central's official Daily Show website, although this service is not available in all countries. However, clips for UK and Ireland viewers became available on the UK Comedy Central website in December 2011.[177]

text: The Daily Show: Nederlandse Editie[edit]

text: An official Dutch version of the show called The Daily Show: Nederlandse Editie (The Daily Show: Dutch Edition) premiered on the Dutch Comedy Central on January 31, 2011. The program is similar to the original, except with Dutch news and a Dutch view on international news. The show is hosted by comedian Jan-Jaap van der Wal, who was a team captain on Dit was het nieuws, the Dutch edition of Have I Got News For You.[178] The first episode featured a guest appearance by Jon Stewart (recorded at the New York studio), who gave his official blessing for the show.[179] This is also the first and still only franchise of The Daily Show. The 'Dutch Edition' didn't make it past the test run of 12 episodes due to lack of viewers.

text: Spin-offs[edit]

text: The Colbert Report[edit]

text: A spin-off, The Colbert Report, was announced in early May 2005. The show starred former correspondent Stephen Colbert, and served as Comedy Central's answer to the programs of media pundits such as Bill O'Reilly. Colbert, Stewart, and Ben Karlin developed the idea for the show based on a series of faux television commercials that had been created for an earlier Daily Show segment. They pitched the concept to Comedy Central chief Doug Herzog, who agreed to run the show for eight weeks without first creating a pilot.[180] The Colbert Report premiered on October 17, 2005 and aired following The Daily Show for nine years. Initial ratings satisfied Comedy Central and less than three weeks after its debut the show was renewed for a year.[181] The Colbert Report was produced by Jon Stewart's production company, Busboy Productions.

text: In 2014 it was announced that Colbert would leave Comedy Central to host The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on CBS in 2015, following the retirement of David Letterman.[182] The final episode of The Colbert Report aired on December 18, 2014.

text: The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore[edit]

text: On May 9, 2014 it was announced that Larry Wilmore had been selected to host a show on Comedy Central to serve as a replacement for The Colbert Report. On January 19, 2015 Wilmore began hosting The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, a late-night panel talk show. It was produced by Busboy Productions. On August 15, 2016, Comedy Central announced that Wilmore's show had been cancelled. The show ended on August 18, 2016, with a total of 259 episodes.[183]

text: The Opposition with Jordan Klepper[edit]

text: On April 4, 2017, Comedy Central announced a brand-new spinoff to occupy the 11:30pm time slot which had not had an original show since the canceling of The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore. The Daily Show's senior correspondent Jordan Klepper was enlisted as host, with Klepper, Stuart Miller, and Trevor Noah serving as executive producers.[184] The show intends to "satirize the hyperbolic, conspiracy-laden noise machine that is the alternative-media landscape on both the right and left."[185]

text: The show aired from September 25, 2017 to June 28, 2018. Comedy Central announced that Klepper would be hosting a new primetime weekly talk show, Klepper, to debut in early 2019.

text: Books[edit]

text:
The Daily Show's Five Questions from Comedy Central, published in 1998, is a book written by Craig Kilborn and other writers of The Daily Show that contains new material from the "Five Questions" segment.
America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, published in 2004, is a book written by Jon Stewart and other writers of The Daily Show that parodies and satirizes American politics and worldview.
Earth (The Book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race, published in 2010, is a book written by Jon Stewart and other writers of The Daily Show and is similar in style to America (The Book), but focuses on planet and human culture instead of the history of America.
The Daily Show (The Book): An Oral History as Told by Jon Stewart, the Correspondents, Staff and Guests, published in 2016, is a book written by Chris Smith, a contributing editor at New York Magazine, and other members of the Daily Show family. The book chronicles the 16 years of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
The Donald J. Trump Presidential Twitter Library, published in 2018, is a book written by Trevor Noah and other writers of The Daily Show that parodies and satirizes President Donald Trump's usage of his Twitter account.

text: Unofficial spin-offs[edit]

text: The Daily Show’s satirical format has inspired international versions unaffiliated with Comedy Central.

text: In Iran, the Persian-language satire program Parazit was directly inspired by The Daily Show with the hosts even making a guest appearance on the January 20, 2011, episode of The Daily Show.[186] Parazit was later succeeded by OnTen debuting on May 11, 2012.

text: In Germany, the heute-show has aired on ZDF since 2009.[187] The name is derived from the main ZDF news program heute (which means "today").

text: In Egypt, the show Al Bernameg is modeled after The Daily Show as well. Host Bassem Youssef even imitates Jon Stewart's mannerisms, such as using his mug as a comedic prop.[188] Youssef has appeared as a guest on The Daily Show multiple times.

