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WikiProject Screenwriters

I am trying to figure how best to jumpstart the stagnant Screenwriters Project: And it has been suggested that it be curtailed to a Task Force or Subproject and merged with WikiProject: Biography or even Wikiproject Actors and Filmmakers. The structure of a full wikiproject is a little overwhelming for a such a limited number of editors. I am well versed in the subject matter but I am not at all versed in Wikiproject management. I am finding the disconnect between categories, lists and indexes of the Screenwriters Project wildly misleading, thoroughly subjective, often irrelevant, and possibly sexist. I think that organized a different manner as a project with a small 'p', it could give equal weight to all eras and disciplines. I am deeply engaged in writing well researched articles about dead women screenwriters, however, I would like to see template standardization applied to all screenwriter articles and would be willing to do much of the heavy lifting towards this end. I am looking for other editors who are interested in breathing some life into this neglected topic. Any thoughts? EraserGirl (talk) 16:22, 13 March 2008 (UTC)

Please see also Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Actors and Filmmakers#WikiProject Screenwriters. I, as opposed to you, rarely write anything, really, but am pretty good with the project management end, and I would support a merger to either project. John Carter (talk) 16:37, 13 March 2008 (UTC)

Still trying to drum up interest in the Screenwriters project/taskforce. Anyone at all? this is quite depressing, all these dead screenwriters and no one will speak for them. EraserGirl (talk) 03:01, 6 April 2008 (UTC)

Hey, there are some very worthy screenwriters that are alive and well, imo. I wrote Tamara Jenkins' article and greatly cleaned up Diablo Cody's not too long ago. Don't narrow yourself to those who are only six feet under. ;) Anyway, I'd be interested to see where this task force leads, but I'm spread a little thin to take much of a part, I'm afraid. It seems that the proposal has received enough support to move forward, so that's a start. María (habla conmigo) 15:05, 7 April 2008 (UTC)
Right now, the question is how to deal with it. Personally, I think the best place to go would be to the Wikipedia:WikiProject Actors and filmmakers as a logical parent, as they are more directly tied to the cinema than we here are. Also, it would probably help a lot if you could merge into it, to get separate assessments.
Regarding lack of interest by others, that's a problem for a lot of subjects. The best guess I would have would be to try to maybe prioritize the articles by general "importance", and try to get the better known articles involved in some sort of collaborative effort. That would indicate both the project's activity and help draw attention to it. Right now, I'm a bit tentative about adjusting the Biography banner, because there are potentially a lot of projects to be added to it in the near future, and it raises hob with the server when we alter anything transcluded as often as it, but I don't think the Actors and Filmmakers banner would be quite so problematic to alter. John Carter (talk) 15:20, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

I started at actors and filmmakers, and was sent here. Now I am being sent back? i may just bag the entire community thing, and just keep writing articles on my own. EraserGirl (talk) 15:40, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

I can't explain why they sent you here. But this the Biography banner on about half a million pages, it's technically a lot easier and a lot less burden to change their banner. If you wanted, I could work on adding parameters to it, although it might take a day or to. John Carter (talk) 16:32, 7 April 2008 (UTC)
I'm not entirely sure, at least from this discussion, that the Actors and Filmmakers project isn't interested in the inclusion of screenwriters. I do a lot of work for that project, including lately doing the assessments as they come up, but I was of the impression that screenwriters were already included in the broader scope of the project from its inception. I do see that Blofeld has responded on this. Wildhartlivie (talk) 16:47, 7 April 2008 (UTC)
Yeah, they are. And they do use the Biography banner, don't they. The old brain ain't working today. Give me maybe a week or so to finish the project directory, so we can start talking about which groups to add to the Biography banner all at the same time. When I'm done, I'll have a better idea of which groups should be included. Does that sound fair? John Carter (talk) 16:51, 7 April 2008 (UTC)
That's fair to me. I'm always around (well, except this evening) working on projects. I'd like to also grab this opportunity to mention that the Gene Wilder article was promoted to GA this weekend. It's alive!!! Wildhartlivie (talk) 17:24, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

All I am looking for is direction. I am not interested in striking out on my own and revamping something that already exists, or taking over anything. I was actually hoping that there was actually a bureaucratic structure in place that would want to apply MY labors to something constructive. Granted I am new to WP, but I am passionate and learned about this topic and a highly skilled researcher. When someone comes up with a game plan, gimme a holler, I will be around. I like writing biographies of people no one else remembers. No offense but I can' be less interested in people who are still breathing, articles on the newly famous seem to have a plethora of laborers. EraserGirl (talk) 17:45, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

Just sending up my monthly flare. I would like to see this abandoned project folded into an active task force, but it seems to lie in a no man's land between WP:BIO and WP:FILM. If I knew how to do any of it I would. If anyone has an ideas, you know where I'll be. EraserGirl (talk) 15:46, 2 May 2008 (UTC)
Most of the time this is really a matter of just doing what you like. I myself am editing here and there almost abandoned biographical articles relating to the Traditionalist School. The lack of other people willing to do the same you want isn't a reason for you to not do it anyway. Down to the basics, all these projects and task forces and the like are just groups of roughly same-minded people writing about what they find interesting in a standardized fashion. If right now the group of persons also interested in writing about what you like is composed of just yourself, well, go for it! The more there's written and well written, the most likely attracting more people to improve upon it becomes. :-) -- alexgieg (talk) 16:35, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

Addresses

I noticed that the Jeremy Edwards article listed his address (not the house number, but the street). I've removed the street name but I was wondering if there's a policy on this anywhere? Cordless Larry (talk) 19:27, 1 May 2008 (UTC)

Answered here. Cordless Larry (talk) 20:16, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

The Charles Manson article has been nominated for good article and is currently listed for review. Wildhartlivie (talk) 21:36, 2 May 2008 (UTC)

McCain peer review

Just wanted to mention that I've requested Peer Review of the John McCain article, in case anyone would like to join in.[1]Ferrylodge (talk) 08:02, 9 May 2008 (UTC)

{{BDA}}

Hi all just thought I'd point you too {{BDA}} , i could be handy for you Gnevin (talk) 23:33, 10 May 2008 (UTC)

Hello. I'm not sure this is the correct place to do so, but I would like to request help for the Alexander Hamilton biography. I previously posted a help request to the American History Taskforce, but there doesn't seem to be anyone home there. This article needs a great deal of help from the widest possible variety of quality editors. The Hamilton article, rather bizarrely, is shockingly contentious and POV. The article is guarded by a longtime editor, PMAnderson. This editor admits to disagreeing with the consensus of current historical research about Hamilton, and works to promote and preserve edits that skew the biography of Hamilton towards a far more negative version than the consensus of historical sources supports. I have tried improving parts of the article, only to find myself personally attacked over and over. I continue to work with him, but frankly, I am exhausted, and need help. PMAnderson edits Wikipedia almost all day long and almost everyday. He is deeply entrenched in this article. I do not have the time to keep up with him on my own. If you can, please, please help this article--new editors can only help it. All I want is for the article to reflect the historical consensus about Hamilton. Hamilton is such a basic American historical biography that it absolutely needs to be accurate. If this article does not within the scope of this project, please forward this SOS to an appropriate group, and/or let me know where I can find additional quality editors to lend the article some help. Thank you. AdRem (talk) 01:28, 12 May 2008 (UTC)

Theodore Roosevelt FAR

Theodore Roosevelt has been nominated for a featured article review. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. Please leave your comments and help us to return the article to featured quality. If concerns are not addressed during the review period, articles are moved onto the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article from featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Reviewers' concerns are here.--TonyTheTiger (t/c/bio/WP:CHICAGO/WP:LOTM) 02:31, 12 May 2008 (UTC)

Clarification of scope

Someone put the WPBiography template on Talk:Bright Star (film). I'm removing it, though I thought I should mention it here: the movie is, apparently, biograpical in nature.  — AnnaKucsma  Speak! 17:30, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

I've explained my reasoning for having removed the banner. I've asked that further commints be posted here, but it may be worth keeping an eye on Talk:Bright Star (film)#Removal of biography project banner.  — AnnaKucsma  Speak! 17:36, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

I've never needed to delete a Project tag before, not sure if theres any process to go through, the current version of the article has no relation to a biography, nor does the previous which dealt with a made up class of warrior (which are properly infact called knight-errants, not Black Knights who are individual literary creations). Anyways, if someone wants to get rid of it or let me know if I don't have to ask you guys about deleting your tag thing, that would be cool. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.137.207.191 (talk) 05:11, 18 May 2008 (UTC)

 Done, but sure, you can do yourself these edits when you see something is wrongly tagged, or is lacking a tag you know should be there. WikiProject members are just normal users who say: "Hey, I like this! Let me add my name to the member list!", and start acting accordingly. Whether you added your name to the list or not doesn't matter much. -- alexgieg (talk) 16:35, 18 May 2008 (UTC)

The Nils Bejerot article is are in a dire need of help. I don't want to involve (to much) as I find it to hard write about him neutrally in a language thats not my own. I think he is a scientific charlatan and an asshole, to be frank. That is, however, the direct opposite to the primary author of the article. It has also been the used as a trash bin for content mainly about him from an other article. Also by the same main author in question. Steinberger (talk) 00:56, 20 May 2008 (UTC)

I have had to delete almost the entire content of this article as a copyvio (see here). I've also reclassified him as American (though German-born) as his career seems to have been entirely carried out over here. He is obviously important, but I haven't been able to find material to quickly cobble something together. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Mangoe (talk) 15:24, 20 May 2008 (UTC)

I wanted to tag a couple of writers with a writer template, but can't find one. Did I miss it? Trekphiler (talk) 00:27, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

If you mean the article talk page, so that the article is tagged as being under the umbrella of WikiProject Biography, you should use {{WPBiography}} and, if the writer fits some of the task force projects, set it's parameter as "yes". A fiction writer will typically be tagged with |a&e-work-group=yes (for the "Arts and Entertainment task force"), while a non-fiction one usually goes under |s&a-work-group=yes (for the "Science and Academia work group") if he's an academic. But it might be some of the others tags, or more than one. Read the template thoroughly for the many options.
If you mean the article page itself, then you're after an infobox. For a fiction writer the most used one is {{Infobox Writer}}, but if he's a non-fiction writer you'll find more appropriate ones at the previous link.
Nothing prevents you adding both, though. And just for the sake of completeness, I'd also add a Persondata to the article page too. Nothing like doing it all in a single go. :-)
But please note that these templates are for use on biographical articles only. You linked an article about a music band above, and that certainly doesn't fit WikiProject Biography, although it does fit WikiProject Music. Maybe you're look for something they might have? -- alexgieg (talk) 03:11, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

Template:Lifetime considered for deletion

The {{Lifetime}} template is being considered for deletion. If you're interested in the matter, please go to Wikipedia:Templates for deletion/Log/2008 May 22#Template:Lifetime and cast your vote. Mine was "keep". -- alexgieg (talk) 20:41, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

Charlemagne Tower

Hi everyone. I'm still relatively new at this, so I apologize if I'm going about this the wrong way. I have recently updated and overhauled the article on Charlemagne Tower, which was already tagged with the Biography Wikiproject label when I found it. I wanted to submit this for review with the project. How do I go about doing that? Thanks for your help! Bowie60 (talk) 21:53, 23 May 2008 (UTC)

See Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography/Peer review#Instructions -- alexgieg (talk) 23:20, 23 May 2008 (UTC)
In the meantime, I have upgraded the WP Biography assessment to B class. -- Lini (talk) 11:10, 25 May 2008 (UTC)

member of project is creating tons of non-notable actor articles

I see that User:Hashmi, Usman is creating lots of articles on non-notable actors like here and then labelling them as part of this project [2]. Can someone that knows about actor articles speak to this user about this? --Enric Naval (talk) 09:57, 25 May 2008 (UTC)

OBI biography

Apologies in advance if this has already been linked to in the past, but as the missing wikiproject list has started a monthly focus on OBI Biographies I invite anyone with some time and general interest in articles about general individuals to have a look at the list and see if they can help in any way. The project is almost complete with 210~ or so articles left (out of a couple of thousand) so any input would be great. I figure this would be the best (possibly only) other place to advertise it since its a list about individuals...which this project is abouit. Cheers!Calaka (talk) 08:59, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

Scientists needed

There are tons of evil, evil redlinks at Wikipedia:Requested_articles/Natural_sciences#People_in_science.2FScientists. If you're interested in writing science biographies, this would be a great place to start! Best, shoy 14:20, 27 May 2008 (UTC)

FA Review Brian Close

Brian Close has been nominated for a featured article review. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. Please leave your comments and help us to return the article to featured quality. If concerns are not addressed during the review period, articles are moved onto the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article from featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Reviewers' concerns are here. Brianboulton (talk) 00:43, 28 May 2008 (UTC)

Harbhajan Singh -FA Review

Harbhajan Singh has been nominated for a featured article review. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. Please leave your comments and help us to return the article to featured quality. If concerns are not addressed during the review period, articles are moved onto the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article from featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Reviewers' concerns are here. Arman (Talk) 03:20, 28 May 2008 (UTC)

Naming discussion

Dear all, there is a discussion currently occurring at Naming conventions (names and titles) about "simplifying titles, through which it is suggested that we remove "prince" from royals with substantive titles. The proposal was "passed" after 12 days, with the input of only five editors. I strongly encourage every one here to take part in the discussion such that a properly-agreed solution can be reached. DBD 23:44, 30 May 2008 (UTC)

I am aiming to nominate this article for GA and to be a FA on 21 June. If you can suggest any improvements to the article please let me know.--Vintagekits (talk) 12:44, 31 May 2008 (UTC)

Heads-up:

Cheers, Jack Merridew 05:40, 15 May 2010 (UTC)

i-Wayne D.O.B.

I am trying to find out the correct birthdate and year for "I-Wayne" Cliffroy Taylor.It is listed on Wikipedia as Sept.13,1975, but various other sources say 1980.How did Wikipedia verify that his birth year is truly 1975 ?Zophia2 (talk) 03:59, 18 May 2010 (UTC)

Hi. If you have a reliable source that says 1980, then replace the current date and link to the source. Hekerui (talk) 09:31, 18 May 2010 (UTC)

George Ohr Descendants

I don't know where the names Miriam and Martha came from. But firstly, it's impossible for him to be a great grandfather by 6 generations and I happen to personally know his great great granddaughter. Her name is Brittany Murphy. Her mother is Sarah Ohr Murphy, whose father Carl is the son of Otto Ohr, George Ohr's son. (George had Otto, Otto had Carl, Carl had Sarah, and then Sarah had his current great-great grand children, Brittany, Devin and Ryan). The family was born and raised in Biloxi and they still reside there. All other descendants are deceased except for past Sarah Ohr's generation. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.139.96.11 (talk) 06:27, 19 May 2010 (UTC)

John Wozniak/Marcy Playground

After having read the interlocking wiki posts for the rock band Marcy Playground and John Wozniak, I felt duty bound to correct and extrapolate upon the early history as a band. I was friends with Jared Kotler, one of the original members of the band; and for a time, I thought, John Wozniak. I personally witnessed numerous rehearsals and performances of this band as Marcy Playground before they became famous. I felt that the wiki entries only reflected what has been for years the "press release" side of the story created by the band, management and Capitol Records. This Wikipedia should represent the truth, the whole truth and not the half truths and outright lies that became expedient in order to spin the image of this band as something it wasn't. The dispute between the original two members of the band was bloody and costly and resulted in Jared Kotler's legacy as a member of the band being erased from history. Finally, because of the nature of this wiki, the truth of the birth of this band can come out and be recorded for the world to see. The original entries were obvious spin by John Wozniak, and or his camp. I have never corrected a wiki before and until now have had very little experience with this sort of thing, but as a physical witness to the origins of the band, I felt it was best that John leave his spin for his own website. I could not stand aside and allow the perpetuation of the myth that Marcy Playground was not formed by John Wozniak and Jared Kotler. I could not stand aside and let him corrupt the spirit of this wiki, A spirit of truth, fact, and integrity. I know it may be considered frivolous to correct the wiki entry for a has-been rock band and recording artist, but I witnessed a lot of Jared's energy, time and money go towards making John a musical success and I felt morally obliged, as one of the only independent witnesses, to put in my two cents. I apologize for any grammatical mystakes and I make an oath that this was not an attempt to smear John Wozniak, but an honest attempt to set the record strait. Anyone who wishes to contact me about these corrections can email me: George Vitray, geovitray@hotmail.com. I will be pleased to respond to questions and or discuss the facts of this wiki as I remember them. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.125.2.62 (talk) 20:01, 20 May 2010 (UTC)

Proposal to add order of office to Goodluck Jonathan

I have a proposal to add what number president Goodluck Jonathan is to the infobox on the relating article. There is a dispute over that, so I'm highlighting the discussion for wider community involvement. If you can get involved, thank you very much: Talk:Goodluck Jonathan#Order of office proposal. HonouraryMix (talk) 12:28, 21 May 2010 (UTC)

This article was tagged with a header, "This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (April 2010)." But there isn't a clue as to what's wrong with it! As the principal curator of the article I am happy to help, but it looks fine to me with lots of references and source citations. I find it insulting to simply slap a "cleanup" header on an article wo any explanation and this practice should be banned from Wikipedia. If you have a gripe, state it! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Pfrishauf (talkcontribs) 14:31, 27 May 2010 (UTC)

Patrick White article

Next 30 September is the 20th anniversary of the death of this great novelist and Nobel laureate. I have posted on the discussion page of the article to determine whether there is enough interest to form a team to bring it up to featured-article standards, with a view to nomination at FAC and subsequent application for main-page exposure on the day. Tony (talk) 04:26, 26 May 2010 (UTC)

Petr Muk

The WIKI page of Petr Muk was obviously created by someone who thinks they are God, as they do not accept ANY information added on the WIKI page apart from their own. This is totally unacceptable. That person must be some kind of an old czech communist, no surpise that they are not familiar with a term such as "freedom of speech". The info I added onto the WIKI page came from a reliable source, and it is only sad that the WIKI admins accept such narrow minded behaviour. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 92.14.172.208 (talk) 16:42, 27 May 2010 (UTC)

The user you are referring to is only reverting your vandalism of the Petr Muk article my friend. So chill.--ÅlandÖland (talk) 17:20, 27 May 2010 (UTC)
Seems like you are engaging in sockpuppetry through various IPs, and making inappropriate personal attacks. Article is protected, and have reported this latest sock for blocking. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 19:00, 27 May 2010 (UTC)

John D. Lambris

I ran across John D. Lambris while new page patrolling. It was copied exactly from the subject's website and tagged by Corenbot. I have removed the copyrighted portion and tried to work on it, but I don't really know anything about science/medicine and am not that great with BLP's. I would be very grateful for an expert on the subject to pick this up. A Google News archive search yields several results. Help? PrincessofLlyr royal court 19:45, 31 May 2010 (UTC)

KEEP: Nick Russell Fowler is currently working on several new notable writing and music projects that I believe would be beneficial to be noted on his Wikipedia page. He is in the process of updating his profile and information. I highly recommend NOT deleting his page. Thank YouClwareham (talk) 14:14, 1 June 2010 (UTC)June 1, 2010 CLWareham

This is the wrong place to make this argument. If you want to comment on the deletion discussion, post your comment at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Nick Russell Fowler. Hekerui (talk) 14:21, 1 June 2010 (UTC)

Genesis (band)'s FAR

I have nominated Genesis (band) for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. GamerPro64 (talk) 19:27, 3 June 2010 (UTC)

Keith William MacLellan

Hi I have just found the Keith William MacLellan article which falls within your project. It could use the help of a biography expert and it reads like it has been cut and pasted from elsewhere. A quick web search did not reveal anything to support that just my opinion, but if someone can give it a once over. --Jim Sweeney (talk) 10:27, 6 June 2010 (UTC)

Birth Name & Registered Name vs Stage Name

Right ok well recently there was a disruptive debate over how we should accredit songwriters who are also producers. The argument spread from Lady Gaga vs Stefani Germenotta and is now reaching out into Polow da Don vs Jamal Jones and bubsee vs Michael Busbee. I was always under the impression from the Gaga debate that if Lady Gaga has written a song and the article is about a song then she is credited in the infobox and track listing as her birth name but if it is an album page she is credited as Lady Gaga.

However I've noticed that nearly always Polow da Don is credited as Jamal Jones as a writer but then Polow da Don as a singer regardless of whether its a single or article. The same issue has arisen with busbee at Pulse (Toni Braxton album). And to be fair I really don't know what relevant policy applies. It appears that we are a little inconsistant. I would personally like to see some clarification because we have had some tenditious editing over this and frankly edit waring over two names for the same person is stupid. My question also spans to cover what should a muscian's page be called? e.g. Tricky Stewart is found at Christopher Stewart (music producer) but Michael Busbee is found at Busbee (American songwriter). Danja is located at Danja (musician) even though all three are songwriter-producers. How can that be right? Regards, Lil-unique1 (talk) 16:10, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

BMI/ASCAP should be the controlling source for songwriting credits. Article titles are a different thing, controlled by WP:TITLE and WP:COMMONNAME.—Kww(talk) 16:50, 8 June 2010 (UTC)
But even article titles are becoming contetious; see Talk:Kahi (entertainer). SKS (talk) 18:10, 8 June 2010 (UTC)
I think you'll find I created some of the categories named. I really don't have an opinion on it, save that I have named the category after the WP Article. I now always add the text "...written by Joe Bloggs, better known as Foo." In some ways I agree with KWW above and the ASCAP/BMI names should be used, but WP says name cats after the article, which should be after the known name and it is probably clearer to follow the exisiting protocols. There are also other examples where the stage name used is not obviously a stage name, and if we go for wholesale renaming we create more problems than there already are. Of course the simple answer for articles is to put both birth name and stage name in i.e. Stefani Germenotta (Lady Gaga) and that should satisfy everybody. Whatever you guys agree you can rest assured I won't be edit warring. Just make certain I know what I am supposed to be doing! LOL. --Richhoncho (talk) 18:14, 8 June 2010 (UTC)
What do you mean " ... but WP says after the article ..."?—Kww(talk) 19:52, 8 June 2010 (UTC)
Thanks, I meant name cats after article, I have changed above. --Richhoncho (talk) 21:05, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

Rajesh Touchriver

The article was tagged with the following header:

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve the article or discuss these issues on the talk page.

This biography of a living person needs additional references or sources for verification. Tagged since May 2010. It may need a complete rewrite to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Tagged since May 2010. It may have been edited by a person who has a conflict of interest with the subject matter. Tagged since May 2010.

It is written like a resume. Tagged since July 2009.

Now, major editing has been done and re-written, aspects that appeared as "conflict of interest" have been removed, references/citation/hyper-links are now provided for every point and almost along the lines of articles that are accepted in wiki as adhering to wiki guidelines on writing biography of living persons. Request someone to now please review this and have the remarks on the header removed appropriately.

Thanks. --Santishi7 (talk) 19:11, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

Umm...honestly, none of the issues have been resolved at all. It still reads like a promo ad and is very badly formatted. I'm curious as to what your relation is to Touchriver, who wrote most of the article himself. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 20:37, 8 June 2010 (UTC)

Hi, thanks for pointing out the work that still needs to be done.. and thanks to Andy for formatting and the clean up. As regards my relation to Touchriver - I happen to be from the same country and state and have seen the person's works. As the very first entry (in 2008 or so) on this film maker was tagged as requiring better style and content and has been lying unattended since, I myself wrote the May version of the article and sent it to Mr Touchriver as I didn't know then how to actually upload it. I wasn't really aware of the biography of living persons category, conflict of interest, etc until I saw the tagging on it recently. So I'm just learning how to carry out editing on wiki, adhering to wiki quality standards, etc including formatting. As you can see from the history of the article, I have been editing my write up with a vengeance :-), referring to the style, presentation and neutral language used in accepted, untagged articles on Indian film makers like Aparna Sen. Could you / anyone give further help with or edit what sounds promotional there? Thanks again.. (Santishi7 (talk) 17:53, 9 June 2010 (UTC))

Francis Xavier Ford, Bishop

I have a couple of comments on your article on Bishop Francis Xavier Ford. Although the article is very good, you might want to look further into the following two points:

1. The article says that he was from Brooklyn and attended Cathedral College, but clicking on the link to Cathedral College leads to discussion of an Australian institution. In Brooklyn, in those days, there was a Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception, Preparatory Seminary, which I would expect Bishop Ford may have attended for high school.

2. Under, "Memorials," it is stated that a high school in Brooklyn was named for Bishop Ford in 1976. In fact, I grew up in Brooklyn, and attended Catholic grammar and high schools there from 1964 to 1976, and I know that Bishop Ford High School was locally known as such as far back as I can remember. I think that perhaps in 1976 the name was changed from Bishop Ford Regional High School to Bishop Ford Central Catholic High School. I certainly remember that, when I was in Xaverian High School (1972-1976), and Bishop Ford HS (which was one of our toughest competitors in sports) played another Catholic high school in a football or basketball game, we would see headlines on the Daily News the next day such as, "Ford runs over Queen of Peace."

I believe you can get more precise and better documented information about these items from the following web page:

http://www.bishopfordhs.org/ NFKnott (talk) 22:50, 10 June 2010 (UTC) Neil Knott

Resolved, mainly (Crusoe8181 (talk) 02:26, 12 June 2010 (UTC)).

The subject is an unknown entity even in Bayelsa State of Nigeria. The article was created by his big-headed son, with no solid references. The article needs to be removed pronto. I am also from their hometown of Sagbama, Nigeria and can state categorically that he was a mere engineer with Shell PDC and nothing special deserving of an encyclopedia citation. If he was indeed a "founding father" of the State of Bayelsa, Nigeria, why is he not given an honoray mention in the "notable natives" section of"Wikipedia: Bayelsa State" or on the state's official website "Bayelsa.gov.ng"? Thanks. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.158.6.18 (talk) 18:54, 11 June 2010 (UTC)

This seems to check out as a possible hoax, or at least non-notable. Accordingly, I've proposed deletion.  --Joshua Scott (LiberalFascist) 00:39, 14 June 2010 (UTC)

Biography of GARAI Laszlo, Hungarian scholar in psychology

{{3O}} I would ask a favour: let me understand whether the English Wikipedia is or is not interested in getting information also from non-English (e.g. Hungarian) sources. I mean, of course, reliable, trustworthy sources (such as, e.g., the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. If your answer to my question will be negative, I shall by no means insist on writing for the English Wikipedia further articles about Hungarian scholars. The matter is that I have two rather time-consuming pastimes: I am the research-manager of a large EU university department and I am writing a rather sizeable book on the scientific work of the outstanding Hungarian psychologist Laszlo Garai. As a matter of fact, this work of mine gave me the idea of presenting some elements of my findings in the English Wikipedia.

But in case you happen to think that these Wikipedia texts of mine has been of any use for your readers I would ask another favour: Please, investigate about the real motive for a serial deletion-destruction JzG has committed with all my texts wherever he found it in the Wikipedia- End if you find (as I concluded to) that s/he has nothing but some mean motivation for it, goive me, please, some safe, secure protection against it. And immediately delete, please, humiliating nonsense, JzG inserted to the starting point of the Garai Laszlo texte. Of course, I keep accepting all intelligible criticisme to my Wikipedia-texts.

Thanks! Szalagloria (talk) 08:47, 13 June 2010 (UTC)

Wikipedia is based on reliable sources. Wikipedia articles (like scientific papers) need to have precise citations of reliable sources such that other editors can verify them. This is especially important with biographies of living persons such as Garai Laszlo; the sources need to be independent of him and his department. If you are writing a book on this topic, you will already know how to give precise bibliographic citations, and this is what you need to do here. Once you have properly footnoted the information about Garai, and as long as your footnotes demonstrate, from independent sources, that his work is notable, there will be no need for the template at the top of the page.
Thank you for your comments. My problem has been (and still is) as follows. As you may see, my article about LG has precise citations but whether the sources are "reliable sources such that other editors can verify them", I maysay so, but only in principles: for that verifiability editors in question ought to understand Hungarian. It's no use three volumes of Laszlo Garai having been published by the Academic Press, two monographs by the editing house of two bigest Hungarian University Press and so on for five other volumes, they are published in Hungarian. Itz is why I have been driven to despair when I wrote the above cry for help. Szalagloria (talk) 06:08, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
You need to focus on giving true, precise citations. For example: you cite a book which you call "Personality dynamics and social existence" and you say that the publisher is "Academic Press". This seems to me completely wrong. The book's title is, I think, "Személyiségdinamika és társadalmi lét". You need to give that title (and then, if you like, an English translation afterwards). Also, the publisher is "Akadémiai Kiadó". This is a famous academic publisher in Budapest. You should not try to translate the name: it is not the same as "Academic Press", which is a British and US publisher. Also, you have not given the date of publication. What all this means is that you are not giving correct citations, and other editors find it difficult to verify your statements. Andrew Dalby 12:23, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
It is excellent! So you do understand Hungarian: otherwise you would not have been able to reproduce correctly Hungarian diacritical marks. And if it is so you would be the very third party editor, who could eastablish whether after
1., LG in 1969 in a volume you mentionned presented his hypothesis of Specifically human basic need and the Akadémiai Kiadó immediately published it;
2., the reputed interdisciplinary review of Hung. Ac. Sc. "Magyar Tudomány" published a rather voluminous paper of the same author re-visiting his hypothesis 40 yeare later
is or isn't by any chance a mistake to declare the WP-article about the topic as being inappropriate for inclusion and destroy it repeatedly.
Thank you for your critical remark about the mode I identified my Hungarian sources. I ignored the rule you indicate now and took the rule operative in my French acadenic world instead. Szalagloria (talk) 13:37, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
You should take care not to attack the work of other editors as "mean" or "nonsense". I suggest you read the page "Assume good faith". Andrew Dalby 11:52, 13 June 2010 (UTC)
I did read it and not only accept it but aggree with it. And, conformly, I did assume good faith at the beginning. And only when I noticed that JzG repeatedly is looking for every line I submitted for Wikipedia and regularly destroys it got I been driven to despair. Szalagloria (talk) 08:51, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
You may also want to read the WP:COI page that someone already pointed out to you, due to your own admitted association with Garai, and WP:PROMOTION. While you seem to be acting in good faith (though not offering the same courtesy to others), looking at what JzG removed[3], his actions were quite correct. You stated above that you were adding your own own research and were sharing some of your findings, whoever in your edits you did not add the precise bibliographic citations to your sources (as noted by Andrew), rather you added over a dozen links to your own writings. This gives the appearance that you are promoting your own work, rather than adding properly sourced work on László Garai. You also appeared to inappropriately copy/paste the content from your twice deleted creation, Specifically human basic need into the article, though the consensus at the AfD was clearly to delete it as being inappropriate for inclusion here. When you continue to restore content that community consensus has agreed is not appropriate, it again gives the appearance of self-promotion and that you are not desiring to act within the Wikipedia community. Rather than continuing to make personal attacks against JzG and presume he is acting incorrectly, I'd urge you to stop reverting (which we call edit warring, and try actually talking with him and others about how you can include reliably sourcable information about Garai without the COI and seeming spammy issues. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 17:16, 13 June 2010 (UTC)

Thank you for having drawn my attention to the "Edit warring". I haven't read it previously but at the very beginning I have acted exactly how it is suggested: "editors are strongly encouraged to engage in civil discussion to reach a consensus". May I ask you what the editor is supposed to do if his/her trial to engage in civil discussion (as in my case) doesn't result in any answer to the initiative let alone in a consensus. Am I wrong if I belive both war, discussin and consensus are kind of bilateral interactions?

As to the Specifically human basic need I would ask you humbly to read my above first answer to Andrew Dalby. Szalagloria (talk) 09:55, 15 June 2010 (UTC)

David Leach (potter)--need help correcting article

Hi, I'm not to sure how any of this works, but I wanted to correct an inaccuracy on the above artical. Janet Leach was NOT the mother of David Leach, Muriel Hoyle Leach, Bernard's first wife, was. I have a ref. source, but I cann't figure out how to edit that section of the article-the ref section may need to be corrected-anyway my sorce is...

Bernard Leach:Life and Work, Emmanuel Cooper, Yale University Press, New Haven, 2003 pp 66-67

And yes, it's a book, so the title needs to be underlined, which I don't know how to do in this format.

Also, Janet Leach should be removed as a See Also, as she has little to do with David. She was Bernard Leach's 3ed or 4th wife, and came onto the scene long after David Leach was a grown married man.

So can someone here help me out by making the corrections on Ref and Also See sections? This isn't something I'll be doing on a reguler basis.

Thanks Leigh Bdswagger (talk) 01:11, 23 June 2010 (UTC)

Would be nice if there was more inclusion of users into this discussion. --[[SRE.K.A.L.|L.A.K.ERS]] 01:51, 24 June 2010 (UTC)

Article about Miles Kane was constantly used by vandals

Article about Miles Kane was constantly used by vandals Lock them please! Users Cherisecourtney and Vikook are vandals —Preceding unsigned comment added by 94.181.36.58 (talk) 05:09, 26 June 2010 (UTC)

Filed a request to have the page protected and filed a sock puppet investigation since those two and two others seem to be doing the same vandalism. Will keep an eye on the article until they are dealt with. All hae Thanks for the heads up. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 06:19, 26 June 2010 (UTC)
Update: All three accounts have been blocked and the page is now semi-protected, which should help. Thanks again. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 09:18, 26 June 2010 (UTC)

Proposing section expansion for Rick Scott article

The article Rick Scott (businessman) currently has a one-sentence section about the 2010 Florida gubernatorial campaign, in which Scott is a leading candidate. I have written a slightly longer replacement section, currently in my user space here. I haven't added it yet because I have a potential COI (I have a financial relationship to Rick Scott). That said, I think what I've written is neutral and significant and would help anyone who has just heard of him now because of the campaign. Please feel free to weigh in on the article's Talk page, or move it over if you agree it woud improve the existing article. Thank you. Thirteenth Florida (talk) 22:06, 27 June 2010 (UTC)

Add Petraeus

David Petraeus graduated in 1983. It is listed on his biography page, and on the page for United States Army Command and General Staff College. I do not know how to add it here... I am not good at editing Wikipedia.

There should be no doubt he is notable enough (more notable than almost this entire list). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.138.129.155 (talk) 03:10, 30 June 2010 (UTC)

Add him where? What list? -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 03:11, 30 June 2010 (UTC)

Need a fresh pair of eyes

Can I ask for a bit of assistance at the Carmelita Hinton article? I am currently encountering some "resistance" to the idea that inline citations are preferred to general references, esp. as the general sources - while informative - are not present in the presented article. They keep insisting that the reflisted citations are merely notes, while their general sources are the only ones that appear to matter. That they are being somewhat snide about it isn't helping matters. Got a minute or three? - Jack Sebastian (talk) 05:20, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

I've left a third opinion on the talk page and restored the properly labeled version. -- AnmaFinotera (talk · contribs) 06:23, 3 July 2010 (UTC)
Exceptionaly well-done, AnmaFinotera. Thanks. :) - Jack Sebastian (talk) 14:55, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

Need your assistance with a discussion

There is a discussion regarding Civil Twilight. One side is Civil Twilight should be moved to Civil Twilight (band) to make way for Civil Twilight to be a redirect to the section Civil Twilight in the article Twilight (Twilight#Civil_twilight). The other is to keep everything the way it, Civil Twilight doesn't get moved to Civil Twilight (band) and theres a message at the top giving a link to Twilight#Civil_twilight. The discussion is here Talk:Civil Twilight. I would like your opinion one this matter.--Everyone Dies In the End (talk) 17:54, 3 July 2010 (UTC)

Speak (artist)

Hello, I wonder if someone could have a look at Speak (artist), especially this edit. An IP user added an unsourced claim about the rapper, who is a living person and whose work has been described as "unintentional hilarity." I removed the information using "undo," and then the user undid my undo. Thanks, Cnilep (talk) 15:52, 6 July 2010 (UTC)

FAR

I have nominated Ike Altgens for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. YellowMonkey (vote in the Southern Stars and White Ferns supermodel photo poll) 03:34, 7 July 2010 (UTC)

I'm not sure I understand where the information that Maud Prendergast is the mother of Maurice Fitzgerald's children: Juliana and Annabel. I have two sources that say that Emma Longspee is the mother of Juliana. Did this discovery that Juliana's mother is Maud instead just come out recently because the sites I looked at already had what is listed on the page now. It's conflicting information. Who is correct?!

The Tudor Place sites: The Complete Peerage vol.VII,p.200. Having both children under Emma Longspee

The peerage sites:

  • 1. G.E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors, The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain and the United Kingdom, Extant, Extinct or Dormant, new ed., 13 volumes in 14 (1910-1959; reprint in 6 volumes, Gloucester, U.K.: Alan Sutton Publishing, 2000), volume I, page 149. Hereinafter cited as The Complete Peerage.
  • 2. Cokayne, and others, The Complete Peerage, volume VII, page 200.
  • 3. Charles Mosley, editor, Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes (Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003), volume 2, page 2297. Hereinafter cited as Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition.
  • 4. Charles Mosley, Burke's Peerage and Baronetage, 107th edition.

And it lists just Juliana as the daughter of Emma Longspee and Annabel as Maud's child.

Need some help here! Meg E. McGath (talk) 05:51, 10 July 2010 (UTC)

The Complete Peerage has since been amended to show that Maud was indeed the mother of Juliana FitzGerald. Not only did FitzGerald marry Emmeline after Juliana's birth, but Emmeline's heiress was Maud La Zouche the granddaughter of her elder sister, Ela. Had Emmeline been the mother of Juliana (or anybody for that matter) would Maud La Zouche have been her heiress? Emmeline did not produce issue.--Jeanne Boleyn (talk) 13:21, 29 October 2010 (UTC)

FAR notice

I have nominated The Waterboys for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here.-- Cirt (talk) 01:48, 14 July 2010 (UTC)

Expansion of Article on Albin Brunovsky

I would like to expand the article on Albin Brunovsky. I propose nothing radical but do think I can improve on its current stub status by talking a bit about his evolution as an artist, the mediums he used, and his sources of inspiration. I have a good source. However, it is an English translation of something originally written in Slovak and it is hard to follow at time. I would have to paraphrase.

If there is no objection I will move ahead in a day or two. —Preceding unsigned comment added by PietroLegno (talkcontribs) 12:29, 15 July 2010 (UTC)

Today's google doodle: Josef Frank

The article we currently have on Josef Frank (architect) is rather small, and full of red links. Timely improvement of the article would be nice, since Wikipedia is google search hit #3 for his name. (When you click the google logo, it performs this search.) ...comments? ~BFizz 16:25, 15 July 2010 (UTC)

Request for Comment: Happy Endings?

I have an RFC over at the talk page for the documentary Happy Endings and was hoping to get more opinions of people who have so far not been involved with editing the article. The initial RFC that I put on the RFC requests page has so far not brought anybody in from outside the existing discussion, but perhaps some here will be interested. The disagreement concerns the appropriateness of mentioning the film (and linking to the article) from the bio pages of a number of public figures who appeared in the doc. The RFC can be found here: Talk:Happy Endings?#RFC: Links to/Mention of this film in other articles. Iamcuriousblue (talk) 19:38, 16 July 2010 (UTC)

Suggestion regarding the Biography of Living persons statement on article talk pages

I have initiated a conversation about a suggested change to the way we display the BLP banner on article talk pages at Wikipedia talk:Biographies of living persons#Suggestion regarding the Biography of Living persons statement on article talk pages. Please take some time and leave a comment about this suggestion. --Kumioko (talk) 20:19, 16 July 2010 (UTC)

Confederate Gen. DH Hill

To whom it may concern;

I'm not at all sure how to properly go about advising of a need for inclusion of missing but available information - or if what I'm doing here is correct - but here goes:

There is a remarkable omission of Confederate Gen. DH Hill's service record from his Wiki page here: Daniel Harvey Hill http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Harvey_Hill#Civil_War

Concisely, nothing is shown of his participation in the Battle of Wyse Fork, which page & missing info is told, here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Wyse_Fork

My personal interest, besides being a small-time historian of the American Civil War, is as a native of Kinston, NC where this battle took place. Hill was an important part of this, the 2nd largest Civil War battle on North Carolina soil, & which immediately preceeded the epic Battle of Bentonville (in which he also participated, as is noted)....and was involved in the action which resulted in the last massive capture of Union troops in the war. Hill's actions are well noted on storyboards at various field sites on the local Battlefield Tour. I feel therefore his participation, and possibly his actions, being notable, deserve inclusion with his personal Wiki record.

I would perform the additions thru edits myself, but I lack expertise in doing the Indexing changes that would be needed to do it properly, so am sending this notification in hopes someone up to the task can better complete Hill's Wiki entry. As noted, Wikipedia already has the necessary information, on the Wyse Fork Battle page -- all that needs doing is the transferrance & re-indexing.

Thank you, & best regards, J Faircloth Kinston, NC —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.136.130.11 (talk) 14:28, 19 July 2010 (UTC)

I have a small emendation to make for Arethas of Caesarea

Arethas, at about the same time as Suidas, apparently sent a copy of Marcus Aurelius's Meditations to his metropolitan. I feel this is worthy of being included in Arethas's page.

Source: "About this same time Arethas, a Cappadocian bishop, writing to his metropolitan, speaks of the scarcity of this [Meditations by MAA], and sends him a copy of it."

Reference: [1]

I would appreciate your feedback.

--Davidivinci (talk) 01:24, 21 July 2010 (UTC)

birth and death date templates are confusing and non-orthogonal

I am adding {{infobox scientist}} to the page for Mabel Lang, who has recently died. My primary goal is to record all the known information as machine-readable metadata. My secondary goal is to display as much of this information as possible to the reader.

Here is what I know:

  • Lang was born sometime in calendar year 1917.
  • She died on 21 July, 2010.
  • She was 92 years old at her death.

Among the twisty little maze of birth and death templates there does not appear to be a set that does what I want. I cannot use {{birth date}}, which requires the birth month and day, which I do not know. {{birth year}} redirects to {{birth date}}, which has a red warning that says "Do NOT use this template when the person’s exact date of birth is disputed or unknown." But it does not say what to use instead. So I was completely at a loss about what to do for the birth date.

For death date, I cannot use {{death date and age}}, because that requires a complete birth date, which I do not know, even though I know the exact age at death. I could use {{death year and age}}, but this would omit the month and day of death, which I know. I have used {{death date}}, which records the complete death date. But this omits the age at death, which I know.

These templates should not be so complicated to use. There should be these four basic templates:

And in all cases the months and days should be optional; the "and age" templates should then generate the age as well as possible. {{death date and age}} should allow the age at death to be specified explicitly, or calculated from the birth date. Subsidiary templates should be macros that are expanded in terms of the four above:

  • {{birth year|YYYY}} should expand to {{birth date|YYYY||}}
  • {{death year|YYYY}} (which doesn't exist; why not?) should expand to {{death date|YYYY||}}
  • etc.

Eventually I found {{BirthDeathAge}}, which seems to be almost what I want; everything is optional. The only missing feature is the option to set the age at death explicitly. But the documentation pages for {[template|infobox person}} and {{infobox scientist}} don't mention {{BirthDeathAge}}; they mention the other templates instead. I found {{BirthDeathAge}} by accident, because I was investigating the (nine!) crossreferences from the {{birth date}} documentation.

I hope it will not be too difficult to address some of these inconsistencies and problems. Thanks, —Mark Dominus (talk) 16:05, 23 July 2010 (UTC)

I disagree and I see no reason at all to make month and day optional. You can not calculate a valid age without all three parts of the date. The templates are fine as they are. If you don't know what month and day someone died, then you don't need to use the templates (though unless they died before record keeping was done, I can think of no valid reason not to have that information sourcable on a notable topic. -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 20:29, 23 July 2010 (UTC)
The existing templates make month and day optional in many cases. For example, {{birth year and age}} generates an approximate age even though the month and day of birth are unspecified. So you are not arguing with my proposal here, but with the status quo. I am only proposing that the existing templates should be rationalized so that the functions they already provide are easier to use. If you are seriously proposing that {{birth year and age}} and {{death year and age}} be eliminated, that is not something I have an opinion about.
I think your suggestion that I simply not use the templates is ill-considered. The templates serve several purposes, and one of them is to generate machine-readable metadata in some arcane format. If users follow your suggestion to not use the templates, many articles will lack metadata. I had imagined that this wikiproject would be concerned with promoting accurate metadata on biographical articles. If this is mistaken, I apologize, and I will try to take the discussion to a better forum. —Mark Dominus (talk) 23:20, 23 July 2010 (UTC)
I'm confused them. What exactly are you wanting to change? The names? Why? They work fine for what their purpose is? Not requiring a birth year for doing death age? No, as it is not a valid calculation. And no, there won't be "many" articles, only a relatively small number. In either case, it does seem to be something that probably should be discussed at the template talk page (with appropriate notices in potentially affected areas) rather than here. While Bio is the main user of the templates, it isn't the only one. -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 00:14, 24 July 2010 (UTC)

Hi there, I would appreciate, when someone has time, a quick re-evaluation of the above. Have put quite a lot of effort into it and wanted to know whether it was worth it. Thanks, Corneredmouse (talk) 17:53, 24 July 2010 (UTC)

Wow, you've been busy! On the whole, I'd say yes, it was worth it :-) Would recommend doing a little bit of clean up to fix some minor issues (like moving that last image up as it is shoving the references to the right quite a bit or remove it and some others in favor of a gallery link, and removing some of those ELs per WP:EL, fix all dates for consistency, etc). Other than that, I'd say take it off to WP:PR for feedback for a possible WP:GA after the last unsourced bits are taken care of. Great job. -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 18:18, 24 July 2010 (UTC)
Overall, I think you have a very comprehensive article and have done a great job. I would suggest spending some time copyediting and proofreading (spelling errors), while working to apply consistent formatting. Here are a few things that I noticed off hand.
  • Full date formatting Dates should be consistent with English formatting. Day before month.
  • WP:ITALICS Pay close attention to your use of italics and quotes. Do not put quotations in italics.
  • WP:ORDINAL Review the use of numbers as words within the article.
  • Give the article the once over to comply with the guidelines established on formatting articles on peers located at WP:PEER.
  • Several paragraphs are actually more than one paragraph grouped together.
  • Keep punctuation consistent. Primarily relating to the use of commas with dates. Cindamuse (talk) 06:45, 25 July 2010 (UTC)

Why are people like Renetto and Lonelygirl15 notable?

The page says that Renetto is famous because it has over 40,000 subscribers and his channel has been viewed over 2 million times. There are many other people on youtube with bigger numbers. Scooby1961's chan, nel has been viewed over 3 million times and has over 138,000 subscribers. So why isn't he included, for example? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.10.52.1 (talk) 12:48, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

Those two people seem to be notable because they had "significant coverage" per WP:GNG. Hekerui (talk) 13:08, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

Holly Aird

Just read the Holly Aird page and there seems to be two different date of births, which I assume needs to be corrected. On the main article it has her born on 18 May 1969 and on her info box it has her born 16 May 1969. Which one is correct? --Onshore (talk) 13:36, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

Alicia Douvall

I have removed the redirection tag of Alicia Douvall page, which was redirecting to ITV's Love Island. The page is now blank and is in need of contributors to the page or for the page to be deleted. I thought I would let everyone know here as I guess this is the correct place to mention such things. I have also left a message about this on the talk pages of Alicia Douvall and Love Island. Many thanks --Onshore (talk) 13:48, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

She isn't notable, and we can't just have blank pages sitting around. For now, I've restored the redirect. If you think it is a bad redirect, I'd suggest sending it to WP:RfD for deletion. -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 14:09, 27 July 2010 (UTC)
Well we can't be having it redirected to an page that only has her name on it, no reference anything! can we? That's just non-sense and I am sure contributors will agree as one has mentioned in the talk page of Love Island. Thank you for providing the link about deletion. I will see what I can do about this. --Onshore (talk) 14:51, 27 July 2010 (UTC)
Alas, there are many many of those around for those not-really-celebrities. Can also try CSD, but since her name is mentioned at least once, RfD is probably best. -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 15:06, 27 July 2010 (UTC)
I have contributed to her page, thus the page is not blank any more and I have referenced her TV appearences too. Hopefully this is satisfactory for the mean time. But I will leave to others to decide if it needs deleting or not. At least now it does not redirect to Love Island. --Onshore (talk) 16:39, 27 July 2010 (UTC)
Since she really doesn't seem notable at all, I've CSDed it, to see what will happen. :-P -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 16:58, 27 July 2010 (UTC)
No worries --Onshore (talk) 17:40, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

Melville Jacobs

WikiProject Biography members, feel free to join WikiProject Oregon by helping to expand the article for Melville Jacobs as part of our collaboration of the week. Any assistance would be appreciated! --Another Believer (Talk) 20:42, 27 July 2010 (UTC)

Napier quote not in context

This article states that towards the end of his life, Napier stated the scientific evidence pointed to Sasquatch being a hoax of some kind. Even using the article referenced in the author's footnote 7, one can see that Napier's statement referred to the Patterson-Gimlin film specifically, and not the Sasquacth phenomenon generally. The quote is available in Napier's book published in 1973.

Additionally, Napier concluded that the film had to be a fake because he saw both human and ape traits in the subject. At that time, no such amalgam of traits had been found in the fossil record. Since 1973 such fossils have indeed been unearthed.

In any case, the key point is that the quote, while accurate, is misrepsented by the article's author. Napier was referring to the Pstterson-Gimlin film's authenticity, and not to Sasquatch as a possible living animal. This should be corrected. Jon Harrtison ---- —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.69.86.219 (talk) 16:03, 28 July 2010 (UTC)

It's not clear what article you mean. Please move this post to talk page of the article you want to discuss. Thank you Hekerui (talk) 16:09, 28 July 2010 (UTC)

Referencing alcoholism

What's the policy on calling a dead person an alcoholic? Here's the deal. The printed biography of Bob Widlar doesn't use the word. But it describes a few bar binges and says once "the only thing for which he could leave a bar in the middle of a drinking spree..." [4]. The media (not tabloid but not big newspapers either) called him an alcoholic ("strange, alcoholic genius") during his lifetime [5]. The people who knew the man, even his innermost closest friends (a dozen of notable guys with bios on wikipedia, some still living) openly said, on the record (published as video and text by the Stanford U [6]), that he was an alcoholic, that he "drank incessantly", describe his bar brawl, drunk antics, his last-minute fight with addiction.

Is this sufficient to call a dead person an alcoholic or it only comes with a doctor's statement? East of Borschov 14:38, 30 July 2010 (UTC)

If reliable sources state that he is, then it is fine and does not require a doctor's statement. If it is question or not repeated by a large number of sources, then it should be framed in that context "In X source, several of his friends noted that he was an alchoholic."-- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 16:36, 30 July 2010 (UTC)

Wendy Toye

I'm a bit confused as a Wikipedia newbie. Is this the right page to be discussing edits to the article, or should it be on article's own discussion page? I put a similar message on that page a few days ago, but haven't had any answer.

As I've not been doing anything on this topic for a couple of months the discussion I started seems to have been archived.

I've inserted a reference to her Doctorate (thanks for pointing this out). But I think it needs a lot more filling out and reordering. And maybe take out the reference to the burglary, which is hardly relevant to her career.

Ptoye (talk) 08:57, 30 July 2010 (UTC)

It is generally done on the article's talk page. To generate discussion, it is also acceptable to post a neutral notice to appropriate places, such as this project talk page, asking for views. That said, from your user name, it appears you may have a conflict of interest here and are related to Ms. Toye? If so, please refrain from editing her article, per our policies. -- AnmaFinotera (talk ~ contribs) 13:22, 30 July 2010 (UTC)
Yes, I am related to Ms. Toye (her nephew). However, the article on her is of such low quality that it reduces its value, and the reputation of Wikipedia in general as a source of information. Where is the information on her stage productions, for example? If members of her family are not allowed to contribute, who is going to do the work? No-one has done so yet. And if, as you say, discussion should be on the article's talk page, no-one has replied to my comment of 28th July.
I suppose that there is a conflict of interest, but when such august institutions as the BBC appear to rely on Wikipedia for their obituary notices, someone has to make sure that articles provide a full account of a person's life and work.Ptoye (talk) 10:55, 31 July 2010 (UTC)

Appropriate bio images?