text: In Iraq, Albasheer Show is a reduced version (with no celebrity interviews) and is hosted by the Iraqi journalist/comedian Ahmad Al-Basheer; commenting and criticizing local political issues.[citation needed]

text: In Israel, the Daily Show was one of the main inspirations for Eretz Nehederet, a popular Israeli satire.[189]

text: In Portugal, during the 2009 legislative election campaign, Portuguese comedy group Gato Fedorento hosted Gato Fedorento Esmiúça os Sufrágios, a satirical news show modeled after The Daily Show’s election coverage segments, which attracted immediate public attention after securing the key political candidates as guests.[190]

text: In Croatia, Montirani proces, a short-lived satirical program, heavily inspired by The Daily Show, ran for only six episodes in 2016,[191] before being controversially cancelled by the newly appointed conservative administration of the Croatian Radiotelevision.[192]

text: In Canada, the Rick Mercer Report is a satirical program that often revolves around Canadian politics and news. The show airs on Canadian network CBC weekly and is inspired by The Daily Show. The taping takes place in Toronto, Ontario in front of a live audience.[citation needed]

text: In Armenia: ArmComedy is an Armenian comedy show first aired in March 2012. It is aired thrice a week on ArmNews TV channel. Started as a satirical news website it later evolved into a web series on CivilNet Internet TV channel. After two years creators of the show were invited to expand to network television. "[193] ArmComedy became the "first satiric news show in Armenia dripped in political humor and wit, reporting the real news with a different perspective.".[194] Every episode of ArmComedy is written and hosted by Armenian comedians Narek Margaryan  and Sergey Sargsyan. It has been dubbed in press as "Armenia's version of The Daily Show".[195]

text: In Ukraine, ChistoNEWS is an Ukrainian comedy show first aired in March 2012.

text: In the United Kingdom, The Mash Report is a British version of the format, hosted by Nish Kumar.


document_title: Cardiac surgery

question_text: when was the first open heart bypass surgery performed

root

text: Cardiac surgery

text: History[edit]

text: 19th century[edit]

text: The earliest operations on the pericardium (the sac that surrounds the heart) took place in the 19th century and were performed by Francisco Romero (1801),[1] Dominique Jean Larrey (1810), Henry Dalton (1891), and Daniel Hale Williams (1893).[2] The first surgery on the heart itself was performed by Axel Cappelen on 4 September 1895 at Rikshospitalet in Kristiania, now Oslo. Cappelen ligated a bleeding coronary artery in a 24-year-old man who had been stabbed in the left axilla and was in deep shock upon arrival. Access was through a left thoracotomy. The patient awoke and seemed fine for 24 hours, but became ill with a fever and died three days after the surgery from mediastinitis.[3][4]

tag: p

text: The first successful surgery on the heart, without any complications, was performed by Dr. Ludwig Rehn of Frankfurt, Germany, who repaired a stab wound to the right ventricle on 7 September 1896.[5][6]

text: 20th century[edit]

text: Surgery on the great vessels (e.g., aortic coarctation repair, Blalock-Thomas-Taussig shunt creation, closure of patent ductus arteriosus) became common after the turn of the century. However, operations on the heart valves were unknown until, in 1925, Henry Souttar operated successfully on a young woman with mitral valve stenosis. He made an opening in the appendage of the left atrium and inserted a finger in order to palpate and explore the damaged mitral valve. The patient survived for several years,[7] but Souttar's colleagues considered the procedure unjustified, and he could not continue.[8][9]

text: Cardiac surgery changed significantly after World War II. In 1947, Thomas Holmes Sellors (1902–1987) of Middlesex Hospital in London operated on a Tetralogy of Fallot patient with pulmonary stenosis and successfully divided the stenosed pulmonary valve. In 1948, Russell Brock, probably unaware of Sellors's work, used a specially designed dilator in three cases of pulmonary stenosis. Later that year, he designed a punch to resect a stenosed infundibulum, which is often associated with Tetralogy of Fallot. Many thousands of these "blind" operations were performed until the introduction of cardiopulmonary bypass made direct surgery on valves possible.[8]

text: Also in 1948, four surgeons carried out successful operations for mitral valve stenosis resulting from rheumatic fever. Horace Smithy (1914–1948) of Charlotte used a valvulotome to remove a portion of a patient's mitral valve,[10] while three other doctors—Charles Bailey (1910–1993) of Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia; Dwight Harken in Boston; and Russell Brock of Guy's Hospital in London—adopted Souttar's method. All four men began their work independently of one another within a period of a few months. This time, Souttar's technique was widely adopted, with some modifications.[8][9]

text: The first successful intracardiac correction of a congenital heart defect using hypothermia was performed by Drs. C. Walton Lillehei and F. John Lewis at the University of Minnesota on 2 September 1952. In 1953, Alexander Alexandrovich Vishnevsky conducted the first cardiac surgery under local anesthesia. In 1956, Dr. John Carter Callaghan performed the first documented open heart surgery in Canada.

text: Alfred Blalock, Helen Taussig and Vivien Thomas performed the first successful pediatric cardiac operation at Johns Hopkins Hospital on November, 29 1944, a total repair of Tetralogy of Fallot in a one-year-old girl.[11]

text: Types of cardiac surgery[edit]

text: This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

tag: table

text: Open heart surgery[edit]

text: In open heart surgery, the patient's heart is opened and surgery is performed on its internal structures.