Hi everyone, I've been involved with a discussion of whether a magenta tinted image is appropriate on a biography page with another user. In short, the image was uploaded by the article subject himself, so there is no BLP issue, but another user has argued that the magenta tint is inappropriate for an encyclopedia. I don't feel that it is, but since it falls under the biography project, I thought I'd ask for some disinterested input, which might also lead to be more clarity on what exactly an appropriate or inappropriate biography image is. See Talk:Richard_Cytowic#Infobox_image. Cheers, Edhubbard (talk) 22:46, 31 July 2010 (UTC)

wrong age

Petey Pablo was not born in 1979, he was born in 1973. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.164.155.145 (talk) 08:51, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Hi. Allmusic states that he was born "Moses Barrett on Sep 10, 1979 in Greenville, NC". If you think this is wrong, please look whether you can find another reliable source that contradicts that info and link to it on the article page. It would be a good idea to then also leave a note on the article talk page explaining your edit and why the other source is more reliable than the Allmusic source. Regards Hekerui (talk) 11:13, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Tattybogle

I'm the author of Tattybogle and I just want to say that it is not based on the scarecrow in Wizadora - I'd never heard of it when I wrote the story. He's Tattybogle because that's the Scottish word for a scarecrow and I love the sound of it. Thanks! Sandra Horn 81.156.189.191 (talk) 14:10, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

The statement wasn't sourced by the given source in Sandra Horn so I modified it. Please make sure to directly name the article you are referring to so we don't have to search. Regards Hekerui (talk) 14:27, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

Need help

Can someone help me with the Infobox in the Don Freeman article? It's causing broken template tags to show up at the top of the article, and I don't know how to fix it. Thanks. Nightscream (talk) 18:54, 2 August 2010 (UTC)

photo requests

The list of requests for photographs of people has become too large to be of use to anyone. I propose to split the main categories into a number of smaller and more specific categories so that people will be more willing to attempt addressing and reducing the list. Proposal documented here: User:People-photo-bot. Comments welcome before I start working further on the task. --Traveler100 (talk) 14:39, 4 July 2010 (UTC)

Category:Wikipedia requested photographs of sportspeople has been reduced from 13000 to 5000 and I believe can be reduce much more. Category:Wikipedia requested photographs of people is however proving more difficult being reduced only by a couple of thousand. The main reason is that many are not tagged with any other WikiProject template. I therefore propose to use another method to identify pages. As this method has some uncertainty I would appreciate comments. See User:People-n-photo-bot. --Traveler100 (talk) 17:28, 17 August 2010 (UTC)

Need a 3rd (or more) perspective

Hi, I'm trying to add more information to the Naveen_Jain page but reach a disagreement regarding an edit I wish to add in (see relevant talk page at the "Microsoft and MSN section edit" section). if I can get someone to come over and have a look and help us decide it would be appreciated. Thanks, --Nightseeder (talk) 20:38, 20 July 2010 (UTC)

I'm currently in the process of writing a bio, but I'll try to pass by and give an opinion (mind you I'm new to this so....). ~ Dr. Lords (talk) 22:27, 21 July 2010 (UTC)
Thanks for coming over and helping out, if you are still around your opinion is still needed. Thanks, --Nightseeder (talk) 19:05, 19 August 2010 (UTC)

Thomas William Robertson

Robertson seems to have been a remarkable person, in that he is buried both at Abney Park Cemetery in Stoke Newington ("Life and career") and at Highgate Cemetery in London (“Innovations in realism and directing").

94.112.59.32 (talk) 13:07, 28 July 2010 (UTC)Don Sparling

Why not find out the truth and fix it, giving a citation to a reliable source? Regards Hekerui (talk) 13:36, 28 July 2010 (UTC)
It's Abney Park.[7] Fences&Windows 01:03, 8 August 2010 (UTC)

This is getting ridiculous. We should not have biographical entries of people who have fifteen minutes of fame for being the oldest user of a website. Over one hundreds years of their life are embarrasingly non notable and are only famous because of a media frenzy. Its time this project drew up some strict guidelines to content of this sort and to assert once and for all that WP:ONEEVENT applies. We are supposed to have guidelines layed out in WP:BLP1E, WP:ONEEVENT, WP:NOTNEWS and WP:NOTMEMORIAL, so why in the hell are people voting keep for something which clearly doesn't meet the guidelines. Why is it OK for some people to pick and chhose what they want and keep certain articles and delete others? People who are famous for one event and lack any sources to prove notability for anything else they;ve done in their live should not have biographical entries. This should be mentioned in summary in the main articles and not have an article. Dr. Blofeld White cat 16:19, 29 July 2010 (UTC)

Clarity on this is not helped by admins copping out and giving meaningless closing summaries like "The result was no consensus." But she did first receive coverage in 2008.[8] When some time has passed and the headlines have faded from memory, a selective merge somewhere might be agreed on. Fences&Windows 00:58, 8 August 2010 (UTC)

Do we remove information on subject's request?

Here's something I don't understand: there's this notable mathematician George Lusztig who (according to well-informed circles) threatens with legal action unless Wikipedia removes his birthdate from his article. Funny thing is his birthdate has been published in the International Who's Who, so anyone can look it up on Google Books. Still, a couple of Wikipedia users (including admins) refer to an ominous unwritten no-harm policy that prohibits the inclusion of Lusztig's DOB. I really don't get it. WP:DOB says "Wikipedia includes full names and dates of birth where these have been widely published by reliable sources", which is the case. And by the way, what about those cases where people sued Wikipedia to get their articles censored? But Wikipedia is not censored. —bender235 (talk) 13:52, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

I can't cite the policy you mention. But, if his DOB is the only concern, can't we change {{Birth-date and age}} to {{Birth year and age}}? I too have been told full DOB is deprecated for living people, due to the slightly increased risk of identity theft, but that {{Birth year and age}} is OK.
Cheers! Geo Swan (talk) 14:09, 3 August 2010 (UTC)
"I too have been told full DOB is deprecated for living people"
What? Does this mean we should removed DOBs from all living people, from Barack Obama to Miley Cyrus? C'mon, ain't this supposed to be an encyclopedia? —bender235 (talk) 14:30, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Let's discuss this on the article talk page instead. No reason to open two fronts on this. Hekerui (talk) 14:37, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

I'm not opening two fronts. I just thought this was of general interest, because there are a lot of biographies of living persons on Wikipedia, and we need a general guideline to deal with those kind of "requests". —bender235 (talk) 14:44, 3 August 2010 (UTC)
Of course, I didn't mean that negatively, but I believe this has a narrow scope because it's not about the removal of in-of-itself-controversial information. Regards Hekerui (talk) 14:55, 3 August 2010 (UTC)
See Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2010-08-02/News and notes#Proposed Italian "right of reply" law seen as threat to Wikipedia.
Wavelength (talk) 16:33, 3 August 2010 (UTC)
I've been concerned about the removal of cited DoBs from other articles too. This is a policy issue, requiring wide-spread attention. Time for {{Cent}}? Andy Mabbett (User:Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 20:42, 8 August 2010 (UTC)
  • I'm concerned as well. I despise censorship. However, the policy clearly states "Where the subject complains about the inclusion of the date of birth, or where the person is borderline notable, err on the side of caution and simply list the year." While I would personally support a proposal to revise this policy, I think it would be futile. My experience is that the decision to simply list year of birth upon request by the subject is pretty well set and supported on a wide basis. Cindamuse (talk) 23:30, 8 August 2010 (UTC)

Article mess: Alex Bain

There is something of a mess going on, with duplication between Alex Bain(actor) and Alex Bain (actor), also Alexander Bain (actor). Regarding the second, at first glance, it looks like a normal redirect to the principal (only?) character portrayed by that actor. But go for the "edit" tab, and you'll see that somebody has been trying to build an article in there; the page history of both redirects suggests that this has been denied previously. What is the best way forward - merge, revert or delete? --Redrose64 (talk) 20:20, 3 August 2010 (UTC)

Infobox issue

If I use {{Infobox person}} on a page about, say, a dancer, I can enter their role (either "dancer" or something more specific, say "tap dancer") in the occupation field, and it will be emitted as metadata in the hCard microformat "role" property.

If, however, I use the more specific {{infobox dancer}}, then the fact that the subject is a dancer is not mentioned in the infobox; either in human-readable prose or as metadata. It is clearly less than ideal that such a key facet of the subject's life not be mentioned there.

There are a few potential solutions:

  • Wherever possible use {{Infobox person}}
  • Hard code the role of, say, "dancer" into the infobox
  • Add an "occupation" parameter to all infoboxes, with a default value, if none other is entered, of, say, "dancer".

[The same may apply to other, non-biographical, infoboxes.]

Thoughts? Andy Mabbett (User:Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 11:43, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

I'd say hard code it. Adding an occupation parameter is likely to be confusing and imo the metadata is most useful if it creates large groups of people sharing the same occupation. The extra granularity of "tap dancer" is not a good idea. Pichpich (talk) 15:49, 7 August 2010 (UTC)
{{infobox actor}} has |occupation=, with the instruction "Insert the occupation(s) that the person is known for, e.g. actor, stunt performer, film director, etc. This may include other occupations within the entertainment industry, such as singer or model." --Redrose64 (talk) 16:19, 7 August 2010 (UTC)
{{Infobox comics creator}} has a similar field though a slightly different functionality. At a very rough look I'd suggest that the microformat in the narrow scope infoboxes have a hardcoded default that can be replaced with the contents of |occupation= or its analogue. In the case of a dancer the default would stand until/unless WP:Dance decides that |style= is something to add. In the case of placing the actor 'box, "Actor" would be the basic reason for the 'box's use, the additional jobs area bonus, just like a generic Personbox with 2+ occupations listed. - J Greb (talk) 16:49, 7 August 2010 (UTC)
You raise an interesting side issue. Do we want to emit role=dancer;category=tap; role=artist;category=comics or role=tap dancer; role=comic artist? Consider all the other job types we write about. Andy Mabbett (User:Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 18:18, 7 August 2010 (UTC)
(edit conflict) w/ the outdent...
I'd think that, and I may be misunderstanding how the microdata parses, if a generic 'box using occupations could generate role=Tap dancer, painter, actor, science fiction novelist, comedian and the like it may not be necessary, or possible, to try to code a split for the occupation analogues. Right now, as you note, the "job" field collects a lot of information with varied degrees of fine graining. Looking at the examples being kicked about right now, and I'm sure there are more profession based 'boxes that this can apply to... Comics creator as a blanket term covers a number of jobs and not all of them would fall under "artist" so a "role & category" split seems ill advised. Actor seems to fall in this same model. Dancer though, if a field were added it would be for style(s), or categories, of dance. That would make a "role & category" split attractive with the template hard coding the role and the field generating the additional category. That would make it something that would need to be evaluated on a case by case situation though. - J Greb (talk) 18:39, 7 August 2010 (UTC)


Thanks, everyone, for comments. I've added an entry to {{Infobox dancer}}, in an arbitrary location and style. Comments welcome. Andy Mabbett (User:Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 18:30, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

Small question/observation - Is there a way to generate the class data w/o adding the text to the infobox's basic output? - J Greb (talk) 18:44, 7 August 2010 (UTC)
Theoretically, yes, but in practice it's not a good idea. However, the point of my initial comment is that a person's role is fundamental information which should be visible in their infobox. Andy Mabbett (User:Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 19:30, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

Vaseline Chesebrough

I read an article years ago that said he worked in oil fields and saw workers using 'rod wax' on their cuts and burns. It didn't sell well and smelled bad so he distilled it to become the clear Vaseline we know. The black smelly version has still been available as Ichthymol, well know to rural people. Sorry I can't give a reference. David Laurentz 166.128.30.211 (talk) 21:58, 7 August 2010 (UTC)

Scott Fisher

"Scott Fisher" is also the real name of northwest Poet - "W S Fisher" born in Indianola. Ia in 1951. Fisher received his degree from Iowa State University in 1977 and went on to travel extensively in the US and Latin America. He has settled in Olympia, Washington. Fisher is noted for the gravity of subject and theme in most of his sparsely submitted but published work and is considered to be somewhat of a recluse having earned a living as a contract famly therapist working with disadvanatged Hispanic migrant families working the cannaries in coastal Washington State. Fisher has done additional work at the Universities of Arkansas and Washington having studied originally at ISU under known poets such as Gus Gustafson PhD, Melvin Wilke PhD, then Richard Brautigan briefly at MSU, and finally, Nelson Bently Phd (student and NeoRomantic disciple of the noted Northwest poet -Theodore Roethke). More recently, Fisher has been published internationally on several "zines" and earlier acquired a small but loyal following as a frequently invited reader at The UW English department's "Castalia Reading Series" in the late 80's and early 90's when he dissappeared from the academic scene in 1996 until he resurfaced with several publications in 2007. His work appears in the cultish European counterculter web publication - "Sein Und Werden", the New York zine of traditional young jewish literati - "The Blue Jew Yorker" and in the widely read California west coast zine - "Poetic Diversity". —Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.54.14.21 (talk) 09:53, 8 August 2010 (UTC)

Could someone fix the infobox for me? I can't find an exact date of death and the infobox doesn't appear to have a "partialdates" feature. Thank you! S.G.(GH) ping! 15:13, 9 August 2010 (UTC) Never mind, got it. --S.G.(GH) ping! 15:55, 9 August 2010 (UTC)

Ahnentafels (ancestry tables); Request for comment on an open and shut case

The template to open ahnentafels (ancestry tables) (Template:ahnentafel top) was changed last May to open all such tables on first viewing with an option to "Hide". The previous situation had been the reverse (a title bar with a link to "Show").

(1) Editors can now change the first appearance of an ahnentafel by adding "|collapsed=yes" to "ahnentafel top" (see Template:Ahnentafel top/doc.)

(2) I'm now taking a survey to see how many editors (or the editors of how many articles) would prefer to keep this situation, and how many would prefer to change the default to collapsed so that editors who wanted to display an ahnentafel on first sight would have to add "collapsed=no".

Since over 2,500 articles (some of which would clearly benefit from one option and some from the other) use this template, a large sample of preferences would be very helpful in discussing which default to use.

Please indicate your preferences at Template talk:Ahnentafel top/Requested Comments 1. And let other editors know about this poll. Thanks. —— Shakescene (talk) 10:20, 10 August 2010 (UTC)

Unnecessary glorification of Mohd Rafi

Hello everyone. I am surprised at the number of times Mohd Rafi has been mentioned in this article. Everyone Knows it was Kishore Kumar who was RD Burman's favourite singer. Kishore had brought glory to RD Burman. I am dissapointed that Mohd Rafi fans have not even left this page and have unnecessarily glorified Rafi on a page supposed to be about the great RD Burman. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.176.192.65 (talk) 17:35, 10 August 2010 (UTC)

Horatio Alger not "homosexual", but a Paedophile

Dear Sirs and Madams,

Homosexuality was defined by Freud as a disease, and is therefore not an appropriate term to describe anyone, much less Horatio Alger, who, by the article, shows no signs of being queer, but rather, appears to have been a paedophile. He is described as taking visits from boys, not men. He is accused of molesting boys, not having consensual relations with men.

Nerodog (talk) 01:26, 13 August 2010 (UTC)

William Frederick James Harvey

On William Frederick James Harvey an IP who is trying to contribute appropriate content could use some help dealing with vandal fighters. 66.167.43.31 (talk) 14:56, 15 August 2010 (UTC)

New bio page problem

I want to start a new page for a gent called David Griffith Clawydfardd. But when I enter his name I always get redirected to Dai Hollywood. How do I get Hollywood out of my way? —Preceding unsigned comment added by AlwynapHuw (talkcontribs) 02:30, 15 August 2010 (UTC)

Selena FAR

I have nominated Selena for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Remove" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. --BelovedFreak 20:46, 17 August 2010 (UTC)

Frederick Hugh Sherston Roberts (VC)

In the biography there is a link to "Nile Expedition" of 1884, but it seems like mistake. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.108.38.229 (talk) 21:53, 18 August 2010 (UTC)


Help on Naveen Jain page

Hi, it seems there is an editor who is adamant about the notability of the subject, I'm trying to converse with him in the hope of reaching an agreement, but he is being dismissive and keep reverting any attempt to edit the page (not even "allowing" the inclusion of a template for the dispute of notability on the page). Their have been some COI on this page in the past, and I think it is still happening (it feels like someone really want to have this page exist, regardless of the appropriateness of it). So any help or outside opinion will be very appreciated (honestly I feel I might becoming to vested in this, partially out of pride and partially out of surprise at the resistance I'm encountering, but I still believe that my points are valid) Thanks --Nightseeder (talk) 19:17, 19 August 2010 (UTC)

Link to the page in question Naveen Jain(talk). --Nightseeder (talk) 19:20, 19 August 2010 (UTC)
The subject is notable many times over. Editors arguing otherwise have yet to dispute a single reference used or proposed for the article that demonstrates notability.
The article is currently under a year-long semi-protection due to editors repeatedly attempting to whitewash this article. At least one of these same editors has since suggested that the article be merged [9].
COI discussion Jan 2008
related spam report Jan 2008
Discussions on notability:
It would be nice to get this dispute resolved so we could focus upon expanding the article. --Ronz (talk) 20:17, 19 August 2010 (UTC)
This entry is to bring more editors and points of view to the relevent talk page, not another place to discuss the subject. Please lets try to keep the discussion in one place. --Nightseeder (talk) 23:23, 19 August 2010 (UTC)
I'm providing proper background information on the dispute. In the future, you should provide information like this. --Ronz (talk) 23:43, 19 August 2010 (UTC)
I was referring to your edit of my entree, not to the editional information you added (which I find valid and appropriate) --Nightseeder (talk) 23:46, 19 August 2010 (UTC)

A few more reports:

ANI
3RR

--Ronz (talk) 17:03, 20 August 2010 (UTC)

Discussion re: Actor infobox merger

See this. Beyond My Ken (talk) 00:15, 22 August 2010 (UTC)

Alick Rowe . Belmont Abbey , Hereford

Alick was employed as a teacher at Belmont Abbey , Hereford. There he was sexually abusing boys. This was made known to the head master at the time. Yet was not reported to the Police, —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.35.202.48 (talk) 22:17, 22 August 2010 (UTC)

Vince Taylor's sister

Listening to the BBC radio programme on 19 August 2010 about Vince Taylor, "Ziggy Stardust came from Isleworth", I was struck by his sister's proximity to Joe Barbera's stardom (Tom and Jerry, Yogi Bear, Huckleberry Hound, Flintstones). But the Vince Taylor entry suggests that his sister Sheila Holden married Joe Barbera in "around 1955", while the Joe Barbera entry states that Joe did not divorce his first wife until 1963 and met Sheila shortly afterwards. I do not know the truth, but these are inconsistent. CNGD (talk) 00:09, 24 August 2010 (UTC)

Discussion about the current image illustrating the article on Ahmed Yassin

There is a discussion ongoing as to the current image illustrating the article on Ahmed Yassin. Should you be interested, your input would be appreciated at Talk:Ahmed Yassin#Better picture?. Thank you. -- Avi (talk) 20:50, 24 August 2010 (UTC)

Jason anello

There's something screwy about this. A joe job, intended to trigger an AfD and thereby embarrass the uninvolved Anello? -- Hoary (talk) 02:09, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

Infobox discussion on several prominent articles without them

A discussion has been started on several articles lacking infoboxes on the merits of including them. You'll find the discussion here:

Yworo (talk) 23:45, 25 August 2010 (UTC)

Three of four are FA; the fourth is being prepared for FAC. Per WP:DISINFOBOX, the infoboxes aren't necessary. Truthkeeper88 (talk) 00:24, 26 August 2010 (UTC)
That essay is just some editor's opinion. Adding an infobox certainly doesn't detract from FA status. Many FA articles have them. Having a uniform presentation across Wikipedia is more important than indulging a handful of editors' preference. Yworo (talk) 00:27, 26 August 2010 (UTC)
A few ¢ on the central issue:
  • Essays are, in some cases, a good stating of common sense. And in others are treated as "almost" guidelines. WP:BRD is an example of both cases, as id WP:OTHERSTUFF. Pointing to an essay as shorthand for "This is my opinion" is acceptable within discussions, and sometimes is enough to wind the discussion down. Sometimes, not always.
  • Examples of FAs with and without infoboxes can easily be pointed to. Neither is an argument that the other format is wrong.
  • Infoboxes, for what they are, are useful. The ones that work should provided a rough snapshot of the vital information about the article's subject. That information may be present in full in the lead or it may not. In the cases where it is, the crux becomes how easily the information is to get at - infoboxes should be the most concise version.
  • With regard to essay and the above point: If the information in the box is wrong, it can, and should, be fixed. If it cannot be fixed, it may be the 'box needs to be fixed and its use suspended until it is fixed. Also, if the lead is in plain enough English the 'box may just be redundant.
  • Aesthetics really is a low priority for inclusion/exclusion with in an article. This is an encyclopedia and the primary function of an encyclopedia is to impart information clearly using the tools available. And if a tool may not look pretty, but if it is effective in conveying information its use should not be based on its look.
  • Lastly, since the use of infoboxes is optional - there is no general guideline or policy mandating them. As such, inclusion/exclusion is pretty much left to the Project or article level, and most project are at the "should be used" not "must be used" mind set. The four examples here are cases where editors maintaining the articles feel an infobox won't work. If those are long standing cases - consensus was arrived at say more than a year ago - politely checking to see if consensus has changed is a good thing. If the status quo is upheld, so be it, it may change at a later date. If the change is agreed to, so be it, but it is only as permanent as the previous state. In either case though, the decision should be respected.
- J Greb (talk) 01:21, 26 August 2010 (UTC)

Giacomo Del Duca

I think Giacomo del Duca and Jacopo del Duca are the same person. Someone can check ? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 151.83.149.172 (talk) 21:14, 26 August 2010 (UTC)

From a cursory glance I would say you are correct. I'll put a merge tag on it an we can see if anyone think different. ~ Dr. Lords (talk) 21:29, 26 August 2010 (UTC)

2 articles on the same person? How to resolve?

Neither of the articles seem to have been edited recently by someone involved with them (just general fixes), but I apologize if this is the wrong page to get help. It appears that John Eisemann and John Eisenmann refer to the same man. They have merge tags on them, but don't seem to have any discussion. I was hoping someone here might be able to tell if these are certainly the same person, what the correct spelling of his name is, and how to merge the two articles together. Sorry for just dumping this here and thanks for the help! §hepTalk 00:27, 27 August 2010 (UTC)

Zhang Ping

Looking at the biography of Zhang Ping, a politician, I would have enjoyed some words on his positions (content). I am not able to fill this in. Who can? Thanks! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.37.118.8 (talk) 07:56, 27 August 2010 (UTC)

Bodo Sperling

Please have a look at the times, it threatens to vandalism and editwar, thanks --Lawoftheart (talk) 11:30, 27 August 2010 (UTC)

Help needed with Carl Freer

There's currently a slow-moving revert war going on (relevant discussion at Talk:Carl Freer#RICO), involving the interpretation of a recent court ruling regarding Freer (unfortunately written in legalese) and whether Freer's past convictions for petty fraud, which were mentioned to The Times and the LA Times, should be mentioned in the article. Input would be appreciated. Huon (talk) 04:43, 30 August 2010 (UTC)

RfC: Should the image illustrating Yassin be changed

Please review the request for comment at Talk:Ahmed Yassin#RfC: Should the image illustrating Yassin be changed and comment if you feel moved to do so. Thank you. -- Avi (talk) 18:29, 30 August 2010 (UTC)

Please comment at Wikipedia:Village pump (proposals)#Dictionary of National Biography auto-generated content whether or not we want wikipedia to engulf the articles of this encyclopedia. Dr. Blofeld 21:38, 3 September 2010 (UTC)

Need help with "alumni", "alma mater" and "institutions"

I am working on a biographical entry on the deceased British Egyptologist Dominic Montserrat, but I cannot make perfect sense of three Wikipedia categories:

1. You could legitimately put him into both of the "alumni" categories. (Incidentally, "Category:Alumni of Durham University" is how you can link to a category when discussing it -- note the colon immediately after the opening "[[".) ¶ 2. I don't quite understand this (US? Japanese?) notion of alma mater myself; but my incomprehension aside, how does the matter arise here? ¶ 3. I'd do away with the "infobox" entirely. Biographical infoboxes are well suited to playmates of the month, humdrum footballers, reality show contestants and so on, but are superfluous when it comes to people of real interest. -- Hoary (talk) 02:05, 4 September 2010 (UTC)
  • Institutions: I did several biographies, such as P.F. Bang, where I only listed the current university under "institutions", but DM is the first deceased person I am creating a bio about and that makes me unsure. The infobox on Theodor Mommsen, for example, lists all his universities. Shall I do the same for DM?
  • "Alma mater" is also part of the infobox scientist. Gun Powder Ma (talk) 12:17, 4 September 2010 (UTC)

Sophia Loren images

Can someone please check Talk:Sophia Loren#Images? Surtsicna (talk) 10:55, 7 September 2010 (UTC)

Unreferenced BLPs

Throughout 2010, many Wikipedia editors have worked hard to halve the number of unreferenced biographical articles (UBLPs) from more than 52,000 in January to under 26,000 now. The WikiProject Unreferenced Biographies of Living Persons has assisted in many ways, including helping to setup a bot, which runs daily, compiling lists of all articles that are in both Category:All unreferenced BLPs and have been tagged by a WikiProject. Note that the bot does NOT place unreferenced tags or assign articles to projects - this has been done by others previously - it just compiles a list.

A full list of all of the projects, task forces and other groupings can be found at Wikipedia:WikiProject Unreferenced Biographies of Living Persons/WikiProjects. Some examples of list that having decreased much include regional ones like Wikipedia:WikiProject Singapore/Unreferenced BLPs (79 articles), Wikipedia:WikiProject Portugal/Unreferenced BLPs (133 articles) and Wikipedia:WikiProject Japan/Unreferenced BLPs (491 articles) and topical subjects like Wikipedia:WikiProject Beauty Pageants/Unreferenced BLPs (235 articles) or Wikipedia:WikiProject Canadian football/Unreferenced BLPs (193 articles). To create your own lists, you can use the WP:CatScan tool, such as this search] which lists the 42 unreferenced French artists.

Your assistance in reviewing and referencing these articles is greatly appreciated. We've done a lot, but we still have a long way to go. If you have any questions, please don't hestitate to ask either at WT:URBLP or at my talk page. Thanks, The-Pope (talk) 13:19, 7 September 2010 (UTC)"

The article Abolhasan Farhoudi has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

A search for references failed to find significant coverage in reliable sources to comply with notability requirements. This included web searches for news coverage, books, and journals, which can be seen from the following links:
Abolhasan Farhoudinews, books, scholar
Consequently, this article is about a subject that appears to lack sufficient notability.

While all contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{dated prod}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{dated prod}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. The speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. JeepdaySock (AKA, Jeepday) 15:46, 7 September 2010 (UTC)

Possible expansion of "Core" group, or creation of broader group

I note that the Core biography group did manage to basically get the 200 most important biographies up to at least a B level. I was wondering whether there might be any interest in maybe creating a broader group along the same lines. There are a lot of Halls of fame out there, including some somewhat unofficial ones like the Westminster Abbey Burials and Memorials. Also, there are the historical overview books, like Timetables of History, which at least try to cover all the world to some degree. And, of course, there are some similar awards and recognitions for non-biography articles as well, like the works which were selected for the Science Fiction Hall of Fame, for instance.

If a group were to be created with the purpose of trying to bring all these notables, biographical and otherwise, up to a reasonable B class, and if there were a way to create a subproject specifically for biographies, would the members of the project have an interest in working with it? If yes, please feel free to indicate as much or leave a comment at Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Proposals/Halls of Fame. Thank you. John Carter (talk) 17:36, 8 September 2010 (UTC)

Rodney King

Please see the section at Talk:Rodney_King#Race_v_ethnicity about whether to include African American as King's ethnicity in the Person Infobox. --Steven J. Anderson (talk) 00:15, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

Mário de Andrade FAR

I have nominated Mário de Andrade for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. JJ98 (Talk) 07:17, 10 September 2010 (UTC)

The Lars Pearson is up for deletion. If anybody would like to work on the article or vote in the AfD, now is the time. -      Hydroxonium (talk) 04:47, 11 September 2010 (UTC)

this article is pretty inaccurate to say the least. im don murrays son chris. it was written by the woman he was with when he passed away. i think the intention of this article is to honor my dad for what a talented man he was and his contribution to the band. thank you. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.0.162.238 (talk) 00:47, 12 September 2010 (UTC)

Lists of names

What is your Project's viewpoint on lists of names? For example, a long list of names of "notable" inhabitants of a town, or list of names of "notable" people who have attended a school? I tend to flag the section with an "unsourcved section" template, and remove all of the redlinks and blacklinks which have no sourcing as to their notability and/or association with the town/school. But now I'm in a situation with another user, who happens to be a reviewer, and a member of this project, who not only is reverting my removal of names, but reverting my request for sourcing. Everard Proudfoot (talk) 02:23, 12 September 2010 (UTC)

FAR notice Claudius

I have nominated Claudius for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. -- Cirt (talk) 15:15, 13 September 2010 (UTC)

I am looking for people who have knowlege concerning Nichiren Shoshu, Nichiren Daishonin and SGI-USA and past members Flowerothsouth (talk) 16:58, 13 September 2010 (UTC)

Hello Everyone. I am doing some research on a sect of Japanese buddhism known as the SGI-USA. It is a "splinter" group of the Nichiren Shoshu sect. I have heard it said that this is an occult practice, and so I would be quite interested in learning more. FlowerothsouthFlowerothsouth (talk) 16:58, 13 September 2010 (UTC)

Art and Images on WikiFlowerothsouth (talk) 17:05, 13 September 2010 (UTC)

Art and Images used on Wikipedia: Public Domain?Flowerothsouth (talk) 17:05, 13 September 2010 (UTC)

Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich

The page Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich was created as a translation of de:Wilhelm Friedrich Mittrich. The German page is currently being discussed for deletion. An IP user from Germany put an RfD template on the page, probably intending AfD, but started no discussion, so I removed the template.

I have removed statements that were unsourced or not supported by the sources cited from the page, but I read German only poorly and may have missed further issues. Attention from members of this project, especially members who read German, would be appreciated. Cnilep (talk) 19:09, 15 September 2010 (UTC)

John Paisley disambiguation

I've recently added a stub for John_Paisley_(actor). The living person has noted that a cursory search leads to John_Paisley, a former CIA officer. As a result, I've hatnoted both articles. However, to make the disambiguation more explicit, I propose that "John_Paisley" be moved to "John_Paisley_(CIA_officer)", per the usage for entries such as "Desmond_Fitzgerald_(CIA_officer)". Cmholm (talk) 08:16, 17 September 2010 (UTC)

Biography articles have been selected for the Wikipedia 0.8 release

Version 0.8 is a collection of Wikipedia articles selected by the Wikipedia 1.0 team for offline release on USB key, DVD and mobile phone. Articles were selected based on their assessed importance and quality, then article versions (revisionIDs) were chosen for trustworthiness (freedom from vandalism) using an adaptation of the WikiTrust algorithm.

We would like to ask you to review the Biography articles and revisionIDs we have chosen. Selected articles are marked with a diamond symbol (♦) to the right of each article, and this symbol links to the selected version of each article. If you believe we have included or excluded articles inappropriately, please contact us at Wikipedia talk:Version 0.8 with the details. You may wish to look at your WikiProject's articles with cleanup tags and try to improve any that need work; if you do, please give us the new revisionID at Wikipedia talk:Version 0.8. We would like to complete this consultation period by midnight UTC on Monday, October 11th.

We have greatly streamlined the process since the Version 0.7 release, so we aim to have the collection ready for distribution by the end of October, 2010. As a result, we are planning to distribute the collection much more widely, while continuing to work with groups such as One Laptop per Child and Wikipedia for Schools to extend the reach of Wikipedia worldwide. Please help us, with your WikiProject's feedback!

For the Wikipedia 1.0 editorial team, SelectionBot 22:03, 19 September 2010 (UTC)

Manning Park in British Columbia was NOT named after Alberta's Premier Manning, but was rather named after the Chief Forester of British Columbia of the time (who shared a first initial and a last name with Ernest Manning). —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.151.2.11 (talk) 12:42, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

Error in Dilley sextuplets article

Hi, sorry to let you guys know this but! The Dilley sextuplets were not born in 1995, but rather in May 1993, and not in Australia, but in Indianapolis, Indiana. Can someone show me how to edit this piece? Thanks! P.S. the rest of the bio looks to be correct!Mamadrieux (talk) 15:49, 20 September 2010 (UTC)

Error in Vyacheslav Molotov Biography

Hello,

I found an error with Vyacheslav Molotov biography. It says he doesn't have any relations to Alexander Scriabin, but Molotov and Scriabin were Brothers!! Who is incharge if there is any false facts in the article?

Thank you,

Dan. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.52.54.248 (talk) 22:24, 21 September 2010 (UTC)

Plagiarism of first paragraph?

Hi All,

I recently bought a copy of Mao Dun's Midnight by Silk Pagoda, Foreign Languages Press, Peking (2nd ed. from 1979). The biographical note about Mao Dun on the book cover is virtually identical with the first paragraph of the wikipedia article here:

"Mao Dun (July 4, 1896–March 27, 1981) was the pen name of Shen Dehong (Shen Yanbing), a 20th century Chinese novelist, cultural critic, and journalist. He was also the Minister of Culture of China from 1949 to 1965. He is currently renowned as one of the best realist novelists in the history of modern China. His most famous works are Midnight, a grand novel depicting life in cosmopolitan Shanghai, and Spring Silkworms."

Not sure who plagiarised whom, but I felt this was worth mentioning.

Marcel —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.102.57.41 (talk) 13:06, 23 September 2010 (UTC)

Lat as a Featured Article Candidate

Hi, I have nominated the article on Lat, a Malaysian cartoonist, at FAC. I invite the members of this project to comment on its suitability to be a Featured Article, based on the criteria at WP:WIAFA and what improvements can be made to achieve that goal. The nomination is at Wikipedia:Featured article candidates/Lat/archive1. Thank you. Jappalang (talk) 06:44, 24 September 2010 (UTC)

A long-running discussion over wording concerning criticisms of this author's books has re-started at Talk:Samuel Eliot Morison and it would be great if other editors could comment there. Nick-D (talk) 08:41, 24 September 2010 (UTC)

Suggestion

Hey I'm on wikibreak, focusing on school. But here are two articles that need to be merged and this is the project they were in. Consider adding the resulting article to the crime project. (also murder project, but im not sure if there is one)

Murder of Charlie Keever Jonathan Sellers

Thanks, let's make wiki better

--Iankap99 (talk) 22:55, 24 September 2010 (UTC)

Richard Cantillon Peer Review

Richard Cantillon, an economist from the early-18th century, is currently undergoing a peer review and has been nominated for GA status. He is included within this project's scope, so I thought some would be interested in giving their opinion (the objective is FA class). Thanks, JonCatalán(Talk) 02:43, 25 September 2010 (UTC)

Grace Sherwood, Witch of Pungo FAC

This article is here as a FA candidate. Would appreciate commentary to help improve the article. Thank you.RlevseTalk 13:25, 25 September 2010 (UTC)

Bio discussion

The page is Marcel Müller. We are having a discussion on where the page should be either at its current location or Marcel Mueller. Marcel spelled his name Müller when he played hockey in Germany (as that's the German spelling), but now he plays in North America and has decided to spell it Mueller (IE the english way) the names are pronounced the same. There's a discussion on his talk page for which spelling we should use.--Everyone Dies In the End (talk) 19:43, 25 September 2010 (UTC)

Review an article to conform to policies

There is debate at Andrew Stewart Jamieson, where the artist himself has sent out emails to his fans to edit the page in accordance to his wishes. The page was semi-protected to prevent the anonymous IPs from editing, but there are also registered editors that are part of his fan base that continue to edit. They refuse to conform to Wikipedia policies and standards, refusing to cite sources claiming they know the artist and know the facts to be true so do not need to use references because it insults them and the artist. This has caused editors to question the notability and if sources even exist. If editors more familiar with biography policies would review the article, I would appreciate the second opinions.

Kindly,

[tk] XANDERLIPTAK 20:33, 25 September 2010 (UTC)

I wouldn't worry about it, the article doesn't meet WP:BIO and will be deleted, so why edit war over it? Yworo (talk) 20:38, 25 September 2010 (UTC)

Arabic name posting for a non-Arab person

In regards to the article Lester Coleman, would someone post his name in Arabic even though he is not an Arab and has no citizenship in any Arab countries? A poster argued that because he spent most of his time in Lebanon, that his name in Arabic should be posted. WhisperToMe (talk) 06:13, 22 September 2010 (UTC)

Discussion at Wikipedia talk: Notability (people)#Proposed addition: Diarists and correspondents

You are invited to join the discussion at Wikipedia talk: Notability (people)#Proposed addition: Diarists and correspondents. patsw (talk) 00:25, 1 October 2010 (UTC) (Using {{Please see}})

Vassula Ryden

Vassula Ryden is a shocking article constructed from awful sources (mainly self-published) - if anyone has 30 minutes to spare... --Cameron Scott (talk) 20:25, 7 October 2010 (UTC)

Hi guys, I've just come across this awful article, which IMO needs to be rewritten completely. It was created in July 2005 by a single editor, and has not been changed significantly since then. It misses a lead section, making it unclear why this person is notable at all (From what the article says, he was a plastics pioneer). As the article is not an orphan (Celluloid, Alexander Parkes, John Wesley Hyatt, Parkesine, and Plastic link there, I quite guess that notability is establihed though, and hope to find someone here who might want to improve it. Per aspera ad Astra (talk) 15:51, 8 October 2010 (UTC)

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon

There's presently a disagreement at Talk:Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon concerning the 1939 tour of Canada and the US she undertook with her husband. Additional input would be appreciated. --Ħ MIESIANIACAL 12:01, 9 October 2010 (UTC)

Dave Karmol / Irma Karmol entries

Dkarmol (talk) 02:50, 11 October 2010 (UTC) looking for help on how to fix the dates shown in the little box on my wiki bio page (Dave Karmol) and for the page for my mother, Irma Karmol. We were both members of the Ohio legislature, but the text box on the right side of the page shows incorrect dates for both her service and mine.

The correct dates of service for me are from May 15, 1979 to December 31, 1982. For Irma Karmol they are from January 3, 1975 to April 24, 1979. She was killed in a car accident on that date, and I was appointed to fill the seat the next month.

I am new to wikipedia, and need some hlep fixing the article. Thanks, Dave Dkarmol (talk) 02:50, 11 October 2010 (UTC)

FAR notice

I have nominated Simon Byrne for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. -- Cirt (talk) 02:36, 12 October 2010 (UTC)

A proposal has been made to move {{WPBiography}} to {{WikiProject Biography}}. Please discuss at Template talk:WPBiography#Requested move. –xenotalk 13:49, 14 October 2010 (UTC)

Josef Georg Hörl — DYK nominee (the longest serving mayor of Vienna)

Can someone help to expand the article and nominate to DYK? On the 14th of October I nominated the article, but I expect that the size of the article is not enough. The problem is that there are no sources in English so I could expand the article myself. If someone speaks German he can expand the article (more than 5x needed) and it can be nominated again.--Александр Мотин (talk) 08:37, 15 October 2010 (UTC)

Eponymous categories of people

Currently going down through sub-categories of Category:People by occupation produces incorrect results. As correcting this issue will change many categories of people, comments at Wikipedia talk:Categorization#Eponymous categories of people are welcome from member of this project. --Traveler100 (talk) 08:59, 17 October 2010 (UTC)

Editnotice

I've created an editnotice for this page, Template:Editnotices/Page/Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Biography. Rd232 talk 11:16, 17 October 2010 (UTC)

FYI, see Wikipedia:Village pump (miscellaneous)#Propriety of links to Findagrave.com. --Kumioko (talk) 16:33, 18 October 2010 (UTC)

Straw poll at MOSNUM concerning opening dates

Poll currently taking place here. Dabomb87 (talk) 04:00, 19 October 2010 (UTC)

AFD relevant to this project - Jessica Feshbach

Ongoing AFD deletion discussion for this article, at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Jessica Rodriguez (3rd nomination). Thank you for your time, -- Cirt (talk) 09:34, 20 October 2010 (UTC)

Category:People - real and fiction

Is there any convention on sub-categories of people? I have been scanning down from Category:People by occupation to create lists of people by groups but have been getting unexpected results. For example film actors under the category Criminals. Reason turns out to be fictional people sub-categories being in the sub-categories of real people. Is this an accepted practice or should this be corrected? --Traveler100 (talk) 16:18, 21 October 2010 (UTC)

Traveler100 also posted to Wikipedia talk:Categorization#categories - real and fictional which already has replies. I suggest to keep discussion there. PrimeHunter (talk) 16:36, 21 October 2010 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Good article reassessment/Justine Ezarik/1

Be advised that there is a reconsideration of a delisting going on at Wikipedia:Good article reassessment/Justine Ezarik/1.--TonyTheTiger (T/C/BIO/WP:CHICAGO/WP:FOUR) 02:03, 22 October 2010 (UTC)

There is a proposal on WikiProject United States to task Xenobot with tagging and assessment of articles that fall into the scope of Wikipedia:WikiProject United States. Please take a few moments to provide your comments about this proposal.

If you are interested in joining Wikipedia:WikiProject United States please add your name under the applicable section here. --Kumioko (talk) 17:08, 22 October 2010 (UTC)

Copyediting needed at GA candidate Bill Oakley

I am reviewing the GA candidate, Bill Oakley. It is pretty close, but needs a bit of copyediting — specifically, with regard to run-on sentences, and sentences that are a bit too long, and also in some places overusage of commas, and see also some other GA Review recommendations, at Talk:Bill Oakley/GA1. Thank you for your time, -- Cirt (talk) 10:29, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Opinion request

A discussion is being held about acceptable references here for historical events and figures, and opinions from members of this project would be most welcome. Tom Reedy (talk) 21:28, 23 October 2010 (UTC)

Sir Mirza Ismail

when is this page going to be reinstated? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Mirza_Ismail —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.166.89.162 (talk) 00:57, 28 October 2010 (UTC)

Biography question

I have been spending a lot of my time trying to help out new users. I welcomed a user recently and received this message. I don't think the article meets our notability requirements but am not sure of the exact standards of medical bios. Obviously given the circumstances please treat this person with kid gloves (as we should be doing with all non-vandal new users anyway), by that I mean no warning templates on the talk page. Personalized messages would be better. Thanks in advance to anyone who helps out. Quadzilla99 (talk) 18:28, 30 October 2010 (UTC)

Ronald Skirth FAC

The featured article candidacy for Ronald Skirth is now open. Comments from reviewers are needed to help determine whether the article meets the criteria for featured articles; all editors are invited to participate, and any input there would be appreciated! Thanks! Dwab3 (talk) 15:29, 2 November 2010 (UTC)

Amended to reflect FAC, not FAR, Woody (talk) 18:23, 2 November 2010 (UTC)

Invitation to help with WikiProject United States

Hello, WikiProject Biography/Archive 24! We are looking for editors to join WikiProject United States, an outreach effort which aims to support development of United States related articles in Wikipedia. We thought you might be interested, and hope that you will join us. Thanks!!!

--Kumioko (talk) 15:36, 2 November 2010 (UTC)

Tranches: a new way to patrol BLPs

Please visit the page below and consider adopting one of the 100 lists of 5000 BLPs by putting your signature at the end of the corresponding line.

The idea is to get every single edit to a known BLP patrolled, even the articles that are not otherwise watched.

To patrol recent changes to the articles, click on the "related changes" link for your chosen list. Diffs can be inspected in the usual way; it's not unlike a normal watchlist. Start at the bottom and work your way up.

The lists will be refreshed regularly to account for changes in the content of the living persons category.


--TS 00:24, 4 November 2010 (UTC)

On the biography page for Susan Edmonstone Ferrier (1782-1854)there is a link for her book "The Inheritance". The link is incorrect. That is the wrong book. I have a copy of the book in my hand from the Old Library in New Castle, DE. Her book was originally published in 1824. There is an 1841 edition published by Richard Bentley of London that can be found on Project Gutenberg. As I am new to this I will let you make the changes. Thank you. Jansten75 (talk) 16:08, 4 November 2010 (UTC)

WikiProject cleanup listing

I have created together with Smallman12q a toolserver tool that shows a weekly-updated list of cleanup categories for WikiProjects, that can be used as a replacement for WolterBot and this WikiProject is among those that are already included (because it is a member of Category:WolterBot cleanup listing subscriptions). See the tool's wiki page, this project's listing in one big table or by categories and the index of WikiProjects. Svick (talk) 20:53, 7 November 2010 (UTC)

Invitation to participation!

Hello!

As you may be aware, the Wikimedia Foundation is gearing up for our annual fundraiser. We want to hit our goal and hit it as soon as possible, so that we can focus on Wikipedia's tenth anniversary on January 15 and our new project: Contributions. I'm posting across these Wikiprojects to engage you, the community, to work to build Wikipedia by finance but also by content. We seek donations not only financially, but by collaboration in building content. You can find more information in Philippe Beaudette's memo to the communities here.

Visit the Contribution project page and the Fundraising page to find out how you can help us support and spread free knowledge. Keegan, Wikimedia Fundraiser 2010 (talk) 06:04, 8 November 2010 (UTC)

Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library

Hello all! I am a big fan of Wikipedia, and look forward to getting involved in editing various biographies.

I also wanted to make it clear that I'm an academic intern at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. I'm mostly staying away from editing pages, unless I see an error or omission. What I really want to do is let everyone know about the collections of papers available from the library, both online and in their Hyde Park research room. We have some really great stuff and it's all open to the public. Please let me know if any of my links seem inappropriate or spammy, but I'm only linking directly to digitized collections of correspondence and things like that, and only on relevant entries.

Also, when I'm not editing FDR related entries, I'm just a normal history geek doing what I love. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Nina928 (talkcontribs) 20:59, 10 November 2010 (UTC)

About the text Porphyrios Bairaktaris

Dear administrator. Here we have a relegious matter. I strongly suggest to change the title of the text Porphyrios Bairaktaris to elder Porphyrios or monk Porphyrios because he was actually a priest - monk that did many miracles and today he is considered amongst the Greek orthodox people (but not yet from the official Greek orthodox church) as a saint! So calling him as a citizen (with his name and surname) is, to my mind, rather inappropriate. At least you can change the name to elder Porphyrios or monk Porphyrios. On the Greek wikipedia he is called ΓΕΡΩΝ ΠΟΡΦΥΡΙΟΣ, meaning elder Porphyrios. 688dim (talk) 11:39, 11 November 2010 (UTC)

The graves of three Covenanters in Wigtown, Scotland (one of them, it stated as Margaret WILSON which is not corrected).

I was there myself and have seen the original grave of Margaret Willson at Wigtown. If you could enlarge the photo from the Wikipedia page and you will see a quite clear. The correct surname is actual WILLSON. Can you please amend all from 'Wilson' to 'WILLSON', including her father, brother and sister; Gilbert, Thomas and Anges respectfully? Thank you.

Richard A Willson < richardawillson@gmail.com >

freddie francis article

needs to include "They Came From Beyond Space" ( 1967 ) . thank you! 76.121.116.255 (talk) 09:42, 13 November 2010 (UTC)

Wrong

HE was a Greman Freethinker NOT A Lutheren and he was PRESDIENT of the TURNERS I know this because I am his great grandson —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.43.198.129 (talk) 00:00, 14 November 2010 (UTC)

Ibrahim Ben Kargbo

There was a user that posted to WP:BLPN requesting individuals to expand upon and improve this article. Perhaps members of this WikiProject might be interested in helping out. :) -- Cirt (talk) 16:04, 14 November 2010 (UTC)

Architect Terry Farrell

There is a dispute with the article Terry Farrell (architect) where an editor moved the entire edit history to Terry Farrell (architect)/Old and created a new stub that needs wikification at the proper name. See Talk:Terry Farrell (architect) and Talk:Terry Farrell (architect)/Old. 76.66.203.138 (talk) 08:15, 15 November 2010 (UTC)

Image selection for the Ahmed Yassin article

The discussion has settled on three options. If you are interested in having a say in the selection, please visit Talk:Ahmed Yassin#Image selection for the Ahmed Yassin article and make your opinion known there. Thank you. -- Avi (talk) 02:13, 16 November 2010 (UTC)

Corporal Harold W. Roberts

Although I have a Wikipedia login and password I am very inexperienced in postings. However, as director and curator of the Camp Roberts Historical Museum at Camp Roberts, California, named after Harold William Roberts, I spent about a year-and-a-half researching his life, with the assistance of the California Genealogy Association, the Library of Congress, the University of North Dakota, and several other organizations. Then I wrote his biography. He was actually born William Harold Roberts, and must have changed his name for socio-political reasons cited in the book; plus all evidence showed him to have been born in 1895, not 1899. That would put his age at death at 22 years. I have constructed a large exhibit on him in our Museum, in the form of a parlor in the family home in San Francisco, and we commissioned a large painting of him, based upon one of the only two actual photographs of him that we have ever found. We are also trying to find out what happened to his original Medal of Honor and other medals. I would like to correct his birth date on Wikipedia, add some biographical information and his photograph. I hope someone out there hears me! Thank you. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Flickaweb (talkcontribs) 22:13, 16 November 2010 (UTC)

About the article Porphyrios Bairaktaris

About the article's Porphyrios Bairaktaris name, to my mind the name of the article Porphyrios Bairaktaris should absolutelly change to Father Porphyrios or Monk Porphyrios or Elder Porphyrios, because actually he was a very famous Greek monk, that did many miracles and today many consider that he should be nominated as a saint. However, his whole name on the article dosesn't seem to refer to him as a monk but as a citizen! 688dim (talk) 12:21, 17 November 2010 (UTC)

Johnny Garrett, Texas murderer

I just read the Wiki on Johnny Garrett, and it appears to have been written by people who are trying to "prove" his "innocence" and are intentionally leaving critical information out. Garrett was executed in Texas in 1992 for the rape and murder of a 79 year old nun, when he was 17. His defense brought in renowned forensic psychiatrist Dr. Dorothy Otnow Lewis to examine him. To his defense, she found him to have severe childhood trauma and significant brain damage. He also had multiple personalities, one of which ("Aaron") not only committed the rape and murder but described it to Dr. Lewis. This is why "Johnny" acted like he was innocent. He thought he was. All this stuff about a Cuban claiming the murder later have no support in facts. 70.226.219.254 (talk) 07:09, 22 November 2010 (UTC)

<Guilty By Reason of Insanity, 1998, Otnow-Lewis, Ivy Books, NY>

Although I am sure this project has been started with the best intentions in mind, I am a little concerned about it. I am posting this message here rather than at the project's talk page as I fear it will then only reach a few of its devotees. I have just had a lengthy discussion with the initiator of the project which can be found here. This project seems to involve mostly transferring articles from the DNB to Wikipedia in full, with some wikifying being made and some material being reworded or removed. However, the articles still end up being almost exact copies of the ones from the DNB. We have had this problem before with articles from the 1911 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica and I am worried that the same mistakes will be repeated here. I have nothing against using the DNB as a source, I have myself used it many times. However, it is my opinion that transferring large chunks of text from the DNB to Wikipedia makes it harder for editors to update the language and improving articles. Large masses of text from the DNB can overwhelm editors who are willing to improve them. I also fear that many of these articles will stay like this for years as has been the case with many articles copied from the Encyclopaedia Britannica. I therefore suggest a new approach for this project. Instead of transferring articles in their full, small stubs should be created with a clear link to the DNB article. One example where this has been done is Joseph Yorke, 1st Baron Dover. I think this would make it easier for editors to improve the article using material from the DNB. These articles can then be written in a modern language using proper references. Tryde (talk) 10:35, 20 November 2010 (UTC)

In reply, I would say this:
  • We should certainly learn from the EB1911 adaptation. There is quite a lot at Wikipedia:Merging encyclopedias about that.
  • I don't think "what we should learn" is that it shouldn't have happened at all. WP is dynamic. Adding material and then learning what to do with it is part of that.
  • It may be that EB1911 material is hanging around still, and should be edited back. I don't disagree with that point (see this recent diff). EB1911 text can be verbose and POV and often both simultaneously.
  • I think it is quite unfair to tar WP:WP DNB with the same brush. I feel what User:Tryde came to my Talk page to say was exaggerated, and by the end of the conversation that may have been conceded. In any case a vast amount of work has already gone on for the DNB to make sure that matters will be handled quite differently. For example there are 63 listings, one for each volume, for the purposes of checking and tracking articles (see Category:Missing encyclopedic articles (Dictionary of National Biography)).
  • "Missing encyclopedic articles" is very much a legitimate part of developing the encyclopedia. Using public domain text to carry out its aims has always been part of work here. The DNB is much better as raw material than EB1911 in most ways (in fact apart from some updates, it is a superior work of scholarship).
There is no reason for User:Tryde to leap to the conclusion that the WikiProject aims to transfer articles "in full". That clearly ought to be decided case-by-case. I have also made the point that the aim is actually to replace all this older text in the end. It is easier to search for newer material when you have a basic outline. I have done such work, and that is simply true.
The idea of creating only a stub with link is known from the Catholic Encyclopedia project. The evidence is that such stubs simply hang around, too. The context of "missing article" work (the subject of the biography is on the obscure side, so the article itself is unlikely to be lengthy) doesn't recommend it to me. Why not fill a gap properly, create some new redlinks as growth points, and keep moving ahead? I don't see why anyone competent should be discouraged from destubbing anything, in fact. Charles Matthews (talk) 14:45, 23 November 2010 (UTC)
Absent any evidence that better articles would have been created from a redlink, or improved from a stub, than current articles incorporating entire DNB entries, Tryde is merely expressing an opinion with which I disagree. I do not see a queue of wikipedians forming to write articles on the sorts of souls I've transposed into weikipedia from DNB, and neither do I see evidence that a bare bones stub would be more likely to be improved than a full-blown DNB copy. But what I can say is that there are hundreds and possibly thousands of DNB copy articles in wikipedia, providing high quality coverage of the subject's life, albeit with occasional clunking phrases or with omissions which anohter 100 years of consideration went on to supply. I'd rather have the wikipedia with the DNB copy articles than without. --Tagishsimon (talk) 01:34, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

Philosopher work-group missing?