text: Dr. Wilfred G. Bigelow of the University of Toronto found that such procedures could be performed better in a bloodless and motionless environment. Therefore, during open heart surgery, the heart is temporarily stopped, and the patient is placed on cardiopulmonary bypass, meaning a machine pumps their blood and oxygen. Because the machine cannot function the same way as the heart, surgeons try to minimize the time a patient spends on it.[12]

text: Cardiopulmonary bypass was developed after surgeons realized the limitations of hypothermia in cardiac surgery: Complex intracardiac repairs take time, and the patient needs blood flow to the body (particularly to the brain), as well as heart and lung function. In 1953, Dr. John Heysham Gibbon of Jefferson Medical School in Philadelphia reported the first successful use of extracorporeal circulation by means of an oxygenator, but he abandoned the method after subsequent failures. In 1954, Dr. Lillehei performed a series of successful operations with the controlled cross-circulation technique, in which the patient's mother or father was used as a "heart-lung machine". Dr. John W. Kirklin at the Mayo Clinic was the first to use a Gibbon-type pump-oxygenator.

text: Nazih Zuhdi performed the first total intentional hemodilution open heart surgery on Terry Gene Nix, age 7, on 25 February 1960 at Mercy Hospital in Oklahoma City. The operation was a success; however, Nix died three years later.[13] In March 1961, Zuhdi, Carey, and Greer performed open heart surgery on a child, age  3 1⁄2, using the total intentional hemodilution machine.

text: Modern beating-heart surgery[edit]

text: In the early 1990s, surgeons began to perform off-pump coronary artery bypass, done without cardiopulmonary bypass. In these operations, the heart continues beating during surgery, but is stabilized to provide an almost still work area in which to connect a conduit vessel that bypasses a blockage using a technique known as endoscopic vessel harvesting (EVH).

text: Heart transplant[edit]

text: In 1945, the Soviet pathologist Nikolai Sinitsyn successfully transplanted a heart from one frog to another frog and from one dog to another dog.

text: Norman Shumway is widely regarded as the father of human heart transplantation, although the world's first adult heart transplant was performed by a South African cardiac surgeon, Christiaan Barnard, using techniques developed by Shumway and Richard Lower.[14] Barnard performed the first transplant on Louis Washkansky on 3 December 1967 at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town.[14][15] Adrian Kantrowitz performed the first pediatric heart transplant on 6 December 1967 at Maimonides Hospital (now Maimonides Medical Center) in Brooklyn, New York, barely three days later.[14] Shumway performed the first adult heart transplant in the United States on 6 January 1968 at Stanford University Hospital.[14]

text: Coronary artery bypass grafting[edit]

text: Coronary artery bypass grafting, also called revascularization, is a common surgical procedure to create an alternative path to deliver blood supply to the heart and body, with the goal of preventing clot formation. This can be done in many ways, and the arteries used can be taken from several areas of the body.[16] Arteries are typically harvested from the chest, arm, or wrist and then attached to a portion of the coronary artery, relieving pressure and limiting clotting factors in that area of the heart.[17]

text: The procedure is typically performed because of coronary artery disease (CAD), in which a plaque-like substance builds up in the coronary artery, the main pathway carrying oxygen-rich blood to the heart. This can cause a blockage and/or a rupture, which can lead to a heart attack.[17]

text: Minimally invasive surgery[edit]

text: As an alternative to open heart surgery, which involves a five- to eight-inch incision in the chest wall, a surgeon may perform an endoscopic procedure by making very small incisions through which a camera and specialized tools are inserted.[18]

text: In robot-assisted heart surgery, a machine controlled by a cardiac surgeon is used to perform a procedure. The main advantage to this is the size of the incision required: three small holes instead of an incision big enough for the surgeon's hands.[citation needed]

text: Post-surgical procedures[edit]

text: As with any surgical procedure, cardiac surgery requires postoperative precautions to avoid complications. Incision care is needed to avoid infection and minimize scarring. Swelling and loss of appetite are common.[19][20]

text: Recovery from open heart surgery begins with about 48 hours in an intensive care unit, where heart rate, blood pressure, and oxygen levels are closely monitored. Chest tubes are inserted to drain blood around the heart and lungs. After discharge from the hospital, compression socks may be recommended in order to regulate blood flow.[21]

text: Risks[edit]

text: The advancement of cardiac surgery and cardiopulmonary bypass techniques has greatly reduced the mortality rates of these procedures. For instance, repairs of congenital heart defects are currently estimated to have 4–6% mortality rates.[22][23]

text: A major concern with cardiac surgery is neurological damage. Stroke occurs in 2–3% of all people undergoing cardiac surgery, and the rate is higher in patients with other risk factors for stroke.[24] A more subtle complication attributed to cardiopulmonary bypass is postperfusion syndrome, sometimes called "pumphead". The neurocognitive symptoms of postperfusion syndrome were initially thought to be permanent,[25] but turned out to be transient, with no permanent neurological impairment.[26]

text: In order to assess the performance of surgical units and individual surgeons, a popular risk model has been created called the EuroSCORE. It takes a number of health factors from a patient and, using precalculated logistic regression coefficients, attempts to quantify the probability that they will survive to discharge. Within the United Kingdom, the EuroSCORE was used to give a breakdown of all cardiothoracic surgery centres and to indicate whether the units and their individuals surgeons performed within an acceptable range. The results are available on the Care Quality Commission website.[27]

text: Another important source of complications are the neuropsychological and psychopathologic changes following open heart surgery. One example is Skumin syndrome, described by Victor Skumin in 1978, which is a "cardioprosthetic psychopathological syndrome"[28] associated with mechanical heart valve implants and characterized by irrational fear, anxiety, depression, sleep disorder, and weakness.[29][30]

text: Risk reduction[edit]

text: A 2012 Cochrane systematic review found evidence that preoperative physical therapy reduced postoperative pulmonary complications, such as pneumonia and atelectasis, in patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery.[31] In addition, the researchers found that preoperative physical therapy decreased the length of hospital stay by more than three days on average.[31]

text: A 2013 Cochrane review showed that both pharmacological and non-pharmacological prevention reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation after an operation and reduced the length of hospital stays. No difference in mortality could be shown.[32]

text: There is evidence that quitting smoking at least four weeks before surgery may reduce the risk of postoperative complications.[33]


document_title: Characters in Romeo and Juliet

question_text: what family does paris belong to in romeo and juliet

text: Characters in Romeo and Juliet

text: House of Escalus[edit]

text: Prince Escalus[edit]

text: Prince Escalus, the Prince of Verona, is the desperate resolver of the feuding families. He is based on the actual Scaligeri family which ruled Verona, possibly on Bartolomeo I. Escalus is the voice of authority in Verona. He appears only three times within the text and only to administer justice following major events in the feud between the Capulet and Montague families. He first punishes Capulet and Montague for the quarrel between Tybalt, Benvolio, and a handful of servants. He returns too late to stop the fatal brawls between Tybalt and Mercutio and, subsequently, Tybalt and Romeo. Escalus is prepared to execute Romeo for his offence—Romeo's killing Tybalt—but lightens the sentence to lifetime banishment from Verona, when Benvolio insists that Tybalt started the quarrel by murdering Mercutio, a kinsman to the prince. He yells at Lord Montague for engaging in the feud, which really is the root cause which led to Tybalt killing Mercutio. Prince Escalus returns in the final scene—V.iii—following the double suicide of Romeo and Juliet, and at last declares the Lords Montague and Capulet guilty of Romeo and Juliet's death, and angrily tells them that their totally useless feud resulted in the deaths of not only their own loved ones (Lady Montague, Romeo, Juliet, and Tybalt), but also in the deaths of Escalus' loved ones (Mercutio and Paris). He curses the feud that kills Romeo and Juliet whom he really feels sad for, just before the Lords come to peace with each other. In the end, Prince Escalus becomes very happy that the feud has finally ended, even if with a heavy price, since it ended late.

text: Count Paris[edit]

text: Count Paris is a kinsman of Prince Escalus and seeks to marry Juliet. He is described as handsome, somewhat self-absorbed, and very wealthy.

text: Paris makes his first appearance in Act I, Scene II, where he expresses his wish to make Juliet his wife and the mother of his children. Capulet demurs, citing his daughter's young age as a reason and telling him to wait until she is more mature. (Paris disagrees, however.) Nevertheless, Capulet invites Paris to attend a family ball being held that evening and grants permission to woo and attract Juliet. Later in the play, however, Juliet refuses to become Paris' "joyful bride" after her cousin Tybalt dies by her new husband Romeo's hand, proclaiming that she now wants nothing to do with Paris. Her parents threaten to disown (or cut ties with) her if she will not agree to the marriage. Then, while at Laurence's cell at the church, Paris tries to woo her by repeatedly saying that she is his wife and that they are to be married on Thursday. He kisses her and then leaves the cell, prompting Juliet to angrily threaten to kill herself with a knife. His final appearance in the play is in the cemetery where Juliet is "laid to rest" in the Capulet family tomb. Believing her to be dead, Count Paris has come to mourn her death in solitude and privacy and sends his manservant away. He professes his love to Juliet, saying he will nightly weep for her (Act V, Scene III). Shortly thereafter, Romeo arrives. Paris sees him and thinks he is trying to vandalise the tomb, so he tries to arrest him. They fight, and Romeo kills Paris. Romeo grants Paris' dying wish to be placed next to Juliet in the tomb.

text: Mercutio[edit]

text: Mercutio is the cousin of Prince Escalus and Count Paris, and is a close friend of Romeo and his cousin Benvolio. He supports and fights on the Montague side of the feud, and just like a Montague, hates the Capulet family. The invitation to the Capulet's party reveals that he has a brother named Valentine. Mercutio is apt to make long, drawn out speeches (the most famous of which is the Queen Mab speech), and is generally thought to be reckless, a jester, and a free spirit. Due to his reckless and flamboyant personality, Mercutio is one of Shakespeare's most popular characters. Mercutio is the instigator of many fights with his rather mean spirited humor, and often insults Tybalt, a renowned swordsman. It is Tybalt's temper that leads to Mercutio's death, and Romeo's banishment and the tragedy that follows.