Similar to WikiProject Biography/Military, WikiProject Philosophy/Philosophers is a joint task-force/work-group of this WikiProject and another WikiProject (WikiProject Philosophy). Should there not be a |philosopher-work-group=yes parameter for the {{WPBiography}} template also then? I have also crossposted this post as the issue needs to be discussed in both quarters. __meco (talk) 22:38, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

They are covered by the academia subgroup. Hekerui (talk) 23:22, 24 November 2010 (UTC)

A bot to cleanup priority parameters and more.

Wikipedia:Bots/Requests for approval/Yobot 17. -- Magioladitis (talk) 03:01, 15 November 2010 (UTC)

Bot approved. Now running. 3k out of 117k left to be done. -- Magioladitis (talk) 00:02, 29 November 2010 (UTC)

can I rate articles that I created or edited?

I know for GA, it is supposed to be independent, but for lower down is it OK to rate it oneself?TCO (talk) 12:07, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

Sure, no problem there. just try and be impartial to the fact that you've been working on it. That shouldn't be too hard. __meco (talk) 12:27, 27 November 2010 (UTC)
I would say for Start or Stub class, no problem. Above that, a C or especially B classification can be more of a judgement call which perhaps someone else should make. If you choose to make it, you should at least make a note on the talk page that you've done so, not just tag the banner. Rd232 talk 13:29, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

You can request a rating at Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography/Assessment#Requesting an assessment which is certainly a better way to get an uninvolved opinion for assessments above Start-Class. Hekerui (talk) 14:18, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

OK, so I'd like to get Amanar rated then. I realize it is not a biography (although it does relate to a person in a way). I gave myself a B, but feel free to revise. I would ask for help from Wikiproject Gymnastics, but it seems moribund. If y'all won't rate it, is there some general place that will rate it? Or sports project or some higher category? TCO (talk) 22:21, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

Henk Timmer

In consideration of what the article says about Henk Timmer that he has been married to speed skater Marianne, is not true. Although they both have the same sirname, they are planning to get married. They only life together. Like she said so herself in a TV-interview after the first biography which has been written about her, "I might be old fashioned, but I am waiting for Henk to ask me to become his wife; it does not feel good to me when I take the first move".
In the article about Marianne Timmer herself, the information is alright: She is dating goalkeeper Henk Timmer. She has been married to Peter Mueller from 2001 till 2003. After Peter had found condoms in Timmer's sports bag, the marriage was counting its days.
May be the information about Henk Timmer's privat life with Marianne can be changed?
--Roy464 (talk) 19:14, 30 November 2010 (UTC)

FAR notice

I have nominated Rebecca Helferich Clarke for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here.-- Cirt (talk) 21:06, 1 December 2010 (UTC)

Russian painters

In the course of my gnoming ow Wikipedia, I have noticed that for many articles within Category:Russian_painters, there is often a section named 'Principal exhibitions', whether collapsed or expanded, that amounts to huge laundry list of every single artist who took part in such "principal exhibition". Typical examples are at Alexander Koroviakov and Elena_Kostenko. The lists strike me as peculiar: for if they are so "principal" to the artist concerned, why are there so many accessory names? and Why are these given the 'cookie-cutter approach for articles of all the artists listed any given "principal exhibition".

It seems that these are being added by Leningradartist (talk · contribs) (aka Sergei Ivanov) to publicise Leningrad artists, some of which appear to be barely at or perhaps below our notability threshold. Furthermore, for example in Boris_Korneev, all these articles seem to be referenced to 'Sergei V. Ivanov. "Unknown Socialist Realism. The Leningrad School".- Saint Petersburg: NP-Print Edition, (2007)' I suspect the creation of one enormous walled garden of articles by said editor]], who may have a serious conflict of interest. (note: this is being cross-posted to WT:COIN) --Ohconfucius ¡digame! 02:51, 26 November 2010 (UTC)

This has been brought up here [10] in the past; I suspect the sheer magnitude of weeding through all the articles, and the lack of experts involved in this particular branch of the visual arts, have made this an unpopular task. In a nutshell this is a tremendous conflict of interest by an editor who is as persistent as he is knowledgeable; most of his citations are from his own publications. JNW (talk) 03:01, 26 November 2010 (UTC)
Not the first time someone noticed this problem, see this link:[11]...Modernist (talk) 03:10, 26 November 2010 (UTC)
The additional problem is that he keeps uploading tons of pictures with questionable copyright to our articles about places and landmarks, without any textual description. See here, for instance. Wikipedia is not a repository of images. As illustrations they are of no use whatsoever. --Ghirla-трёп- 14:55, 26 November 2010 (UTC)
I have today attempted to address the key problems of the articles referred to above (about 100 articles in all), and have just left a message on the talk page of the editor concerned explaining my actions. --Ohconfucius ¡digame! 14:31, 29 November 2010 (UTC)

I have also noted that editing by Leningradartist (talk · contribs) is somehow controversial. He writes a long list of articles on semi-notable Russian painters (none of them is probably mentioned in Brittanica)/ There is an apparent conflict of interest here as the editor seems to have some acquaintance with many of his subjects (as evident from him obtaining CC permissions for their work) and he uses his own monograph as one of the major references. Still upon reflection I think that the wikiwork by Leningradartist is beneficial for the project:

  1. All of his subjects are IMHO notable: they are professional painters that for many years were prominent members of the Union of Soviet Painters (that were they formally recognized by Soviet Union) as notable professional painters and the reference to Ivanov's monograph show independent support of notability.
  2. Despite thye possible conflict of interests the articles seems to be written in neutral manner. In this sense the overly dryness of the articles (standard biography highlights, list of notable exhibitions and examples of the art) seems to be a good thing. While the articles are similar to each other they do not look like advertisements.
  3. I am not sure I understood the copyright concerns by Ghirla. A few of his Commons downloads I saw seem to have proper free licenses obtained from the authors. That by itself is quite an achievement, IMHO.

Taking all things into account I think that we should not stop Leningradartist's work. I even not sure if we should advise him to use more creativity in his writing. Since he has a COI then maybe this boilerplate style is preferential for him. Alex Bakharev (talk) 04:15, 30 November 2010 (UTC)

  • These long lists of exhibitions, listing a large number of other names, are kind of coatracky. There are two alternative ways Leningradartist could go about this:
    • If (and only if) all of these painters are part of a recognised school or movement that has attracted comment in multiple published sources (these can be Russian sources, of course), Leningradartist could create a navigation box listing these painters at the bottom of each relevant biography article.
    • If the exhibitions referred to were notable, with enough coverage in multiple reliable sources to satisfy WP:GNG, they could have standalone articles listing the artists that exhibited. The biographies could link to those.
  • As it is, the long lists are not appropriate for these biographies. (Note: Ohconfucius made me aware of this discussion on my talk page.) --JN466 09:30, 1 December 2010 (UTC)
  • It is certainly not beneficial when he tries to add numbers of images by these, at best, obscure artists to major survey articles such as Landscape art, which he has done in the past. In the West it would be highly unusual for a notable artist to assign copyright to works in all media as he claims "his" artists have done for dozens of pictures. Johnbod (talk) 01:49, 5 December 2010 (UTC)

Format for dating marriage

What is the proper formatting for noting the dates of a marriage when one of the partners has died? For example, Johhn Smith married Mary Smith in 1967 and he died in 2005. What is the proper format: married to Mary Smith (1967- 2005); married to Mary Smith (1967-2005 (his death)); married to Mary Smith (1967-); or some is there another preferred format? Thanks!Wkharrisjr (talk) 19:41, 2 December 2010 (UTC)

Question and Small Issue

18:36, 4 December 2010 (UTC)December 4, 2010

To start, I have to say I'm just a little confused on what a difference is between a "talk" and "discussion" page. Sorry, but at the top of the window open on my computer, it says that this is a talk page and therefore it is customary to bring up comments or corrections to a specific wikipedia article. However, directly below it, it says this is NOT a talk page. Forgive me, therefore, for being somewhat confused and bringing up a correction I have for a wikipedia article.

Under the Article for Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (consul 232 BC) - it is certainly true that he died in 216 BC. However, it states in the article that it was in his honor that the first gladiatorial games were held. This statement is false - the first gladiatorial games (munera) held in Rome were in 264 BC, in honor of the death of Junius Brutus Pera. They were put together by his sons Decimus and Marcus, and involved three pairs of slaves (six slaves in total).

I don't know how to go about changing information on a wikipedia article, or else I would fix it myself. Just wanted to let someone know.

-MJ

Suggested policy change to the tagging of non article items

I have submitted a proposal at the Village pump regarding tagging non article items in Wikipedia. Please take a moment and let me know what you think. --Kumioko (talk) 01:56, 6 December 2010 (UTC)

Tom Flanagan

You are invited to join the discussion at Talk:Tom Flanagan (political scientist)#Assassination talk. Elizium23 (talk) 05:05, 7 December 2010 (UTC) (Using {{Please see}})

Hello. The subject list (promoted to featured status in August 2006) is showing its age somewhat and no longer meets the current standards. An initial list of issues has been left on the article's talkpage which should be addressed in the next ten days to prevent the list being nominated for demotion at WP:FLRC. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to leave me a message. All the best, The Rambling Man (talk) 17:44, 7 December 2010 (UTC)

Something is wrong here

What is wrong with this page? Where is all this crap coming from, someone posted an entire article in here as a section. <( User:Couch on his Head and Smiling (talk) )> 00:08, 9 December 2010 (UTC)

That has often been done. The real giggle is the number of posts that contain information about a specific person, who has an article, and ask that the information be put into the article by some one else because the poster doesn't know how to edit a page in Wikipedia. (1) The information belongs on the article's talk page. (2) If you don't know how to edit a page how is it that you are editing this one? JimCubb (talk) 01:56, 9 December 2010 (UTC)

AfD

Please see this AfD of an article of interest to this project: Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Ephraim Shapiro (2nd nomination) Steve Dufour (talk) 02:00, 9 December 2010 (UTC)

Spelling of non English names?

I created the article František Janeček with the English spelling of his name as this was used in the main references but someone had moved it to the Czech spelling without any consultation - which spelling is correct for English Wikipedia please? Thruxton (talk) 06:19, 11 December 2010 (UTC)

User:Rich Farmbrough suggested I ask here for assistance. I have been trying to find an online reliable source(s) to confirm and enhance the death details for Mr. Hilliard for months and months, without success. I asked on the article's talk page, and got some information (after a lengthy time period) but it still did not seem to get me anywhere. I am hoping to find something to better conclude his article, before I suffer the same fate as him ! Please see Rich's talk page for progess to date, so that anyone does not unduly duplicate his efforts. I appreciate this is a long shot, but Hilliard was more than notable in his own way, and I feel that some august publication must have carried an obituary/memorial (albeit almost forty years ago). Cheers,

Derek R Bullamore (talk) 22:32, 15 December 2010 (UTC)

AllMusic gives you a ref for birth & death dates, and some bio. IMO an RS. --Tagishsimon (talk) 22:37, 15 December 2010 (UTC)
Thanks - every little helps. Article now upgraded, but it is his death (not date but manner, cause, obituary, whatever) that seems to be a black hole of information. Cheers - Derek R Bullamore (talk) 10:38, 16 December 2010 (UTC)

Article alerts

A new bot (AAlertBot) has been coded for the Article alerts project, and it is now in trial doing test runs. Your project being one of the largest is included for report deliveries at Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography/Article alerts. We would be grateful for any feedback or bug reports. Thank you. —  HELLKNOWZ  ▎TALK 11:39, 16 December 2010 (UTC)

I'd appreciate other eyes to take take a look at Titanic Thompson. A single purpose account with an almost certain COI has repeatedly been removing references and links to other books/articles other than the official site, and has been adding an assertion of rights to a quote that is neither refernced nor appropriate since the quote if fair use. The person also keeps adding what seems to me to be a basically incomprehensible assertion to the led: "lived that character's secret life, unknown to almost all of America, during his lifetime." The person went by a nickname, not some fictional character come to life. There is a very long group of edits that show the removal of references and other books, though those edits don't occur all the time. The reinsertion of the incomprehensible led is a daily occurence. Any help of contributions would be appreciated. 2005 (talk) 01:38, 19 December 2010 (UTC)

Is that so important to mention this in Claude Ryan's biography?

My question is, why would we mention in the article about a person what were the bad things that people said about him/her if indeed, this was just a passing mention and does't interest the people coming on this page to get broad biographical information. Shouldn't details such as «this journalist said this and that insulting comment about him/her» be saved for the people reading the complete biography of the man or the woman? Aren't there more important things that we should know about the famous personality?

Please, if I ever get famous and that you guys make a page about my biography, don't include in it that some angry journalist called me an axxhxlx right after my death. I'd rather be remembered for what I did or said than what others said about me, especially if these were insults.

Thanks 24.122.132.234 (talk) 02:05, 19 December 2010 (UTC)

Reino Gikman

In March 1993 the american authorities, or at least one of them tried to contack Gikman, most probably to persuade him to defect. They placed an advertisement on the page 79 issue 13, 29 March 1993 of the german magazine "Der Spiegel". The advertisement was from an american company with the name "Rhino Gikman Industries" and was written there that: 'Rhino Gikman Industries a company based in USA is looking for an expert adviser who speaks several languages, is familiar with the cities of Paris, Brussels and Vienna. An expert who knows very well the methods used in Eastern-Block, but had contact to the Americans. A man who is willing to use his knowledge. In return we will guarantee the financial securities and will be responsible for all legal matters if the suitable person works for us. We will arrange for him and his family's resettlement in USA. Should you be interested in the position, contact our personnel recruiters: Fernand Paul or Pierre Bart per post P.O. Box -----, Washington D.C. -----, Please enclose with your letter a photograph'. Note that the names Pierre Bart and Fernand Paul were Gikman's aliases. Paris, Brussels and Vienna were cities that Gikman had lived for a time. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.154.111.180 (talk) 00:51, 21 December 2010 (UTC)

Subset WikiProjects

I added a link to an external watchlist, but it might cease to be functional at some indefinite time in the future. Because of the size of this WikiProject and technical problems, I suggest the making of subset WikiProjects within it. They would not replace this WikiProject, but they would exist in addition to it. Some possibilities are: Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography of living persons and Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography of non-living persons, with necessary re-classification when someone dies. Some other possibilities might parallel (more or less) some of the subcategories within Category:Biography. Please see User talk:Tim1357. (This talk page is on my watchlist, and I will watch here for a reply or replies.)
Wavelength (talk) 20:48, 21 December 2010 (UTC)

Kevin R. McMahon

I have added citations from what I believe are reliable sources and verifiable for the article on Kevin R. McMahon. Is this sufficient enough to have the banner removed from the top of the article page? Darleen Gruben (talk) 18:01, 26 December 2010 (UTC)

Douglas Bader is being reviewed for GA listing. It has been put on hold for an initial 14 days to allow issues such as prose, inline citing and detailed coverage to be addressed. SilkTork *YES! 16:38, 27 December 2010 (UTC)

Teena Marie NOT first white artist signed to Motown

According to the Wikipedia listing for BARRY GORDY, the article under the heading "Motown Record Corporation" cites the following statement: "Kiki Dee became the first white female British singer to be signed to the Motown label." In addition the following white bands/artists were signed to Motown prior to Teena Marie: Chris Clark - 1967 and Rare Earth - 1968 Please keep in mind that I am not trying to take anything away from this soulful singer, but I am just trying to clarify some things. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.112.20.2 (talk) 01:18, 28 December 2010 (UTC)

A discussion to eliminate the use of Find a grave and IMDB

Its been almost 3 months so its time for another weeks long discussion on the status of Find a grave. Here is a link to the discussion that is currently taking place, Again. on the external links noticeboard. Find a grave and IMDB. --Kumioko (talk) 17:44, 25 December 2010 (UTC)

Voting has begun

A vote is currently being held at Wikipedia:External links/Noticeboard as to wether we should ban the use of the Find a grave site and the thousands of links we have to it on articles. Please take a moment and place your vote. --Kumioko (talk) 16:11, 29 December 2010 (UTC)

The article Paulette Jiles has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

Although this article doesn't fit the criteria for WP:BLPPROD, it's been sitting for years without reliable references.

While all contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. The speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Grand High Poobah of Western Bastardia (talk) 12:02, 29 December 2010 (UTC)

The article Ernest Hutchinson has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

Not notable, provincial archives only confirm the man existed. Not enough data are available to warrant an article on this man, no proof of public service.

While all contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. The speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Grand High Poobah of Western Bastardia (talk) 12:20, 29 December 2010 (UTC)

The article Stoyanka Kurbatova has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

Stub of BLP is well over 2 years old with no non-primary, non-originally-researched sources

While all contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. The speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Grand High Poobah of Western Bastardia (talk) 12:30, 29 December 2010 (UTC)

Pinyin in non-Mandarin articles

See the discussion at Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style_(use_of_Chinese_language)#Inclusion_of_Mandarin_in_HK.2C_Macau.2C_and_overseas_Chinese-related_articles over the relavancy of Mandarin Pinyin in articles where the the Chinese person does not use Mandarin. 184.144.166.27 (talk) 04:36, 31 December 2010 (UTC)

Roxanne McKee

Talk:Roxanne McKee#Birthplace. --82.58.136.99 (talk) 10:36, 1 January 2011 (UTC)

To save anyone the bother, the talk page merely says "Birthplace - London or Worthing?". So. Hello IP. Who knows? Who even knows why you've raised the question without providing any details of why you think the currently specified birthplace is wrong. --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:45, 1 January 2011 (UTC)
Probably because the article says Worthing and the infobox says London. MilborneOne (talk) 17:11, 1 January 2011 (UTC)
At the risk of being branded sexist and soap actressist, she probably does not know herself ! - Derek R Bullamore (talk) 17:20, 1 January 2011 (UTC)

Benjamin Harrison and American postage

A discussion here has come to an impasse. I wonder if any experienced editor might offer an opinion or propose a compromise measure? Thanks, Coemgenus 03:55, 2 January 2011 (UTC).

Max Mosley

Storm in a teacup, but I'd appreciate wider advice on the appropriate amount of detail to include on relatives in the article Max Mosley. See discussion here. Many thanks. 4u1e (talk) 17:08, 29 December 2010 (UTC)

We really could use a third party view here - thanks in advance. To be a bit clearer: should we give names of (non-notable) parents in law, middles names of spouses and middles names and dates of birth for (non-notable) children. I say nay, others say aye. 4u1e (talk) 13:45, 3 January 2011 (UTC)

Listing children

What is the current thinking on indiscriminate listing of children such as in this article: Carlos O'Neill. An editor has been going round adding a lot of genealogy information to similar articles and I've advised them that it is not content of any real relevance (unless the children are of significance). But it would be good to get support on that :) --Errant (chat!) 20:42, 4 January 2011 (UTC)

I have offered my own opinion on this matter under User_talk:HRO'Neill#Family. Let's not WP:BITE this new contributor. DinDraithou (talk) 20:57, 4 January 2011 (UTC)
That's not fair; I've been constructive and polite and tried to discuss this. I resent the accusation! Anyway; perhaps this is a better place to discuss the matter. I'm not convinced that these additions are the right sort of content for these articles. They seem a lot more like genealogical entries that an encyclopaedia entry. To be clear, my problem isn't so much the fact that children are listed; but that they are listed in detail - with spouses, career details and whether they had children. Scanning the main royalty articles the practice seems very much to be to list notable children (or even all children) in brief, particularly in any infobox, and link to their own article (if it exists) for extra information. I am unconvinced that detailed information about the children (and extended family) in the manner presented is of encyclopaedic value. --Errant (chat!) 21:09, 4 January 2011 (UTC)
(in fact, looking at the other articles on Royalty, issue that does not meet notability quidelines is dealt with in-brief in a table format, perhaps that is more applicable?) --Errant (chat!) 21:11, 4 January 2011 (UTC)
All this detail is what the family have been up to. These are their business and political alliances and the heads of the family have a lot to do with the choices of their children. There is structure to it. Nothing is sloppy. DinDraithou (talk) 21:25, 4 January 2011 (UTC)
Not saying it is. Just not sure it has encyclopaedic value, particularly in the current form (some of which is definitely confusingly worded). --Errant (chat!) 21:28, 4 January 2011 (UTC)
Wikipedia is more than encyclopedic in a million places. It depends on the article. Also this contributor is likely a native of Portugal, even if his English is excellent. I have no trouble reading any of it. It's just very formal. DinDraithou (talk) 21:35, 4 January 2011 (UTC)

Note that this is very similar to the situation with Max Mosley outlined above on which comments were requested (but none yet received - hint!) earlier. My view is also that the detail is excessive. Based only on these two cases it seems that earlier discussions and the guidelines suggest not having such detail on descendants and relatives. This is supported by all of the FA quality articles that I've checked, although Royalty may be an exception. However, it seems that there are a (growing?) number of non-peer reviewed articles that do include this degree of detail. Does this mean that the guidance should be updated to reflect a new consensus, or that we are drifting away from an agreed standard? Views from those with more experience in biography than me would be appreciated! 4u1e (talk) 11:38, 5 January 2011 (UTC)

Looking at Carlos O'Neill appears more like a genealogical website then an encyclopedia, most of the information has now relevance to the subject. If the nine children are notable then they could each have articles. Nothing wrong with listing non-notable or even all the children of the marriage but it only really needs the name a date of birth other stuff has nothing to do with subject. It also in a typical genealogical fashion also list grandchildren! The only sort of detailed info is any relevant to the subject or his marriage for example if the children died young or did something notable that had an influence on the subject. Suggest it needs a major prune. (Just to note this is not from any particular guideline just my thought on the subject) MilborneOne (talk) 19:10, 5 January 2011 (UTC)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Dragon

Was the Order of the Dragon founded in 1408 or 1410 as I have researched this and it seems it was formed in 1408. Regardless, there needs to be a correction on one of these articles for consistency.

(Armorbeast (talk) 12:25, 6 January 2011 (UTC))

Question about the Order of the Dragon

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Dragon

Was the Order of the Dragon founded in 1408 or 1410 as I have researched this and it seems it was formed in 1408. Regardless, there needs to be a correction on one of these articles for consistency.

(Armorbeast (talk) 12:26, 6 January 2011 (UTC))

Emailed date of birth?

On Clare Maguire I have added Birthdate provided by Clare's agent by email any suggestions about how I reference it please? I thought of uploading a PDF of the email but is there a better way? Thanks Thruxton (talk) 15:20, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

sautation

salut ettien dja felix mes veux les mellieur longevite prosperite succer et sante. je m'appelle k.morys je suis ton petit frere de l'orphelinat de bingerville. il y à longtemps que je cherche à te joindre mais en vain. voici mon numero et mon mail.(koussimorys@hotmail.fr).22502919769 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.201.74.232 (talk) 19:53, 6 January 2011 (UTC)

David Werner

Forgive me if I'm posting this in the wrong place as I'm not super active here and a not positive on the protocols. I'm seeking some help from folks interested in biographies to provide outside input to the David Werner article.