text: After Romeo receives a death threat from Tybalt, Mercutio expects Romeo to engage Tybalt in a duel. However, Romeo refuses to fight Tybalt, as Tybalt is Juliet's cousin and therefore his kinsman. Not knowing this, Mercutio is incensed, and decides to fight Tybalt himself. Romeo, not wanting his best friend or his relative to get hurt, intervenes, causing Mercutio to be killed by Tybalt stabbing under Romeo's arm.

text: Before he dies, Mercutio casts "a plague o' both your houses!" He makes one final pun before he dies: "Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man". In revenge for the murder of his best friend, Romeo slays Tybalt, thus leading to Romeo's banishment from Verona and the increasingly tragic turn of events that follows.

text: Page to Paris[edit]

text: Another page accompanies Paris to the Capulet's crypt when he goes to mourn Juliet. He stands guard as Paris enters, ordered to "whistle then to me, / As signal that thou hear'st something approach". When Romeo and Paris break into a brawl, the page runs away to call the Watch. He returns with the Watch too late to stop the fray and later testifies to the Prince of Paris' intentions.

text: House of Capulet[edit]

text: The Capulet family (in Italian, "Capuleti") in the play was named after an actual political faction of the 13th century.[1] Notably, the Capulet family is often portrayed as the 'bad' side, as much of the conflict is caused by them. They are also more developed, since more attention is given to their family life.

text: Lord Capulet[edit]

text: Lord Capulet is the patriarch of the Capulet family, the father of Juliet, and uncle of Tybalt. He is very wealthy. He is sometimes commanding but also convivial, as at the ball: when Tybalt tries to duel with Romeo, Capulet tries to calm him and then threatens to throw him out of the family if he does not control his temper; he does the same to his daughter later in the play.

text:
Hang thee, young baggage! disobedient wretch!
I tell thee what: get thee to church o' Thursday,
Or never after look me in the face
And you be mine, I'll give you to my friend;
And you be not, hang, beg, starve, die in the streets!

Capulet's ultimatum to Juliet, Romeo and Juliet[2]

tag: div

text: Capulet believes he knows what is best for Juliet. He says his consent to the marriage depends upon what she wants and tells Count Paris that if he wants to marry Juliet he should wait a while then ask her. Later, however, when Juliet is grieving over Romeo's departure, Capulet thinks her sorrow is due to Tybalt's death, and in a misguided attempt to cheer her up, he wants to surprise her by arranging a marriage between her and Count Paris. The catch is that she has to be "ruled" by her father and to accept the proposal. When she refuses to become Paris' "joyful bride", saying that she can "never be proud of what she hates", Capulet becomes furious; threatens to make her a street urchin; calls her a "hilding" , "unworthy", "young baggage", a "disobedient wretch", a "green-sickness carrion", and "tallow-face"; and says God's giving Juliet to them was a "curse" and he now realises he and his wife had one child too many when Juliet was born (in the earlier poem The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet). In addition to threatening to turn her out, he threatens to sentence her to rot away in prison if she does not obey her parents' orders. He then storms away, and his wife also rejects Juliet before following him. He fixes the day of the marriage for Thursday and suddenly advances it to Wednesday out of anger and impulse. His actions indicate that his daughter's wants were irrelevant all the way up to the point when he sees her unconscious on her bed (presumably dead) and later, when she is truly dead during the play's final scene. It is he who asks Lord Montague for his hand to end the feud between their families.

text: Lady Capulet[edit]

text: Capulet's wife is the matriarch of the house of Capulet and Juliet's mother. She plays a larger role than Montague's wife, appearing in several scenes. In Act 1, Scene 3, she speaks to Juliet about the marriage of her daughter and Paris, we see this as she compares him to a book, and Juliet is the cover. However, in Scene four, she is pleased about Count Paris' "interest" in her daughter. When Tybalt is killed in Act 3, she expresses extreme grief and a strong desire for revenge on Romeo by wishing death upon him. In Act 3, Scene 5, she becomes very angry with Juliet for refusing to marry Paris and coldly rejects her, saying: "Talk not to me, for I'll not speak a word; do as thou wilt, for I am done with thee". By the final act, she is nearly overcome by the tragic events of the play, this is where the grief-stricken mother comes out.[3] We know Juliet's mother bore her first child by the time she was 14, Juliet's age, and her husband is many years older than she. Calling her "Lady Capulet" is a modern addition; it is an echo of Juliet's form of address in 3.5.65: "my lady mother".[4] In the first texts the stage direction and speech headings can be "mother", "wife", or even "old lady", but nowhere "Lady Capulet".[4]

text: Juliet[edit]

text: Juliet Capulet, the female protagonist, is the only daughter of Capulet, the patriarch of the Capulet family. As a child she was cared for by a Nurse, who is now her confidante.

text: Juliet dies at the end of the play, and the sacred lovers are reunited on the same deathbed. Both their families realise what they had done by trying to separate the star crossed lovers with the effect that the Capulets and Montagues are reunited and their fighting ends.

text: Tybalt[edit]

text: Tybalt is the son of Lady Capulet's brother and Juliet's hot-headed first cousin. As a skilled swordsman, he serves as the story's principal antagonist. Tybalt is angered by the insult of Romeo and Benvolio's uninvited presence at the ball in the Capulets' home. Tybalt shares the same name as the character Tibert/Tybalt the "Prince of Cats" in Reynard the Fox, a point of both mockery and compliment to him in the play. While Mercutio repeatedly calls Tybalt "Prince of Cats" (referring to Tybalt's speed and agility with the sword), Mercutio is also insulting Tybalt – the phrase refers not only to Reynard but to the Italian word cazzo (pr. CAT-so) meaning "penis.”

text: Tybalt is first seen coming to the aid of his servants who are being attacked by the Montagues' servants. He is also present at Capulet's feast in act one, scene five and is the first to recognise Romeo. His last appearance is in act 3 scene 1, wherein Mercutio insults Tybalt and ends up fighting with him. Tybalt kills Mercutio and, in retaliation, Romeo rages and kills Tybalt, resulting in Romeo's banishment.

text: Nurse[edit]

text: The Nurse is a major character in the play, and like the Friar she is a neutral character. There has been speculation about her name, as Capulet refers to as "Angelica", but the line can be addressed to either the nurse or Lady Capulet. She is the personal servant (and former nurse) of Juliet's. As the primary person who raised Juliet, she is Juliet's confidante and effectively more of a mother to the girl than Lady Capulet. She was also the one who breastfed Juliet as a child.[5]

text: Peter[edit]

text: Peter is the personal servant of the Nurse's. He appears to be a loyal servant, always quick to obey the Nurse. He is chastised for not fighting Mercutio for the Nurse's honour, but insists that he "saw no man use you a pleasure; if I had, / my weapon should quickly have been out".[6] He appears again in act four, scene five in a brief comic relief scene with a number of musicians.

text: Gregory and Sampson[edit]

text: Gregory and Sampson are the Capulet servants. Gregory is originally hesitant to start a fight. Sampson, however, bites his thumb at Abram, "Which is a disgrace to them, if they bear it". The Montagues then retaliate in earnest. Benvolio arrives to break up the fight but ends up fighting with Tybalt. Both Gregory and Sampson appear to be friends of their master Tybalt's.[7]

text: In the opening scene, the two engage in a dialogue full of puns on "coal" and "eye", each intending to outdo the other and get each other ready to fight Montagues. The rhetorical form is called stychomythia, wherein characters participate in a short, quick exchanges of one-upmanship. Their discussion and brawl in this scene set the stage for the rivalry and hatred which fills the rest of the play.[7]

text: Anthony, Potpan, unnamed Servants[edit]

text: Anthony, Potpan, and two other servants to the Capulet family play out a short comic scene in act one, scene five, arguing over the preparations for Capulet's feast. Capulet's servants are referenced again in act four, scene one; Capulet orders them to begin preparations for another party: the wedding of Juliet and Paris.

text: Servant to Capulet[edit]

text: A servant to Capulet is sent to deliver party invitations to a number of nobles and friends to Capulet. While walking, he comes upon Romeo and Benvolio and asks them to read the list for him, as he cannot read. As a thank you, he invites the boys to "come and crush a cup of wine," not realising that they are Montagues. This character may have been intended to be the same as Peter, and is usually identified in scripts either as Peter or as a Clown.

text: Old Capulet[edit]

text: Old Capulet is Capulet's cousin. He appears as an elderly man sitting with Capulet in the feast.

text: House of Montague[edit]

text: The Montague family (in Italian, "Montecchi") was an actual political faction of the 13th century.[1] The Montagues are generally portrayed as the 'better' of the two families, as they are not seen to be provoking fights and are often found trying to avoid fighting whenever they could, and occasionally found trying to dissuade the fighters to return to peace.

text: Lord Montague[edit]

text: The father of Romeo. Presumably, he is also wealthy, and is always in feud with Capulet. Montague clearly loves his son deeply and at the beginning of the play, worries for him as he recounts to Benvolio his attempts to find out the source of his depression. He wishes Benvolio better luck. After Romeo kills Tybalt, Montague pleads with the Prince to spare him of execution as Romeo did only what the law would have done, since Tybalt killed Mercutio. He appears again at the end of the play to mourn Romeo, having already lost his wife to grief.