Someone removes any references to allegations that David Werner molested children, even though these references are cited in mainstream news articles and are also cited using Werner's own writing. I don't think I'm the appropriate person to get into a back and forth with this person as I am connected with an organization that David Werner once was involved with. So I'd be grateful if someone more neutral would be willing to take a look at the history of this article.

Thanks. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bayradical (talkcontribs) 06:56, 7 January 2011 (UTC)

Oh, an additional note is that the person who most recently edited the article is a staff member at David Werner's organization: (Staff list here: http://www.healthwrights.org/hw/who-we-are) --Bayradical (talk) 07:06, 7 January 2011 (UTC)

This notice is to advise interested editors that a Contributor copyright investigation has been opened which may impact this project. Such investigations are launched when contributors have been found to have placed copyrighted content on Wikipedia on multiple occasions. It may result in the deletion of images or text and possibly articles in accordance with Wikipedia:Copyright violations. The specific investigation which may impact this project is located here.

All contributors with no history of copyright problems are welcome to contribute to CCI clean up. There are instructions for participating on that page. Additional information may be requested from the user who placed this notice, at the process board talkpage, or from an active CCI clerk. Thank you. VernoWhitney (talk) 20:48, 7 January 2011 (UTC)

MILHIST task force restructuring

Greetings from the Military history WikiProject! In recent months, we have been working on transfering our project task forces into a standardized style, in order to make them more readable and user friendly, especially for new editors. We have also been redirecting the talk pages of those task forces to our main project talk page. The latter is partially because many of the posts on the task force pages are duplicates of those on the main talk page. It is also partially because the main talk page has many more watchers than the individual task force pages, and so discussions will have more input and queries will be less likely to become "lost" or otherwise go unanswered. You can see a sample of the new style and the talk page redirection at Wikipedia:WikiProject Military history/Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific military history task force or many of our other task forces. We would like to do the same to the military biography task force. However, as this is located at Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography/Military, which is part of this project's space, we would like to make sure there is no objection to us changing the style or redirecting the talk page. We would also be willing to move the task force into our project's space, with a redirect from your project's space, if that is preferable. Dana boomer (talk) 22:11, 7 January 2011 (UTC), on behalf of the coordinators of the Military history WikiProject.

There is discussion at Billy the Kid about merging and redirecting Ollie P. Roberts. Any input would be great.--Adam in MO Talk 08:50, 9 January 2011 (UTC)

AfD

Please see: Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Roy Abraham Varghese. Kitfoxxe (talk) 14:20, 11 January 2011 (UTC)

US Collaboration reactivated & Portal:United States starting next

Casliber recently posted a suggestion on the talk page for WikiProject United States about getting the US Wikipedians Collaboration page going again in an effort to build up articles for GA through FA class. See Wikipedia:U.S. Wikipedians' notice board/USCOTM. After several days of work from him the page is up and ready for action. A few candidates have already been added for you to vote on or you can submit one using the directions provided. If you are looking for inspiration here is a link to the most commonly viewed articles currently under the scope of Wikiproject United States. There are tons of good articles in the various US related projects as well so feel free to submit any article relating to US topics (not just those under the scope of WPUS). This noticeboard is intended for ‘’’All’’’ editors working on US subjects, not just those under WPUS.

The next item I intend to start updating is Portal:United States if anyone is interested in helping. Again this is not specific to WPUS and any help would be greatly appreciated to maximize visibility of US topics. The foundation has already been established its just a matter of updating the content with some new images, biographies and articles. Please let leave a comment on the Portals talk page or let me know if you have any questions or ideas. --Kumioko (talk) 23:57, 15 January 2011 (UTC)

No Blender article

The statement, "Cee-Lo has described himself as being a "goon" in his youth. By the age of 10, he made a hobby of torturing stray animals. He also spent his high school years assaulting homeless people and mugging stray cats. He would later call this behavior maniacal.[5]" seemed out of place, so I tried to find the reference, "^ "Cee-Lo: Superfreak". Blender. United States: Alpha Media Group. August 29, 2006. http://www.blender.com/guide/68364/cee-lo-superfreak.html. Retrieved January 1, 2011.".

I was NOT able to find it on Blender.

Such a bizarre assertion really needs to be verified. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.73.102.131 (talk) 18:13, 16 January 2011 (UTC)

Ralph Regenvanu

Could someone possibly take a look at the article Ralph Regenvanu, and see whether it should be updated to B-class? And, if it shouldn't, could you let me know what still needs to be done to improve it? Thanks. Aridd (talk) 09:58, 8 January 2011 (UTC)

Just reviewed this article it is well referenced but could do with a section on his early life - and it must be possible to get picture of him - happy to help if you don't know how. Have a look at B class biog articles? Thruxton (talk) 15:43, 8 January 2011 (UTC)
Thanks! What would go in a section on his early life? Parents, siblings, primary and secondary school education? His father is well known (Sethy Regenvanu), which I do mention briefly in the "Entry in politics" section (because I wasn't sure where else to put it), but I haven't been able to find any other information on his childhood or adolescence - nothing prior to his university studies. As for pictures... It's easy enough to find some, though not always of good quality, but not free to use on Wikipedia, and I don't think "fair use" would apply... Aridd (talk) 19:54, 8 January 2011 (UTC)
Edit: Part of his father's autobiography is available on Google Books, with some information. I'll see what I can get from it. Aridd (talk) 20:12, 8 January 2011 (UTC)
Had a quick look for a comparable B class article and found France-Albert René - you can see there is not a lot more to do - some referenced info about his parents, siblings, primary and secondary school educationI would be good. (I sent Ralph a FB message asking for a photo) Thruxton (talk) 16:15, 9 January 2011 (UTC)
Thank you for the article example, and for requesting a picture. (Facebook - I should have thought of that!) I've put in the names and birthdates of his siblings, as well as brief information on his parents, referenced to his father's autobiography. (The only thing I can't find out about is his pre-university education.) Thank you for the help! Aridd (talk) 06:25, 10 January 2011 (UTC)
 Done - plus a few copyedits advised by Ralph - looks B-Class to me now. Cheers Thruxton (talk) 20:37, 19 January 2011 (UTC)

Choices of people for list

Given the world's extraordinary number of gay/L/B/T people the making of a list might never end. But I would like to speak for myself for a minute: Im David Scondras, first elected city Councilor in Boston's history, wrote and passed the nation's first gay rights law in 1983, with five other elected officials began the gay elected officials conference, started the non profit 'search for a cure', was intrumental in developing Malawi's treatment program for HIV getting that country 190 million dollars, sat on Thabo Mbeki's expert AIDS panel, created the country's only check box on state income tax to allow contributions to finding a cure for AIDS, and I am finishing my autobiography. I am 65, live in Cambridge near MIT and am one of many others I think ought be in Wickepedia: e.g. a supreme court justic in Malawi who is very courageous; Gary Dotterman who was the advance man for Presidential candidate Robert Kennedy and the first gay man to have Brazil acknowledge his marriage to a Brazilian partner, and many others.

David Scondras <telephone number redacted>65.96.170.240 (talk) 20:13, 16 January 2011 (UTC)

I will cross-post your request to Wikipedia talk:WikiProject LGBT studies. I suggest you look there too. BrainyBabe (talk) 11:36, 18 January 2011 (UTC)
You might also note some of these people at Wikipedia:Requested articles. I don't think anyone would disagree with the general contention that there are a wealth of GLBT people notable enough to warrant a wikipedia article. If you're not in a position to start these articles (and remember, this is a large part of what wikipedia is about: rolling up your sleeves and addressing the omissions yourself ... that's pretty much why we're all here) you might make the way more easy by listing some sources of information against requests placed in Wikipedia:Requested articles. --Tagishsimon (talk) 21:29, 19 January 2011 (UTC)

How do I request a new article?

I tried typing "request biography" in the search box, and none of the results were helpful. Where do I post my request, and, secondly, how do I choose the best name for this woman? The ONDB article on her husband Philip Sargant Florence calls her Lella Faye Secor, but I think she was better known as Lella Florence. She was chairman of the Birmingham Family Planning Association from 1951-1961 and was instrumental in bringing the Pill trials to the UK.[2] BrainyBabe (talk) 11:26, 17 January 2011 (UTC)

Two more women who deserve articles: Edith (Sydney) Martineau, first woman to lead the British Unitarians, and Gertrude von Petzold, "a pioneer in many ways: in England she was the first woman who got a post as a church minister, in Germany she was the first woman who qualified for a professorship in Germanics at Kiel University. At times when woman were not even allowed to vote, von Petzold pursued her academic career eagerly. Her ecumenical attitude resulted in membership within the Lutheran Church, the Unitarians and finally the Quakers"[12].BrainyBabe (talk) 21:16, 19 January 2011 (UTC)
You post your request at Wikipedia:Requested articles. I don't think anyone would disagree with the general contention that there are a wealth of women notable enough to warrant a wikipedia article. The problem is finding volunteers with the time and interest to write the article. I don't think making a request will do very much to encourage the article, but in that direction Wikipedia:Requested articles is the best you can do. If you're not in a position to start these articles (and remember, this is a large part of what wikipedia is about: rolling up your sleeves and addressing the omissions yourself ... that's pretty much why we're all here) you might make the way more easy by listing some sources of information against requests placed in Wikipedia:Requested articles. As for Lella Florence, call her that, and put together a redirect from Lella Faye Secor. Embolden and explain the two names in the article. If anyone disagrees with your call, they can always reverse the situation so that the article becomes the redirect & vica versa. The more important thing is to make a start on the article. --Tagishsimon (talk) 21:31, 19 January 2011 (UTC)
Thank you. I wish that searching for "request biography" led there! I will take your advice. BrainyBabe (talk) 22:08, 19 January 2011 (UTC)
Request biography now does lead to Wikipedia:Requested articles as a result of your bringing attention to the matter. Thanks for doing so, perhaps it will be easier now for other users with similar requests to yours.--JayJasper (talk) 22:18, 19 January 2011 (UTC)

Two Duncan Campbells, both married to Julie Christie

Duncan Campbell is a {{hndis}} that lists two journalists: Duncan Campbell (journalist) and Duncan Campbell (The Guardian). Each of the articles identifies that Campbell as the husband of actress Julie Christie. That seems unlikely; either this is a merge situation or someone more knowledgeable than I needs to figure out who's who. 67.101.6.200 (talk) 20:33, 17 January 2011 (UTC)

They're distinct individuals. The Journalist article was trying to say that The Guardian DC is married to Julie Christie, not that the Journalist is married to her. I've inserted a word into The Journalist's article to try to make the distinction clear. --Tagishsimon (talk) 10:14, 18 January 2011 (UTC)

Met Lonesome Dave & Band 11-10 Thru 11th. 1974

Bold text Worked On High School Newspaper From 1972 to 1975 In Salem (Roanoke), Va. And Got "To Meet & Greet" Alot Of Bands That Came Through Salem-Roanoke, VA. Before Security Became So VERY Tough Like Nowadays.

Had The Pleasure Of Meeting And Talking With " Lonesome" Dave And All Of The Other Band Members ON Nov. 10th. 1974. Saw Two Orginal Members And Others Calling Themselves "Foghat" In 1992 06-18-92 In Small Club In Roanoke, VA.

Dave Was Serious And Contemplative Of Bands Future Even Then, Whle Both "Slow Ride" And "Just Want To Make Love To You" Were Charting On Billboard (r) And Cashbox (r) And Recieving Wide Radio Air-Play Throughout The United States... Especially On AOR FM Stations. Dave Was Grounded, Loved His Wife And Family, Knew Commerical And Business-Side Of Music, And Refered TWICE (2 times) To WILD CHERRY "Play That Funky Music {white boy}" As An Example Of Metoric Sucess (TOP 5 Billboard in 1974), ...Then Nothing!!! Dave Said He Wanted To Do A "LIVE" Album To Capture The Bands RAW Energy "During A Great Live Performance In Front Of An Great Live Audience"... Venue Did Not Matter He Said At Time. Latter, "FOGHAT LIVE" Became The Bands Signature LP... With "Just Want To Make Love To You" And "Slow Ride" Becoming Signature Rock N' Roll/ AOR. - batspeed29

Proposal to remove Jan Oskar Hansen page

Several times over the past few years editors have objected to one thing and another on the Jan Oskar Hansen page. I have attempted each time to correct the page to please the editors. This time I am hoping that another one or two of Mr. Hansen's many fans in the literary world will come to the rescue. If not, I will try again. I have until the 24th according to the current posted warning. Mr. Hansen is a well-known author; that is indisputable. Lapwing's page on Wikipedia cites him as an important author, BeWrite Books recognizes him. Etc. etc. etc. He has had many books and poems published. The last time i corrected his Wikipedia page, one of the issues was that there were not enough "secondary sources". In attempting to provide them, some copy was posted that sounds promotional. This can be easily remedied with a little rewriting. Many people in the literary field admire Mr. Hansen's work, and it is easy to want others to read it (thus, the promotional aspects). One of the warnings posted on the page right now advises going to the talk page to discuss the article and its proposed deletion. However, above, on this page, is stated that "This page is not for comments..to a specific article..." Not having anywhere else to post my commentary, I am leaving it here. If that is not all right, then of course I will remove it. Or give the editor-in-charge permission to do so.

It would be a shame to take down the Jan Oskar Hansen page. The author is well-known and copy that appears to be advertising in nature can easily be corrected. I am a professional editor myself -- this is my opinion. ---- — Preceding unsigned comment added by Joneve (talkcontribs) 01:57, 20 January 2011 (UTC)

Note the wording of the deletion notice affixed to Jan Oskar Hansen: You may remove this message if you improve the article or otherwise object to deletion for any reason ... which is to say that if you are satisfied that the article subject passes the test(s) set at WP:AUTHOR (e.g. 1. The person is regarded as an important figure or is widely cited by peers or successors) then you may remove the {{Prod}} template, ideally specifying your rationale in the edit summary. It may be that a response to that would be to take the article through the Articles for Deletion, at which point there would at least be a debate. So you have options open to you which don't necessitate further discussion on this page. HTH --Tagishsimon (talk) 20:28, 20 January 2011 (UTC)

Adding 100 good biography images

A picture is worth a thousand words, so in 2011 my challenge is to upload 100 good biography images to Commons and link them to the articles (have a look here and see how I'm doing) I am also developing the wording of emails that persuade people to release their work under Creative Commons. I am happy to help sort out OTRS tickets and with those hard to find images so please feel free to discuss on my Talk Page Cheers Thruxton (talk) 20:04, 20 January 2011 (UTC)

phone numbers in WikiProject Biography requests

Hi,

What should be done when a user puts a phone number in a WikiProject Biography request?

I am referring to this edit by an IP user. If I assume good faith, the user is trying to prove his identity. On the other hand, the user might be trying to steal an identity or publish a phone number of a person.

--Kevinkor2 (talk) 11:57, 19 January 2011 (UTC)

*poof!*
The recently deleted 28 revisions seem to imply that we don't want people posting personal phone numbers here in attempt to prove their notability!
--Kevinkor2 (talk) 04:36, 25 January 2011 (UTC)
That is correct. In general, it's not a good idea to post phone numbers because of privacy concerns. When in doubt, these can be reported to Wikipedia:Requests for oversight and the experts can review the situation and take appropriate action. Thanks for bringing this up. - Hydroxonium (H3O+) 05:03, 25 January 2011 (UTC)

The article for Colin Ferguson, the man convicted of killing six people on the Long Island Rail Road was recently moved from "Colin Ferguson (convict)" to "Colin Ferguson (mass murderer)", based on the rationale that it was "more specific". I personally don't have a strong opinion, but was wondering what others thought and whether this was the appropriate title. Obviously, the man has been convicted, so it's not inaccurate, but I wasn't sure what exactly the naming conventions suggest in a case like this. — Hunter Kahn 20:25, 25 January 2011 (UTC)

Hugh James Orr

Hugh James Orr the cricketer and rugger international was born in Australia but came to Britain to the Naval College at Dartmouth around the age of 11. He was sponsored by the then Governor of Australia, Lord Jersey, and spent time at his stately home, Osterley Park, London. He married Leslie (? Pearson) and his first daughter, Elizabeth was born in 1905 followed by a second and a third daughter. A twin boy and girl and another daughter died in infancy. Apart from cricket, he was a successful rugger player and was capped for Scotland four times. I have the caps and photos of him playing cricket and rugger in ' Army v. Navy'matches, a Varsity match and playing cricket at Lords'. Once his health failed, he took up croquet and won the All-England Croquet Tournament. He was caricatured for the croquet magazine and later he was photographed at Osborne demonstrating a wheelchair for Queen Mary. He knew Captain Scott and was invited to go on the last fatal expedition to the Antarctic but his wife persuaded him not to go. He rose to the rank of Commander in the Royal Navy and at the end of his working life had an office in Admiralty Arch, London. He was a kind,good-looking man (6ft 3" tall) and a loving father. He was always modest about his sporting accomplishments but used to smile and say he 'never beat a fit man' (his opponents were always having an off day!). He came from a well-to-do Melbourne family, but after his father died young his mother lived it up and travelled extensively, working through a fortune estimated at £60,000 at the time. He and his family were always quite hard up and at the time of his death from cancer they were living in a flat in Wimbledon, south London. His wife was then offered a Grace and Favour place at Hampton Court but did not accept. She lived out her life in a hotel room in Bayswater, preferring city life and died in her 80s. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.240.69.206 (talk) 17:35, 26 January 2011 (UTC)

Ann George the Artist

I was wondering if anyone knows of her or her work? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.163.105.22 (talk) 01:07, 28 January 2011 (UTC)

{{Recent death}} has been nominated for deletion. 184.144.169.126 (talk) 05:41, 28 January 2011 (UTC)

Eunice Sanborn

I just noticed a discrepancy that I cannot figure out. If you go to Eunice Sanborn, you will see that her page shows her age as 114 Years, 191 days old using the template, but on List of the verified oldest people. her age is listed as 114 Years, 192 days. Thus it is off 1 day. The same error exists for Besse Cooper and I have not checked any others. They both are using the Age in years and days template and the parameters are both identical and correct. Any ideas? -Pparazorback (talk) 14:27, 28 January 2011 (UTC)

Now of course they match. Cache was cleared out though and they didn't match earlier though. -Pparazorback (talk) 15:44, 28 January 2011 (UTC)

Forgotten Film ( maybe ? )

I believe there is a film that Rod was in that has been ? forgotten ?

The High Commissioner ( 1968 ) with Christopher Plummer and Lilly Palmer59.101.134.189 (talk) 00:31, 1 February 2011 (UTC)

That would be aka Nobody Runs Forever, which is listed in Rod Taylor? Here's a clue: please set out what you're talking about in posts to wikipedia. Rod who? --Tagishsimon (talk) 11:30, 1 February 2011 (UTC)

Help for WikiProject World's Oldest People

Hi. I'm looking for non-involved, experienced input to the above WikiProject (WP:WOP). You should know that it has recently been a bit of a WP warzone, and an open ArbCom case relates. It would be nice if some more people could come into the lion's den, and there are some of us at least who will make sure you're not eaten alive. We are discussing, reasonably amicably, notability and sourcing criteria for articles on very long-lived people. Since these are biographies, it seems to me that expertise on biographies is what is needed. Could one or more people pass by? Also, what are your feelings about that project becoming a sub-project of this one? Thanks in advance. Itsmejudith (talk) 13:59, 27 January 2011 (UTC)

You may be interested in Category:Superlatives.—Wavelength (talk) 16:45, 31 January 2011 (UTC)
You may be interested in Category:Centenarians.—Wavelength (talk) 16:09, 1 February 2011 (UTC)
You may be interested in the following articles.
Wavelength (talk) 02:43, 2 February 2011 (UTC)
Yes, these do or should all come under the aegis of that wikiproject. Itsmejudith (talk) 16:01, 3 February 2011 (UTC)

Bryan Caplan

I'd appreciate input at Talk:Bryan_Caplan#NPOV. On the one hand, I do think the overall tone of the article could be considered biased, on the other, I think that valid material is being removed in the attempt to make it NPOV. Someone with more expertise on biographies could possibly help? CRETOG8(t/c) 08:58, 3 February 2011 (UTC)

Or, re-reading it, I'm not sure the tone is biased, but might be natural for a biography. CRETOG8(t/c) 09:02, 3 February 2011 (UTC)

Village Pump

AndyTheGrump has started another discussion about the proper content of biographies at Wikipedia:Village pump (miscellaneous)#Ethnic_over-classification that I think editors at this project might be able to help resolve. WhatamIdoing (talk) 18:40, 7 February 2011 (UTC)

New article: T. Arthur Cottam - film director

New article, created, at T. Arthur Cottam. Additional assistance in research would be appreciated, feel free to help out at the article's talk page. Cheers, -- Cirt (talk) 01:40, 8 February 2011 (UTC)

Question

do you have to be famous to be in the biography project--Iaindude (talk) 11:30, 7 February 2011 (UTC)

To participate in the project? No. Anyone can help! -- Magioladitis (talk) 11:39, 7 February 2011 (UTC)
what i am meaning make a bio of them self — Preceding unsigned comment added by Iaindude (talkcontribs) 11:46, 7 February 2011 (UTC)
You have to be notable. --Tagishsimon (talk) 01:09, 10 February 2011 (UTC)

The biography article Tillson Harrison has been nominated for Featured Article status here. Arctic Night 01:06, 10 February 2011 (UTC)

New article = Richard Smith (Silent film director)

New article, created, at Richard Smith (Silent film director). Additional assistance in research would be appreciated, feel free to help out at the article's talk page. Cheers, -- Cirt (talk) 16:04, 11 February 2011 (UTC)

Assessing WikiProject Biography articles

I would like to say that there are alot of "unassessed" WikiProject Biographies (almost 131,000!). Over the last 2 months I've done alot of assessing to help the "backlog", unfortunately it seems never-ending. At least I can do a few each day of the week and keep it down a little. There will always be a "backlog" unless everyone on Wikipedia helped. I'm not complaining here, I'm enjoying it actually. Adamdaley (talk) 22:45, 12 February 2011 (UTC)

Phoolan Devi was not really killer!!

Phoolan Devi was used by decoits for publicity similarly as she was used by Politicians and film producers to mint money. She was not a killer, the killings were attributed to her. One should go to her village area and find the facts before adding to Widipedia. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.245.113.39 (talk) 13:37, 13 February 2011 (UTC)

Rusty Hilger False entry

The entry on Rusty Hilger mistates and omits facts. The Daily Oklahoma artical http://places.newsok.com/split-t-faced-final-down-in-2000/article/3494515# states: "The death knell was rung by former Oklahoma State University star quarterback Rusty Hilger, who leased the space and took it in a different direction, concentrating more on live music and bar business than Caesar Burgers. It all came crashing down when Hilger was arrested in 1993 and convicted of trying to buy cocaine inside the bar. Around that same time, some serious violations were reported by the Oklahoma County Health Department, and the end followed shortly."

The Wiki entry states: "In 1990, Hilger rebuilt the legendary SPLIT "T" and the "T" Bar (an Oklahoma City landmark and one of the oldest drive-thru restaurants in the USA [since 1953])."

The Wiki artical is a misrepresentation at best and its ommision of the cocaine arrest is clearly misleading. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 137.95.1.4 (talk) 14:00, 14 February 2011 (UTC)

Cee Lo Green Page.. maybe about Cee Lo??

Need someone who has time to check facts..

Has no one else noticed that after the first main section of his page, the person who created the page changed his name to one, 'Justin Hinton' throughout the rest of the article. Since the guy was nominated for a grammy I feel bad that someone would try and take advantage of a free edit page like this.



Thanks ya'll.


here's the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cee_Lo_Green —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.230.181.212 (talk) 15:08, 15 February 2011 (UTC)

The article Hugo Almeida (deserter) has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

WP:BLP1E; poorly sourced article with no improvements in > 5 months post tagging; notability

While all contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. The speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. S. Rich (talk) 22:45, 15 February 2011 (UTC)

College Days

Jon Korkes graduated from C. W. Post College of Long Island University in 1967 where he was in the Honors Program. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.228.10.154 (talk) 12:25, 16 February 2011 (UTC)

Rose Catherine Pinkney

I have created an article for a friend (Rose Catherine Pinkney) and am not sure I have been objective. Feedback welcome. I admit on the international encyclopedic importance scale, she is of marginal WP:N, but I think she passes. If you disagree let me know.--TonyTheTiger (T/C/BIO/WP:CHICAGO/WP:FOUR) 04:05, 20 February 2011 (UTC)

I have pondered this article for a bit and am pretty sure it passes WP:N even though it is unusual for us as a project to have articles about business executives who only presided over business units. I still hope I am being neutral.--TonyTheTiger (T/C/BIO/WP:CHICAGO/WP:FOUR) 22:01, 21 February 2011 (UTC)

Quotation issues with Samuel Gompers

The last quotation has some context and credibility issues. Please see talk:Samuel Gompers#Problem quotation. Mangoe (talk) 19:25, 22 February 2011 (UTC)

Brettina notability

Someone posted this on the Brettina talk page and I don't know the answer:

What does it take to qualify for removing that Notability tag? It says its been there since May 2010 that the article doesnt have enough sources and such but it has 15 references now. Isnt that good enuff?

[sic] What does it take to pull a Notability tag? 74.82.68.17 (talk) 21:18, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

changing the title of Rebecca Helferich Clarke

How one could get "Helferich" out of the title of this article? The title doesn't come up in the edit frame. Clarke signed a few early pieces of music "Rebecca Helferich Clarke" but she also signed a few "Rebecca Thacher Clarke" -- Helferich was not a name she used apart from a few early instances and it's quite misleading to have it there so prominently. It is not used this way in any other published source. Should I start a new article with the correct version of the name and move the article there? I have not gotten any response on the "talk" page of the article. Thank you. --Clarkesociety (talk) 03:06, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

Looks like someone granted your wish.--JayJasper (talk) 04:27, 28 February 2011 (UTC)

I've done a lot of editing to the article, and think it can be re-assessed of at least C quality. One of my goals is to get the POV tag off the page, which I think could be done very soon. It still suffers from uncited material and disorganization, but I think it has come a long way. Please join in and edit the page or let me know how I can get help assessing the page.--Screwball23 talk 09:34, 2 March 2011 (UTC)

This notice is to advise interested editors that a Contributor copyright investigation has been opened which may impact this project. Such investigations are launched when contributors have been found to have placed copyrighted content on Wikipedia on multiple occasions. It may result in the deletion of images or text and possibly articles in accordance with Wikipedia:Copyright violations. The specific investigation which may impact this project is located here.

All contributors with no history of copyright problems are welcome to contribute to CCI clean up. There are instructions for participating on that page. Additional information may be requested from the user who placed this notice, at the process board talkpage, or from an active CCI clerk. Thank you. Moonriddengirl (talk) 15:24, 3 March 2011 (UTC)

Proposed Task-force - Missing people/persons

Hello, I noticed that there is a special niche of biographies that should be classified as "Missing persons/people". Quite possibly alot of these articles may be out-of-date and require updating like Robert Levinson who was just in the news recently, but his article was a mess before I cleaned it up. I like to propose a task-force to keep these kinds of articles under a closer eye in terms of keeping them up to date and cleaned up. Phearson (talk) 04:56, 4 March 2011 (UTC)

Should Books Be Tagged?

Book talk:Selena has a WP Biog banner but it is in Category:Incorrectly tagged WikiProject Biography articles. Should there be a class for books? Do the template gurus need to get their heads together and fix the template? JimCubb (talk) 01:28, 7 March 2011 (UTC)

Error in Gubbrud article

His mother's maiden name is spelled one way in the article, another way in the sidebar. I do not know which way is correct. Could you make it any harder to point out an error? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.2.251.6 (talk) 21:25, 7 March 2011 (UTC)

Presumably you're speaking of the Archie M. Gubbrud article. It's difficult to know which is the correct spelling because the only linked citation on that page dosen't mention his mother. You might have better luck if you post this on the article's talk page.--JayJasper (talk) 21:37, 7 March 2011 (UTC)

Recent changes were made to citations templates (such as {{citation}}, {{cite journal}}, {{cite web}}...). In addition to what was previously supported (bibcode, doi, jstor, isbn, ...), templates now support arXiv, ASIN, JFM, LCCN, MR, OL, OSTI, RFC, SSRN and Zbl. Before, you needed to place |id={{arxiv|0123.4567}} (or worse |url=http://arxiv.org/abs/0123.4567), now you can simply use |arxiv=0123.4567, likewise for |id={{JSTOR|0123456789}} and |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/0123456789|jstor=0123456789.

The full list of supported identifiers is given here (with dummy values):

  • {{cite journal |author=John Smith |year=2000 |title=How to Put Things into Other Things |journal=Journal of Foobar |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=3–4 |arxiv=0123456789 |asin=0123456789 |bibcode=0123456789 |doi=0123456789 |jfm=0123456789 |jstor=0123456789 |lccn=0123456789 |isbn=0123456789 |issn=0123456789 |mr=0123456789 |oclc=0123456789 |ol=0123456789 |osti=0123456789 |rfc=0123456789 |pmc=0123456789 |pmid=0123456789 |ssrn=0123456789 |zbl=0123456789 |id={{para|id|____}} }}

Obviously not all citations needs all parameters, but this streamlines the most popular ones and gives both better metadata and better appearances when printed. Headbomb {talk / contribs / physics / books} 02:32, 8 March 2011 (UTC)

Samuel Butler (poet)

I have tagged this article as a copy-paste job. Just a heads-up. Talk:Samuel Butler (poet)Cliff (talk) 19:22, 7 March 2011 (UTC)

Comes directly from http://www.flickr.com/photos/60861613@N00/3956794965/. Nice catch. Phearson (talk) 00:09, 8 March 2011 (UTC)
The image is fine. In fact, the entire article or major parts of it were copied from a book. Please discuss here.Cliff (talk) 21:37, 9 March 2011 (UTC)

B-class review request: Karl Marx

I've finished major work on this article. Before a WP:GA nomination, I'd like to invite interested projects to do a B-class review. Please post any reviews on the article's talk page. I'd appreciate any assistance with prose copy-editing (I am not a native speaker of English). --Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| talk 23:21, 9 March 2011 (UTC)

Editors here will be interested in an ongoing discussion on honorifics and titles at Wikipedia_talk:Naming_conventions_(Indic) LeadSongDog come howl! 18:29, 10 March 2011 (UTC)

"Contemporary bias"

Hi all. I would like to know your opinion about this bias related to biographies. Comments are welcome. Regards. emijrp (talk) 10:38, 11 March 2011 (UTC)

Objection to Chandra K. Clarke deletion

I object to this post being deleted. Chandra is a well-known entrepreneur and journalist in Chatham-Kent. She has been recognized for and won several local, national, and international awards and is the founder and president of the leading onlined editing and proofreading company. There are numerous sources, magazines, newspapers, web sites, awards, etc., that speak to her credibility and notability. I would like the chance to spend some time editing this page and adding sources before it is deleted. Perhaps with some additional work to make the post more credible and better sourced, the importance of this entrepreneur/writer will be better reflected.

Some sources that could be added: - http://list.profitguide.com/rankings/w100/2010/ranking/Default.aspx?sp2=2&sc1=0&d1=a - http://www.stevieawards.com/pubs/women/awards/414_2252_20190.cfm - http://ckdp.ca/2011/01/08/chandra-clarke-awarded-the-women-exporter-award-by-owit/ - http://ckdp.ca/2009/11/22/scribendi-com-named-finalist-in-three-categories-at-the-stevies/ - http://www.chathamdailynews.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?archive=true&e=2923391

Thanks.

(Karen.p.ashford (talk) 17:26, 12 March 2011 (UTC))

See Wikipedia:Deletion review for assistance.--JayJasper (talk) 19:47, 12 March 2011 (UTC)

Articles for deletion

Apologies for the late notification, but I did not realise that I should notify relevant Wikiprojects. I have nominated the following two articles for deletion primarily because of concerns of WP:BLP1E:

Your participation in determining consensus would be welcome. --RexxS (talk) 03:03, 13 March 2011 (UTC)

Rosser Reeves

We interviewed Rosser Reeves for the Bill Moyers series Walk thought the 20th century. DVD's may be available. Rblumer (talk) 20:23, 13 March 2011 (UTC)

I need someone to review the orthography of this article because I'm Italian and I'm average in english. Thanks! --Born Again 83 (talk) 18:48, 16 March 2011 (UTC)

Okay I have gone over Carmine Crocco, interesting subject! - Ahunt (talk) 19:55, 16 March 2011 (UTC)

This article needs some serious attention from someone on this project. It is almost totally unreferenced, very non-encyclopedic in tone and reads like it was written by the subject's PR manager. If someone from this project could take a look that would be much appreciated. I would fix it myself, but since I know this person I am in a WP:COI. - Ahunt (talk) 13:07, 15 March 2011 (UTC)

MilborneOne has done a good job of knocking it into shape. --Tagishsimon (talk) 00:06, 18 March 2011 (UTC)
Yes, he has done a great job there, thanks for looking it over as well. You may want to keep it on your watch list as political COI editors tend to come back later. - Ahunt (talk)

No citations

I'm looking into creating an entry for my dad, who is a mathematician, known within his field. I'm using Hermann Bondi's entry as a guide. However, I'm interested that Bondi's page doesn't include any citations, nor any notes that citations are needed. How does this come about?

Thanks - Helen

Helen elizabeth2002 (talk) 22:30, 18 March 2011 (UTC)

Just added a note to Hermann Bondi. There appear to be sufficient external references, but which external references correspond to which facts is unclear and should probably have some added. Also, there is a higher standard in regard to living persons than those who have passed, WP:BLP has more information.Naraht (talk) 03:11, 19 March 2011 (UTC)

Perhaps somebody with some time on their hads could have a look at this article which needs some attention. Thanks. --Crusio (talk) 19:51, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

deletion discussion for Micheal Fitzgerald

The deletion discussion Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Micheal_Fitzgerald has been started to determine notability and address concerns with building the Frankenstein WP:DBTF. You are invited to help reach consensus. Bagumba (talk) 08:34, 22 March 2011 (UTC)

Hi all. Another user has tagged the article in subject with the primarysources, refimproveBLP, peacock and resume tags. I don't see much difference between the tone of this article and the tone of most other biographies, and I specifically disagree with the peacock and resume tags; could someone please evaluate this issue? Many thanks. McMarcoP (talk) 11:57, 22 March 2011 (UTC)

An editor has asked for a community reassessment of this article to see if it still meets the good article criteria. The discussion is at Wikipedia:Good article reassessment/Al-Kindi/1. Jezhotwells (talk) 00:45, 23 March 2011 (UTC)

Leopold Mozart German or Austrian?

Should it not be added he was German similar to his son Mozart both were German because the birthplace was part of the Bavarian circle inside the Holy Roman Empire of the German nation so both were not Austrian.GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 02:29, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

Austrian is totally different to what it is considered today back then Austrians were regarded and considered Germans pretty much up to 1945 it's only after that Austrians have create a separate distinct identity from Germans and I disagree because the birthplace of both Mozart's are now in Austria that you should call them Austrian not German.GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 02:31, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

The so-called "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" wasn't a nation, and it wasn't even a sovereign state either. Actually, it was a union of sovereign states which occasionally fought each other. Catgut (talk) 08:19, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

It was a nation otherwise why would it be called that? Also Austria back then was a German state and Mozart referred 'Germany' as his homeland. --GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 13:17, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

  • Actually, Austria had its own emperor on a par with Germany's emperor. "German" as a national identity did not really exist in that time. --Crusio (talk) 19:54, 21 March 2011 (UTC)

Yes it did exist then it has existed since the creation of the Holy Roman Empire the German speaking then was called Germans and Austria was a German state. Leopold was born in a place which is now in modern-Germany therefore you can call him German. So by your logic Otto von Bismark was not German because German as a country did not exist then?--GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 07:51, 22 March 2011 (UTC)

  • I think in that time being "German" was more what we nowadays would call an "ethnicity". Bismarck is a different case. Nationalism was invented in the 19th century and the re-invented version of the German Empire that was founded in 1871 in Versailles was rather different from the Holy Roman Empire. Nevertheless, I think Bismarck would have regarded himself a Prussian first, a German second...--Crusio (talk) 08:37, 22 March 2011 (UTC)

In that time "German" was just someone in the Holy Roman Empire that spoke German and born in a German state, Austria, Bavaria, Prussia, etc etc and then the word German has been altered since 1945 because even when the German Empire was founded Austrians still considered themselves Germans first ethnically there are and Austrian was there nationality and still is today but Austrians have developed their own distinct identity obviously, but back to then Mozart younger one for example was German but because his birthplace is now in Austria the Austrians say Austrian not German, but Leopold was born in a place which is still in Germany today so therefore he is still called German today, Bismark I would have thought called himself German first.--GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 03:40, 23 March 2011 (UTC)

  • The article Germans discusses these issues rather well. It would seem to me that Leopold obviously was German (both then and now), but that it would be misleading for modern readers to call Wolfgang "German". --Crusio (talk) 07:58, 23 March 2011 (UTC)

I know Austria was never part of the German Empire, Prussia beat them in 1866 and defeated them as the top German state, but Austria was and is a German state it's just not part of the modern-day Germany.--GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 13:28, 23 March 2011 (UTC)

Wolfgang is a German composer, it became part of Austria after his death, he considered himself German and further Austrians were regarded as Germans back then.--GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 13:31, 23 March 2011 (UTC)

Plenty of places have moved to different country doesn't make someone born there years ago that place now. Like was Napoleon really French? ^-^.--GeordieWikiEditor (talk) 13:31, 23 March 2011 (UTC)

Infobox params

There is a RfC on standardizing some params across all the different biographical infoboxes if anyone wishes to comment. -- WOSlinker (talk) 18:54, 26 March 2011 (UTC)

Fred Feldkamp American Editor

I am editing the stub on American editor Fred Feldkamp as a part of my class project at Towson University. My editing class is studying American editors and we are working closely with Wikipedia to update certain stubs. I am trying to research more information about Fred Feldkamp, but there is very little information available. Any help with this is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Mmalag2 (talk) 17:29, 27 March 2011 (UTC)

Changing the description of Michael Edwards

I just edited the Michael Edwards (academic) page and don't think "academic" is the right description for this person. Other sources use "writer and activist" which I think is better.

Sandinthe wheels Sandinthewheels (talk) 17:03, 28 March 2011 (UTC)

Rosalie Bertell

In light of another major nuclear tragedy the stub of pioneer of low level radiation assessment, Rosalie Bertell, suffers from a pathetic stub of a biography. She deserves a place along side John Gofman in the history of sanity. Is there a reason for this? Did she personally object to better coverage?

Lon Ball —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.26.241.116 (talk) 10:04, 29 March 2011 (UTC)

Question on bio (not living)

A politician died 30 years ago. He obviously hated his middle name and never used it except when forced to. An editor has come up with a novel spelling of this which gets 10 hits on google (after eliminating Wikipedia mirrors). The usual way gets 631. The editor has a picture of the military tombstone (probably taken from the birth certificate which has the same spelling of his middle name). What now? I would appreciate your thoughts and pointers to policy, if any. Thanks. Student7 (talk) 13:28, 1 April 2011 (UTC)

Photograph: George Armstrong Halsey or Hopkins Holsey

Concerning the photograph accompanying the biography of George Armstrong Halsey, Congressman from the state of New Jersey in the late 1860s. It's subject appears to either be Hopkins Holsey, a Congressman from the state of Georgia in the late 1830s, or the photos of Hopkins Holsey circulating on the internet instead actually depict George Armstrong Halsey.--76.250.143.97 (talk) 05:17, 3 April 2011 (UTC)

Pseudonymous academics

The mathematicians Peter Orno of Ohio State University and John Rainwater of the University of Washington are pseudonyms, under whose name mathematicians publish papers (sometimes of short results, that may be known as "folklore" to experts). I have been told that John Rainwater has written a referee's report on a paper of Peter Orno.

Should pseudonymous persons be classified as living or dead? (A 2002 paper refers to John Rainwater as living, but with an uncertain future.) It is possible that a pseudonymous parameter or flag could be added to the assessment template ....

Curiously,  Kiefer.Wolfowitz  (Discussion) 15:53, 3 April 2011 (UTC)

I think the question is moot, since the project scope "includes only biographies of humans, and not animals or fictitious characters." Ntsimp (talk) 16:03, 3 April 2011 (UTC)
These pseudonymous mathematicians are not fictitious characters (in fiction). Many real-world mathematicians studying Orno's functional-analytic results or citing results from the "Rainwater seminar" are unaware that Orno & Rainwater are pseudonyms. (In contrast, Professor James Moriarty's research on combinatorics seems never to have been published in mathematical journals or cited by mathematicians.)  Kiefer.Wolfowitz  (Discussion) 16:19, 3 April 2011 (UTC)
That's the difference between fictitious and fictional. IMHO, Nicolas Bourbaki and Blanche Descartes don't belong to this WikiProject either. They may be important mathematicians, but they're not human. Ntsimp (talk) 01:47, 4 April 2011 (UTC)
I updated the description to "includes biographies of only real humans, but not of fictitious persons (such as pseudonyms), fictional characters, or animals." ("Only" should modify "real humans" (and not "biographies"), and in "fictitious character" the "character" is misleading.) Thanks,  Kiefer.Wolfowitz  (Discussion) 02:12, 4 April 2011 (UTC)
May I be so bold as to suggest that the adverb "only" modifies the verb "includes" and that the "but" is not merely superfluous but also confusing? Should the sentence not be "It only includes biographies of real humans, not of other animals or fictitious persons (such as pseudonyms) or fictional characters." JimCubb (talk) 21:47, 4 April 2011 (UTC)
I updated the sentence: "It includes biographies of only real humans; thus, the project does not cover other animals or fictitious persons (such as pseudonyms) or fictional characters." By Orwell's principle that related words belong together which has been endorsed by English maven William Safire, "only" modifies "real humans". (Forgot to sign  Kiefer.Wolfowitz 14:13, 17 November 2011 (UTC))

After reading this page I noticed that we have a list of all of Frances Marion's screenplays and movies that she has written, but there is not a list of the star actor and actresses beside each play or movie. After doing some research I made a list of the star actors and actresses for each movie or screen play that I placed beside if that is o.k.. The reason why I did this because the readers may not remember the title of the movie, but they me remember the star actors.

Thank You, Fhtaylor (talk) 20:01, 5 April 2011 (UTC)

Bot request involving templates 'WikiProjectBannerShell' and 'WikiProject Biography'

Please see Wikipedia:Bot requests/Archive 41/Archives/ 23#Templates 'WikiProjectBannerShell' and 'WikiProject Biography'. -- Black Falcon (talk) 18:48, 6 April 2011 (UTC)

To whom it may concern. Nergaal (talk) 06:14, 7 April 2011 (UTC)

Additional Opinions Requested - Baron Munchhausen

Additional opinions would be appreciated at Talk:Baron Münchhausen#Unsourced Material. Thanks. Doniago (talk) 16:52, 7 April 2011 (UTC)

Hi, all. Looking for input on a content dispute at Talk:John Freshwater#Referee's Tesla Coil Finding. I'm looking for more opinions on the proper way to discuss the Tesla coil incident in general, but specifically looking for someone to offer their opinion on whether the hearing referee, who was charged with making a recommendation to the school board on whether there were grounds for termination, made specific statements about how the teacher used a Tesla coil on students. Two editors (newbies who haven't edited anything else and, although I'm AGF for now, may turn out to be sockpuppets) want to cite the hearing referee's report (Specified Ground No. 1) to claim that the referee concluded it was unlikely the Tesla coil caused branding or burning and that "the referee found that the Dennis family's allegations [about the Tesla coil] were unsubstantiated." You can see my arguments at Talk:John Freshwater, but essentially I think the referee was too vague to attribute any of that to his statements. The discussion also involves how to appropriate discuss the matter, whether to use "allegedly" or not. This matter didn't seem appropriate for the BLP noticeboard, so I'm posting here. Any assistance would be appreciated! Cheers, Rkitko (talk) 23:38, 11 April 2011 (UTC)

John Wiliam Brodie's Family in South Africa

May you please research more about John William Brodie who had a farm in South African at Nottingham farm North West and named his son William who had children in South Africa at SETLAGOLE in North West Province. I'm the grand son sicking for more details of my Father's family in Scotland. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.23.50.163 (talk) 11:17, 13 April 2011 (UTC)

Opinions are needed on this matter. Earlier, I reverted to the previous formatting, per my reasoning at Talk:Chris Brown (American singer)#section 1.4 needs to be reWritten : 2008–09: Graffiti album and domestic violence case. Splitting up the sections to where his domestic violence case is highlighted is a sure case of WP:UNDUE. There is no valid reason to highlight the section by making it its own section and separating it from his career efforts at that time, especially since it (the domestic violence case) affected those efforts. It makes more sense to keep all that information there in one place. This is also how biographies of living people are typically done -- avoiding Criticism or Controversy sections by themselves. They especially follow chronological order. If the Michael Jackson article (which is featured) can combine controversy with career happenings without any problems, then I do not see why this article cannot as well. Flyer22 (talk) 05:17, 15 April 2011 (UTC)

Photo available

I have a photo - PM me if you are interested bsrc — Preceding unsigned comment added by Bsrc (talkcontribs) 13:17, 15 April 2011 (UTC)

More Documentation Needed

I'd like to see more documentation for this article. The one source cited, The American Mafia, does not include all the detail written in the Wikipedia article. The source even contradicts the information offered in the article when it suggests the unlikelihood of Frank DeMayo's position as Kansas City's crime boss. I have been researching DeMayo's life, and I have found no references to back up the claim of his involvement in the Mafia. If there is such proof, I would like to be privy to it. --Aethahn (talk) 00:01, 16 April 2011 (UTC)

More opinions please

You are invited to join the discussion at Talk:Rosie O'Donnell#Does the "Chinese language parody" merit inclusion or not?. Jnast1 (talk) 22:22, 19 April 2011 (UTC) (Using {{pls}})

Please tell your opinion here. Thanks. --Maz-El (talk) 21:16, 21 April 2011 (UTC)

Rubayat

Blanche McManus ilustrated the first edition of Omar Khayam's book Rubayat? Thanks My name is Salomao Rovedo, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil rovedod10@gmail.com —Preceding unsigned comment added by 186.228.6.2 (talk) 14:14, 23 April 2011 (UTC)

There is a dispute regarding the name of this artist, and I think it would be helpful if some other editors could comment; please see Talk:Jasmine (American_singer)#Article reverted. Many thanks,  Chzz  ►  21:08, 23 April 2011 (UTC)

Daniel Coughlin

The article, Daniel Coughlin, is classified as a stub. Since I have reworked and expanded the article, could someone take a look to reassess it? Thanks! NearTheZoo (talk) 12:27, 23 April 2011 (UTC)

Quick PS - I noticed that there was some consensus on the assessment discussion page for WikiProject Biography that quality ratings (as opposed to importance/priority ratings) should match. Since the WikiProject Chicago group has rated the Daniel Coughlin article as "B-class," could someone in the Bio group give me the go-ahead to give it a "B" for this group? NearTheZoo (talk) 14:12, 24 April 2011 (UTC)

FAR

I have nominated Abu Musab al-Zarqawi for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Dana boomer (talk) 15:08, 25 April 2011 (UTC)

Crowsnest

I haven't come across this as a ref anywhere yet, so IDK if anybody knows about it. I found an RCN magazine, Crowsnest, available on the DND website. It covers 1948-65, apparently, with current events, officer & enlisted promotions, & suchlike. For bios of sailors, it occurs to me it might be of use. (It's a bit thin on detail from the issues I've looked at.) Just FYI. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 13:42, 27 April 2011 (UTC)

Could really use some biography help at Wikipedia:Requests for feedback

Greetings, as of the last month or so I'm the main guy holding down the fort at Wikipedia:Requests for feedback, and I could really use some additional help. RfF has been an outstanding experience in providing editing help to new editors who really want help and, in the majority of cases, are quick to incorporate feedback and really add to the value of their articles. A substantial number of requests (nearly a majority) are for biography articles, and I've been pleasantly surprised that most of those do indeed meet notability, or can do so after informing the editor about the standards of WP:Notability. I've seen quite a few bio articles go from a patchy, unpublishable state to a truly high-quality, possibly even B-class, level with only 20min of my time over several posts.

RfF doesn't require any fixed time commitment, and many feedbacks can be knocked out in literally five minutes or less, so even dropping by once or twice a week for five minutes would aid considerably in answering as many requests as possible, and consequently both encouraging new editors (who may become long-term serious editors) as well as maintaining high Wikipedia standards.

If anyone is willing to step up and drop by even a few times a week for just a few minutes, I would be profoundly grateful, as that would allow me to answer more requests for topics I specialise in (history, art, religion). Thanks! MatthewVanitas (talk) 20:27, 28 April 2011 (UTC)

Playboy playmate mass deletion

See Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Log/2011 April 28 for over 100 Playboy Playmates who have been nominated for deletion. This issue has also appeared at Wikipedia:Administrators'_noticeboard/Incidents#Massive_number_of_Playboy-related_AFD_nominations_by_a_single_user

65.94.45.160 (talk) 05:31, 29 April 2011 (UTC)

Proposed change to infobox adult biography

Please see Template talk:Infobox adult biography#Proposal to remove "measurements" from template. Just FYI. Delicious carbuncle (talk) 18:05, 29 April 2011 (UTC)

I am requesting that this article be added to some watchlists. I've been attempting to keep the subject's full name in the lead (see [13]), but I'd rather not get into a pissing match over a detail others may feel is a minor point. OTOH, I'd be open to opinions that my take on the guideline could be too narrow, picking at nits or just plain wrong. Thanks Tiderolls 04:06, 30 April 2011 (UTC)

J. C. Watts

Could I get some editors to comment on the discussion at Talk:J. C. Watts#Name? There is a dispute as to whether his birth name is actually "Julius Caesar Watts, Jr." Thanks. –CWenger (^@) 22:24, 1 May 2011 (UTC)

Out of uniform

Can we get uniform treatment of military bios? I've seen pages started with final rank & with no rank. (I default to no rank, since they weren't born with it.) I'm raising the issue here & here, also, but suggest it be discussed here, because this would appear to be the "lead project". (Also, I don't anticipate adding anythng further. ;p ) TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 16:47 & 16:53, 2 May 2011 (UTC)

As far as I am aware military biogs have always quoted the last or final rank in the first sentence of the lead or introduction as per Lieutenant General Leslie Richard Groves, Jr. (17 August 1896 – 13 July 1970) or similar. I have not looked at them all but all the ones I have looked at Category:FA-Class biography (military) articles follow this pattern. MilborneOne (talk) 17:06, 2 May 2011 (UTC)

Subject ethnicity dispute

You are invited to join the discussion at WP:BLPN#Leroy A. Mendonca. RightCowLeftCoast (talk) 18:11, 3 May 2011 (UTC) (Using {{pls}})

re: stormie omartian

Suggest she talk about her songs, "Believing for the Best in You" and "Main Steam" which were Christian pop hits. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.191.37.81 (talk) 01:40, 4 May 2011 (UTC)

Encyclopædia Britannica as a source

Is Encyclopædia Britannica or any other encyclopedia considered an reliable source?--TriiipleThreat (talk) 18:14, 4 May 2011 (UTC)

In great need of help for bios at Wikipedia:Requests for feedback

Greetings, I and only a handful of editors are struggling to keep up running Wikipedia:Requests for feedback. It's a great resource that helps out a lot of brand-new editors who are eager to receive feedback and improve the quality of their work. Of those we advise (which often takes only 5-10 minutes), the vast majority execute that guidance, and a sizeable percentage manage to turn low-quality articles into C or even B articles with only mimimal guidance. A substantial portion of our requests for feedback are on biographies, and I've been pleasantly surprised that probably 80% actually do meet notability.