text: Lady Montague[edit]

text: Montague's wife is the matriarch of the house of Montague, and the mother of Romeo and aunt of Benvolio. She appears twice within the play: in act one, scene one she first restrains Montague from entering the quarrel himself, and later speaks with Benvolio about the same quarrel. She returns with her husband and the Prince in act three, scene one to see what the trouble is, and is there informed of Romeo's banishment. She dies of grief offstage soon after (mentioned in act five). She is very protective of her son Romeo and is very happy when Benvolio tells her that Romeo was not involved in the brawl that happened between the Capulets and Montagues. However, Romeo doesn't feel very close to her as he is unable to seek advice from her. As with Capulet's wife, calling her "Lady Montague" is a later invention not supported by the earliest texts.

text: Romeo[edit]

text: In the beginning of the play, Romeo pines for an unrequited love, Rosaline. To cheer him up, his cousin and friend Benvolio and Mercutio take him to the Capulets' celebration in disguise, where he meets and falls in love with the Capulets' only daughter, Juliet. Later that night, he and Juliet meet secretly and pledge to marry, despite their families' long-standing feud. They marry the following day, but their union is soon thrown into chaos by their families; Juliet's cousin Tybalt duels and kills Romeo's friend Mercutio, throwing Romeo into such a rage that he kills Tybalt, and the Prince of Verona subsequently banishes him. Meanwhile, Juliet's father plans to marry her off to Paris, a local aristocrat, within the next few days, threatening to turn her out on the streets if she doesn't follow through. Desperate, Juliet begs Romeo's confidant, Friar Laurence, to help her to escape the forced marriage. Laurence does so by giving her a potion that puts her in a deathlike coma. The plan works, but too soon for Romeo to learn of it; he genuinely believes Juliet to be dead, and so resolves to commit suicide, by drinking the bottle of poison (illegally bought from the Apothecary upon hearing the news of Juliet's "death"). Romeo's final words were "Thus with a kiss I die".[8] He kills himself at Juliet's grave, moments before she awakes; she kills herself in turn shortly thereafter.

text: Benvolio[edit]

text: He is Montague's nephew and Romeo's cousin. Benvolio and Romeo are both friends of Mercutio, a kinsman to Prince Escalus. Benvolio seems to have little sympathy with the feud, trying unsuccessfully to back down from a fight with Tybalt, and the duels that end in Mercutio and Tybalt's death. Benvolio spends most of Act I attempting to distract his cousin from his infatuation with Rosaline, but following the first appearance of Mercutio in I.iv, he and Mercutio become more closely aligned until III.i. In that scene, he drags the fatally wounded Mercutio offstage, before returning to inform Romeo of Mercutio's death and the Prince of the course of Mercutio's and Tybalt's deaths. Benvolio then disappears from the play (though, as a Montague, he may implicitly be included in the stage direction in the final scene "Enter Lord Montague and others", and he is sometimes doubled with Balthasar). Though he ultimately disappears from the play without much notice, he is a crucial character if only in that he is the only child of the new generation from either family to survive the play (as Romeo, Juliet, Paris, Mercutio, and Tybalt are dead).

text: Balthasar[edit]

text: Balthasar is Romeo's servant and trusted friend. They have a brotherly relationship, which is identified when Balthasar tells Romeo that Juliet is "dead." While he is not directly referenced in the first scene of the play, the directions call for two Montague servants to quarrel with Sampson and Gregory. He then comes back in Act V Scene 1 telling Romeo about Juliet's death. Later Friar Laurence runs past Balthasar and asks him where Romeo is. Balthasar tells him that he is inside the tomb. Then the Prince calls him in and asks him questions about why was he there. He gives the Prince the letter that explains why Juliet killed herself.

text: Abram[edit]

text: Abram is a servant of the Montague household. He appears in Act 1, Scene 1, where he and another servant (presumably Balthasar) are provoked into a fight with Gregory and Sampson when the latter bites his thumb at them.

text: Other characters[edit]

text: Friar Lawrence[edit]

text: Friar Lawrence plays the part of an advisor and mentor to Romeo, along with aiding in major plot developments.

text: Alone, the innocent Friar gives us foreshadowing with his soliloquy about plants and their similarities to humans.[9] When Romeo requests that the Friar marry him to Juliet, he is shocked, because only days before, Romeo had been infatuated with Rosaline,[10] a woman who did not return his love. Nevertheless, Friar Lawrence decides to marry Romeo and Juliet in the attempt to end the civil feud between the Capulets and the Montagues.[11]

text: When Romeo is banished[12] and flees to Mantua for murdering Tybalt[13] (who had previously murdered Mercutio), he tries to help the two lovers get back together using a death-emulating potion to fake Juliet's death.[14] The Friar's letter to Romeo does not reach him because the people of Mantua suspect the messenger came from a house where the plague reigns,[15] and the Friar is unable to arrive at the Capulet's monument in time. Romeo kills Count Paris,[16] whom he finds weeping near Juliet's corpse, then commits suicide,[17] by drinking poison that he bought from an impoverished apothecary,[18] over what he thinks is Juliet's dead body. Friar Lawrence arrives just as Juliet awakes from her chemically induced slumber.[19] He urges Juliet not to be rash, and to join a society of nuns,[20] but he hears a noise from outside and then flees from the tomb. Juliet then kills herself with Romeo's dagger, completing the tragedy. The Friar is forced to return to the tomb, where he recounts the entire story to Prince Escalus, and all the Montagues and Capulets. As he finishes, the prince proclaims, "We have still known thee for a holy man".

text: Friar John[edit]

text: Friar John calls at the door of Friar Laurence's cell, "Holy Franciscan friar! brother, ho!" (5.2.1). Friar Laurence comes out and immediately asks about Romeo: "Welcome from Mantua! What says Romeo? / Or, if his mind be writ, give me his letter" (5.2.3–4). Friar John explains that he sought out another friar for company and found him in a house where he was visiting the sick, whereupon the health authorities, fearing there was pestilence in the house, confined both friars in the house so they wouldn't infect others. The authorities wouldn't even allow Friar John to use a messenger to send the letter back to Friar Laurence.

text: Chorus[edit]

text: A Chorus gives the opening prologue and one other speech, both in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet.

text: The Chorus is an omniscient character. It appears at the top of the play to fill the audience in on the ancient quarrel between the, "Two households, both alike in dignity / In fair Verona, where we lay our scene". It returns as a prologue to act two to foreshadow the tragic turn of events about to befall the new romance between the title characters.

text: The Chorus only appears in the Quarto versions, not in the First Folio.

text: Apothecary[edit]

text: The Apothecary is a pharmacist in Mantua who reluctantly sells Romeo's poison, only because he's poor and is also in desperate need of monetary support.

text: Watchmen[edit]

text: The Watch of Verona takes the form of three watchmen. The First Watch appears to be the constable, who orders the Second and Third to "search about the churchyard!" Unusual for a Shakespearean watch group, they appear to be a relatively intelligent unit, managing to capture and detain Balthasar and Friar Laurence in the churchyard. They then testify to the Prince to their role in the murder and suicide scene.

text: Musicians[edit]

text: Three musicians for Juliet's wedding appear in act four, scene five in a brief comic scene, refusing to play a song called "Heart's ease" for Peter. They are referred to by the names of Simon Catling, Hugh Rebeck, and James Soundpost.[21]

text: Citizens of Verona[edit]

text: A number of citizens emerge during Act I, Scene I to break apart the fight between some Capulet and Montague servants. They appear again in Act III, Scene I to discover the slain body of Tybalt, at which point they place Benvolio under citizen's arrest until the Prince's swift entrance.

text: Unseen and ghost characters[edit]

text: Petruchio[edit]

text: Petruchio is a guest at the Capulet feast. He is notable only in that he is the only ghost character confirmed by Shakespeare to be present. When the party ends and Juliet inquires towards Romeo's identity, the Nurse attempts to avoid the subject by answering that Juliet is pointing at "the young Petruchio". Later, he is with Tybalt when he fatally wounds Mercutio, and a few scripts identify a Capulet with one line by that name. Petruchio is also the name of a major character in Shakespeare's earlier work, The Taming of the Shrew.

text: Rosaline[edit]

text: Rosaline is an unseen character and niece of Capulet. Although silent, her role is important: her lover, Romeo, first spots her cousin Juliet while trying to catch a glimpse of Rosaline at a Capulet gathering.

text: Before Juliet, Romeo was deeply intrigued with another woman that didn't return his feelings. Scholars generally compare Romeo's short-lived love of Rosaline with his later love of Juliet. Rosaline means "fair rose". The poetry he writes for Rosaline is much weaker than that for Juliet. Scholars believe his early experience with Rosaline prepares him for his relationship with Juliet. Later performances of Romeo and Juliet have painted different pictures of Romeo and Rosaline's relationship, with filmmakers experimenting by making Rosaline a more visible character.

text: Valentine[edit]

text: Valentine is Mercutio's brother, briefly mentioned as a guest at the Capulet feast where Romeo and Juliet meet. He is a ghost character with no speaking parts, and his only possible appearance is at the Capulet feast among the guests. "Valentine" has been taken to mean "lover" or "brother", and is associated with these attributes in several stories and histories. Scholars have pointed out that Valentine is more strongly connected to a major character than other ghosts, as he is given a direct connection to his brother. Although he has a very small role in Shakespeare's play, earlier versions of the story gave him no role or mention at all. In fact, they gave even Mercutio a very minor role. Shakespeare was the first English dramatist to use the name "Valentine" on stage, in his earlier plays, Titus Andronicus and Two Gentlemen of Verona. In Titus, Valentine plays a minor role, but in Two Gentlemen, he is one of the title characters. Incidentally, the Valentine of Two Gentlemen borrows heavily from Arthur Brooke's Romeus in The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet, which Shakespeare later used to create Romeo and Juliet. Brooke's version made Mercutio a rival for Juliet's love. Shakespeare's addition of Valentine as Mercutio's brother diffuses this rivalry. Thus, because the first time we hear of Mercutio he is associated with Valentine, rather than Juliet, he is changed from a rival to a friend and brotherly figure of Romeo.[22]