If anyone here is looking to encourage new editors and improve the quality of biography coverage on Wikipedia, we would greatly appreciate any help you can give at RfF. Even dropping in for 10 minutes a couple times a week could make a big difference in answering more requests, and some of these editors thus encouraged go on to produce even more high-quality articles with what they've learned.

Thanks for any help project members can lend in a spare moment. MatthewVanitas (talk) 22:02, 5 May 2011 (UTC)

Please would somebody help me get this article right. Kittybrewster 14:59, 8 May 2011 (UTC)

Patrick Billingsley

I've created a new article titled Patrick Billingsley. Billingsley died recently at the age of 85.

The article is imperfect. Work on it! Michael Hardy (talk) 17:20, 10 May 2011 (UTC)

comments on the tunde bakare biography page

41.155.53.117 (talk) 14:21, 11 May 2011 (UTC)

1. There are no references to certain messages that made national controversies 2. I expected that his biography page would serve as an online archive for major events/dates and stories/dates concerning him and Government 3. For example, The SNG - Save NIgeria Group - isn't mentioned at all. There is no way anyone would talk about the BUhari/Bakare campaign without mentioning SNG. E.g The SNG march that took place in key states of the federation and even internationally. 4. There is also G.A.I.N a Latterrain organization, amongst others, youth organizations, Teens church e.t.c 5. In 2002 there was a major national youth event - GRAND SLAM 2002 - that marked a memorable experience for many latterrain and non-Latterrrain youth in attendance. 6. Latterrainians have been involved in community services influenced by Pastor Bakare's leadership. 7. There are no pictorial references at all suggesting that the page is about Pastor Tunde Bakare. 8. Tunde Bakare has a thousand and one quotes that embody his passion for truth, justice and good governance.


Personally I feel the page is under-sourced and unreasonably thinned out with information. Whoever the administration is will need to do a lot more work.

You do realize that this is Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit, right? Feel free to contribute, and make sure you have sources when adding content. Phearson (talk) 14:25, 11 May 2011 (UTC)

Dr. Friedrich Simon Archenhold in Bansin

Dr. Friedrich Simon Archenhold was a well respected astronomer who founded the observatory in Treptow Berlin. This telescope built for the 1896 Berlin Trade Fair became the longest moving refractor telescope in the world.

In 1920 Dr. Archenhold bought a house and about 125 acres of land in the Baltic Seaside town of Bansin. This became the family holiday home where Dr. Archenhold, his wife Alice and 5 children spent many summer holidays.

In 1938 the house was confiscated by the Nazi Party.

Dr. Archenhold died on 14th October 1939 in Berlin where he was buried. Alice, his wife, died in Terezin (Theresienstadt) Concentration Camp on 9th February 1943 and his daughter Hilde also died in Terezin. After the war the house was not returned to the family who were still alive as it was administered by Russia and then the DDR until the fall of the wall.

When the family established their ownership of the house and land most of it was sold off. The final 2 acres of land and the house located on Seestasse 63 was bought by Dr. Archenhold's granddaugher Alison. Her dream of restoring the oldest house in Bansin and setting up a museum in the grounds she owns have been hampered.

First there was failure to get planning permission for a holiday home and museum. Also there is a tenant who only pays 120€ per month for the house. This has halted any plans to restore the house and build a museum to celebrate the life, works and friends of Dr. Friedrich Simon Archenhold. As she has been unable to start a SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FOUNDATION in Bansin Alison would like to start a virtual museum online.

—Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.175.234.55 (talk) 17:11, 12 May 2011 (UTC)

Request for input regarding Donald Trump

There is a debate about the article's section heading. The link is here: "Statements regarding President Barack Obama" vs "Statements regarding 2012 Presidential election". Additional comments are much appreciated. Thanks. - Artoasis (talk) 14:03, 14 May 2011 (UTC)

Notice

The Starhawk article was moved/renamed today to Starhawk (author) without discussion by a proponent of the new video game of the same name. Now Starhawk (and all 100 Wikilinks to her name) redirects to a disambiguation page. Please note my Requested Move discussion about moving it back to the original article title. If inspired to vote, please note Wiki policies that support this, such as WP:PRIMARYTOPIC, etc. Softlavender (talk) 12:22, 15 May 2011 (UTC)

Beatles navbox discussion

Please be aware of the discussion at Talk:The_Beatles#Template_removal.--TonyTheTiger (T/C/BIO/WP:CHICAGO/WP:FOUR) 02:29, 20 May 2011 (UTC)

Surname DAB pages

I came across someone who is adding the {{WikiProject Biography}} template to the talk pages of surname dab pages such as Talk:Benveniste. the edits showed up because I was working on clearing Category:Biography articles without living parameter. Should these pages be part of the project? GB fan (talk) 15:04, 20 May 2011 (UTC)

Thanks GB fan (talk) 17:08, 20 May 2011 (UTC)

US Route 66 task force

At WP:USRD, we have started a US Route 66 task force. I was wondering if perhaps you could help with people related to the route (e.g. Thomas Harris MacDonald). Thanks. - Presidentman (talk · contribs) (Talkback) Random Picture of the Day 20:59, 20 May 2011 (UTC)

Alexis Neace

User:Ohsnapsydney/Alexis Neace has been requested to be moved to mainspace. Someone might want to check it to see if it qualifies. 65.95.13.213 (talk) 00:39, 23 May 2011 (UTC)

Jane Wheatley

Actress Jane Wheatley was a member of the 1911 summer stock company at the Murat Theater in Indianapolis. Contrary to the entry in Wikipedia, she did not leave the company early. She was there for the company's entire summer schedule. Ms. Wheatley first appeared at the Murat in 1911 in late May in the title role of "Barbara Frietchie." Her next performance at the theater was in "Mary Jane's Pa." Ms. Wheatley appeared as Mary Jane's Ma to Lillian Sinnott's Mary Jane. So, Lillian Sinnott did not replace Wheatley. Jane Wheatley also appeared at the Murat that summer in "The Great John Ganton", "Arizona," "Wildfire," "The Prisoner of Zenda" and "Mrs. Temple’s Telegram." Jane Wheatley and Galway Herbert were married in Indianapolis on June 6, 1911, after an engagement of two years. Lillian Sinnot "stood up" with Ms. Wheatley — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.12.60.22 (talk) 02:41, 25 May 2011 (UTC)

Jascha Heifetz update

There's a lot of current interest in Jascha Heifetz this year, due to three things that are happening in 2011:

  • The new 103 CD collection from Sony/BMG, which has won the Guiness World Record for largest CD box set by a classical musician.
  • The premiere of Jascha Heifetz: God's Fiddler, a film by Peter Rosen, that was shown at the Colburn School, and will air on PBS and in Europe this year.
  • John Maltese and John Anthony Maltese are publishing a book on Heifetz in late 2011.
  • I've left some suggestions and made a few tiny changes to his article noted here.

Russellbyrne (talk) 23:00, 29 May 2011 (UTC)

Emily Mary Osborn

Hi, I am a newbie, please be gentle. I went to the Category: Women of The Vctorian Era page and Emily Mary Osborn is not listed in the index. She definitely should be, as a major and influential artist of the period. Miss G. 0515hrs GMT Missgrunge (talk) 05:15, 30 May 2011 (UTC)

 Done--JayJasper (talk) 17:48, 1 June 2011 (UTC)

Unreferenced BLPs - the final surge

Since early in 2010, many editors have assisted in the referencing or removal of over 90% of the Unreferenced Biographies of Living People, bringing the total down from over 50,000 to the current 4,861 (as of 15:34, 1 June 2011 (UTC)). We are now asking for your help in finishing this task. There are two main projects which are devoted to removing UBLPs from en.Wikipedia:

All you have to do is pick your articles and then add suitable references from reliable sources and remove the {{BLP unsourced}} template. There is no need to log your changes, register or remove the articles from the list. If you need any help, or have any comments, please ask at WP:URBLPR or WT:URBLP.

Thank you for any assistance you can provide. The-Pope (talk) 15:34, 1 June 2011 (UTC)

"Death of" articles

Do they fall under the purview of this Wikiproject? For example, Death of Khaled Mohamed Saeed. It currently has this Wikiproject on the talk page, which seems to confirm my question, but I just wanted to make sure. I personally believe they do, because such articles are about people and often have a biography in them about the person as it is. SilverserenC 06:28, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

Could someone find some reliable, independent sources for this article. I looked for them for the English-language name, but didn't find any about this person - only about other people with the same name (I tell a lie, I found a minor mention along the lines of "Singers include Abdul MNajid Adbullah who is famous and xyz who ..."). However, I do not read Arabic, so I cannot tell if any of the hits on GNews Archive, etc, are about this person, rather than another person with the same name.

I am leaving a message about this on relevant WikiProjects, but if no sources are found, I will take this article to Articles for deletion in a week - in the meantime, I have Proposed it for deletion PhantomSteve/talk|contribs\ 16:21, 2 June 2011 (UTC)

Charles Hutton and contour lines

In the Schiehallion Experiment, designed to measure (effectively) the mass of the earth, Charles Hutton, mathematician, was part of the team determining the volume of the mountain chosen for the experiment. In the course of this, he invented contour lines. This should be mentioned in his bio. Suma rongi (talk) 04:23, 3 June 2011 (UTC)

Reginal Boulos

Reginald Boulos (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views) This biograpny for [Reginal Boulos] is edited every so often to make odd political points, or to remove other negative (but true) information, in order to lionize the subject of the biography. The writing is pretty bad, too. Can something be done to put it on a watch list or "needs cleaning up and editing" list? Thanks. Doubledup (talk) 23:33, 24 May 2011 (UTC)

I have added it to my watchlist and removed some information that is not specifically about Reginald Boulos. GB fan (talk) 23:41, 24 May 2011 (UTC)
You left in the anti-Aristide speculations but removed the facts about Boulos's pharmacy firm having produced some medication that killed a bunch of kids. I'll see if the WHO reports on this are on line as a source, but this seems to have very much sanitzied a profile of this controversial man. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Doubledup2 (talkcontribs) 02:35, 5 June 2011 (UTC)

Request for comment on the title of Santorum (neologism)

Please see Talk:Santorum (neologism)#Proposal to rename, redirect, and merge content. Not a biography, but involves biographical issues. SlimVirgin TALK|CONTRIBS 08:21, 4 June 2011 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Good article nominations currently has a backlog!

All editors willing and able to review articles are needed! Please contribute to the consensus of these articles by choosing 3 or more nominations to review in any of the catagories of interest to this project!

Please visit Wikipedia:Good article nominations now and begin! Thanks you! --Amadscientist (talk) 03:44, 11 June 2011 (UTC)

I have chosen the article Newt Gingrich as one on my reviews for this project.--Amadscientist (talk) 05:03, 11 June 2011 (UTC)

Your project's categories being renamed without notifying you

It appears that an editor decided that all of Wikipedia's 2000+ WikiProjects need to use matching category names: Wikipedia:Categories_for_discussion/Log/2011_May_12#Foo-priority_bar_articles

Unfortunately, this proposal wasn't announced to any of the (hundreds of) affected groups, and—worse—they decided that the cats should be named "importance" rather than the more neutral "priority", which we know from experience prompts complaints about "How dare you declare that this living person is 'low importance'!"

It appears that your cats have already been renamed. If this seems like a good idea to you, then you don't need to do anything. If you object, then you probably want to appeal the decision at WP:DRV. WhatamIdoing (talk) 17:44, 13 June 2011 (UTC)

Lists in living people category

I have asked here for input on whether three list articles currently in Category:Living people belong there. Gurch (talk) 16:35, 16 June 2011 (UTC)

Wyatt Earp was listed as a GA in April, then went through a GAR and was delisted. It is now going through another GAN. Wyatt Earp is one of Wikipedia's most popular articles and is on an important and complex topic. The GAN is on an initial seven day hold while the reviewer checks sources. Meanwhile there is some work to be done on trimming back excessive detail, and on making the article flow more by reducing the amount of subsections. See Talk:Wyatt Earp/GA3 for more detail. SilkTork *Tea time 20:04, 16 June 2011 (UTC)

I have nominated Felice Beato for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. GamerPro64 20:02, 18 June 2011 (UTC)

The New Boyz have a few featured singles that are on itunes and are on those artists websites and even though they may never have charted they still need credit I believe. There is Found My Swag by The Bangz, Make Me Say by Tydis, and Dancing Around The Truth by The Stunners. Also I would like to state that Better with the Lights Off is NOT a promo single it was indeed released as a regular single. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.237.239.216 (talk) 22:40, 18 June 2011 (UTC)

Possible expansion of core biographies section

I have recently found out about a book which evaluates the biography articles in a number of reference books, based on the articles of the 4,002 individuals whose biographies most frequently appear in such books. The book was published a few years ago, and I myself haven't seen the book myself yet to determine which reference books were included in the selection, or what the names included are. It could be that, given the considerable number of reference books devoted to one or another aspect of popular culture, that recent performers and others might have a disproportionate representation in the list. Also, there might be some degree of systemic bias against particularly important Chinese and others from non-Western cultures. In any event, if the book actually lists all 4,002 names it is based on (like I said, I haven't seen the book itself yet), what would the rest of you think if we were to maybe expand the Core biographies to include all of them, and, if there is some indication of pro-Western bias, maybe add other names which might not be so frequently discussed in what might be sources which might have some sort of systemic pro-Western bias, if such is in fact found? John Carter (talk) 18:32, 6 June 2011 (UTC)

The book in question is Human Accomplishment, and it actually does, to my personal surprise, fairly seriously cover Eastern individuals. Its weaknesses are in the areas of political/governmental, military, religious, and business biographies, as well as pre-8th century BCE and post-1950 biographies. Granted, there may not be that many people who actually qualify as "core" biographies in those eras, although there probably are several individuals in the other fields who probably should be included. Would anyone have any interest in, maybe, doing something like what the author of the book did and generate lists which might cover those biographical fields? John Carter (talk) 21:20, 20 June 2011 (UTC)

Eveline Hanska FAC

I have nominated for Featured Article Candidacy the article about Eveline Hańska, wife of the French novelist Honoré de Balzac. Your comments are welcome. Scartol • Tok 16:39, 21 June 2011 (UTC)

Murray Ball

hey every1 just a question that i thought u could help me with Do you Knoe How Many Books In TOTAL Murray Ball Has Published? thankz bye--114.134.12.68 (talk) 02:08, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

Please take this to the Murray Ball talk page. Thanks.--JayJasper (talk) 04:25, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

Hans Kirk - The Fishermen - List of Characters

I just read it, and there are two corrections: 1) Bundgaard, Teodor is Lars and Malene's son and 2) Peder and Laura Hygum's daughter is named Kirstine. Thanks, Linda Fyffe 63.20.141.72 (talk) 03:12, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

This needs to be posted on the Hans Kirk talk page. Thanks.--JayJasper (talk) 04:05, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

Hari Mohann Kansal

Actually, I came to know about him from several sources. He has got lots of media coverage during his various conferences for teaching packaging (world’s third largest industry after food & petrochemicals). He actually contributed to the phenomenal growth of plastic industries. Also, he worked on making plastics and packaging popular and promotes environmental friendly products.

14.98.54.228 (talk) 11:15, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

Tim McGraw

Was it me or did I see links to songs added to this page? And also saw some vulgar content added is these both true? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Justhere2help (talkcontribs) 22:54, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

You need to discuss this on the appropriate page. Thanks.--JayJasper (talk) 23:39, 23 June 2011 (UTC)
(EC) You can check through the recent edits to the article by visiting the history page. The only edits today seem to be some fiddling with an image. Head in the direction of Tim McGraw (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views) and see what you can find. --Tagishsimon (talk) 23:42, 23 June 2011 (UTC)

George Grosz' painiting "Metropolis"

No source indicates any link between Grosz' "Metropolis" and Caillebotte's "Paris - temps de pluie". Yet the similarities are so crass that it seems impossible that Grosz was not referencing this work when he painted it. There is even the lamppost in exactly the same position. The wikipeadia entry says that Grosz claimed the scene could have been New York. Maybe. Or any city modern city really. The two paintings are more than 30 years and an epoche apart. But the structure of the works is identical. Can anyone please comment on this? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Edwgwilym (talkcontribs) 06:41, 24 June 2011 (UTC)

shouldnt delete

Think it is a rellevant article. I am interested in which teams he goes. I have followed his career & he has been with England u18's and fulham but got injured.

Sneakyt (talk) 23:03, 24 June 2011 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Sneakyt2010 (talkcontribs)

What article? You haven't pointed it out! Phearson (talk) 05:18, 25 June 2011 (UTC)

Should the names of royals from the Western civilization have their names angliziced?

A Request for Comment has been made in Teresa Cristina of the Two Sicilies. See here. Any help is appreciated. Thanks, --Lecen (talk) 22:06, 25 June 2011 (UTC)

Daniel Webster FAR

I have nominated Daniel Webster for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Brad (talk) 00:46, 28 June 2011 (UTC)

Adding American Jews category

I just reverted User:Anibar E adding the American Jews category to a few articles, because I remember reading somewhere that it shouldn't be added unless the person was famous for being an american jew or something like that. [14] [15] [16] Did I do right? FurrySings (talk) 12:46, 28 June 2011 (UTC)

Pictures of IF people: ask Jason Scott?

Get Lamp is a documentary about interactive fiction filmed by computer historian Jason Scott. It is licensed under the Creative Commons-Attribution-Sharealike-Noncommercial license, but Scott has been somewhat liberal about this; for example (according to the talk he gave as part of showing the film on Google Tech Talks) he himself contributed to getting the film properly featured on The Pirate Bay.

There's an online gallery of interviewees available on the film's website, and here's why I brought this up here: I figured it might be worthwhile to ask if Scott would lax the licensing on some of the screenshots, as that would provide pictures of people for their corresponding articles here on Wikipedia. For example, of the six people at the beginning of the gallery at least Michael Berlyn, Nick Montfort and Edward Packard have their own articles, each without a likeness picture.

Any ideas if and how I (or someone) should proceed with this? -Uusijani (talk) 13:22, 28 June 2011 (UTC)

Emilia Clarke

Who wants to give an opinion? --87.3.42.136 (talk) 14:48, 28 June 2011 (UTC)

Asian or not? See talk page discussion. Since it has been shown that DEOMI isn't always reliable. --RightCowLeftCoast (talk) 01:42, 30 June 2011 (UTC)

You should do a biography on Ronald Redford — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.121.214.145 (talk) 02:25, 1 July 2011 (UTC)

Request from WikiProject Wikify

Members from WikiProject Wikify would like assistance from WikiProject Biography in wikifying biographical pages. We have discussed the possibility of an interproject competition. Using CatScan to find relevent pages, the competition would be between the two WikiProjects to see which project can Wikify the most biographical pages. An award may be created for the WikiProject which "wins"; although, it is really Wikipedia doing the winning. Each individual WikiProject can create their own awards system as well. This message is to see what members of this WikiProject think and if there is support I can create a page to work out the kinks of this plan. Ryan Vesey (talk) 21:02, 3 July 2011 (UTC)

Alfred Garth Jones

Hi. My name is Vincent W. Wright. I am an avid Sherlockian and a wanna-be historical researcher. I am doing a paper on Alfred Garth Jones and am interested in info about his later life. I understand that the data is limited on him after 1943 but I would still like to discuss this with you. Is this something we could do? Let me know. I appreciate your time. Vincentwadewright (talk) 23:04, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

Jonathan Pollard

There are big changes introduced to article.I think input of additional editors would be a good thing--Shrike (talk) 11:41, 9 July 2011 (UTC)

yevhen konoplyanka (International football/soccer player)

Hi everyone,

This page has a lot of problems, foremost among them the fact that it is purely based on the (rather impartial) views of one person. The last section reads as follows:

"He is easily one of the best players in Ukraine and maybe moust talented player. Yevhen Konoplinka has fantastic technique, dribbling and speed. He can beat easily three-four defenders. For this he has compared with Lionel Messi. Konoplianka has also great long-distance shot."

Apart from the poor standard of English, it is way too subjective. "...maybe moust (sic) talented player" is obviously something that can't be included in wikipedia. He plays at a reasonably high level and deserves a place in Wiki, but serious revision is needed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jimmymc1979 (talkcontribs) 03:06, 10 July 2011 (UTC)

Pam Bondi

There is an RfC you may be interested in entitled "Noah the Dog." Check it out here Talk:Pam_Bondi#Noah_the_Dog. In case you don't know who she is, I've posted her pic. Yeah... you can thank me later. – Lionel (talk) 01:28, 13 July 2011 (UTC)

Blaise Pascal at FAR

I have nominated Blaise Pascal for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here.--NortyNort (Holla) 03:48, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

Elisha Gray

Could an editor please look at my comments on the Elisha Gray discussion page ? I posted there first as requested, but since the last post by anyone was June 2009 it seems unlikely the my issues would be addressed anytime soon.Jonel469 (talk) 21:52, 14 July 2011 (UTC)

Your comments on that page were incorrectly formatted, which made them practically unreadable (they should not be indented). I've fixed them. Hohenloh + 09:17, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

Religion as a Category

Is there a current guideline as to whether the religion of an individual should be included as a category on their article page? I thought I saw this type of category removed previously, but I can't remember what the rationale was. Thanks! Doniago (talk) 13:10, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

The policy for use of religion in categories is WP:BLPCAT. WP:EGRS has additional information as well. --Jezebel'sPonyobons mots 14:40, 15 July 2011 (UTC)
Thank you! Doniago (talk) 14:58, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

Selena discussion

Please join in the discussion on the talk page to help expand the article to its fullest potential. AJona1992 (talk) 19:46, 16 July 2011 (UTC)

JoAnn E. Manson like resume?

I have the urge to place a {{likeresume}} warning template at the top of this article but I would like another opinion first. The article is written well and references are provided but after reading it twice it seems like a resume. If she created a cure for hepatitis, invented Tylenol, or broke barriers like Sara Josephine Baker "...the first woman to be a professional representative to the League of Nations when she represented the United States in the Health Committee" then I could see why she would be unique. However, the article presents her as simply a good doctor from Cleveland who now works in Boston. It's normal for doctors to write books and do research so to me she's doesn't seem any different than any other doctor who has written books and done research... except she has an article on Wikipedia showcasing all the books and research she's done... and awards she's received. Please advise. //Gbern3 (talk) 09:03, 20 July 2011 (UTC)

  • She's in the top 1% of cited medical researchers, that's not "simply a good doctor from Cleveland". I've checked the article and tweaked a few things, but I don't see anything wrong with it and don't see the need for any tags. --Crusio (talk) 09:19, 20 July 2011 (UTC)

Reversion of article name change request

You are invited to join the discussion at Talk:Adrián González#Requested move. RightCowLeftCoast (talk) 18:54, 20 July 2011 (UTC)

Bands

I think I may regret bring this topic up as I see it has been discussed a number of times. Should articles on musical bands be be tagged with WPBiography? Is there a definite policy statement somewhere on this?--Traveler100 (talk) 04:13, 21 July 2011 (UTC)

It's not a matter of policy. If the people in this WikiProject want to also deal with bands, they can do it. There are some pros and some cons. that's true. The main reason it was chosen by the WikiProject to be like that is that articles about bands contain large biography sections and/or can't be distinguished by biographies. I think you could address to the Musicians task group and see if there is the will to split the task in two parts. -- Magioladitis (talk) 05:53, 21 July 2011 (UTC)

Asking for a FAR of the article Sharon Tate

I believe it no longer meets FA status and have nominated it for FAR. Per wiki rules, I am notifying all of the article's involved wiki projects. Crystal Clear x3 03:30, 22 July 2011 (UTC)

Proposed deletion of Billie Mintz

Self promotional page; highly questionable notability. Unsupported claims to be 'award-winning'. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Underthevolcano2 (talkcontribs) 04:11, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

Addition of postnominals to infoboxes

An editor is adding Postnominals (MBE, OBE, etc) to the short form name on infoboxes. I have reverted one and another editor has done the same on Jenson Button on the grounds that consensus is to keep them to the main article text. I have also left a note on the editor's talk page as I feel his work will be reverted. Anyone know if this consensus exists and if so where it is recorded? Britmax (talk) 16:24, 24 July 2011 (UTC)

Members of WikiProject Blogging, I humbly present to you an article about Xiaxue, a highly successful, but also highly controversial, Singaporean celebrity blogger! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. If so, could you please comment at the ongoing peer review of the article, to support its quest to become my seventh GA? Since she is controversial, I am particularly concerned about BLP issues. Thank you in advance for any and all constructive reviews! --J.L.W.S. The Special One (talk) 13:09, 26 July 2011 (UTC)

Information missing

I was just wondering why lajon Witherspoon bio doesn't include that he has half brothers and sister in Nashville from he dad's side. His real daddy not witherspoon ?? Even if his real dad is dead. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.228.195.215 (talk) 22:11, 28 July 2011 (UTC)

Origen of Col. 'Michael' Kovats name...correctly Kovacs, but often changed to Kovats, Kovatch, Kwak, Kovac, Kovach

...correctly Kovacs, but often changed to Kovats, Kovatch, Kwak, Kovac, Kovach translates to metal worker/smith, blacksmith,forger of metal/iron. Origens of family of metal working craftsmen that vary socially from simple ancient extracters of iron ore to advanced works and weapons manufacturers, swords, guns, artfull gates... piano wire, music wire/cymbalom,violin wire... tradesmen with better than average income and enterprenrurs during wartime Col. Mihaly deKovats family tree not clearly studied and birthplace not his families actual origens of magyars. More information needed. Possible DNA studies if burial site possible and descendents in New Jersey may have artifacts and DNA mapping desireable. I believe that his monument/statue(?) stolen according to legend and this article mention motto and the Citadel. John Cornel Kovach,M.T., Tempe, AZ, USA CONTINUE FEEDBACK !!! kovachmagyar@yahoo.com — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.177.207.222 (talk) 09:30, 30 July 2011 (UTC)

This notice is to advise interested editors that a Contributor copyright investigation has been opened which may impact this project. Such investigations are launched when contributors have been found to have placed copyrighted content on Wikipedia on multiple occasions. It may result in the deletion of images or text and possibly articles in accordance with Wikipedia:Copyright violations. The specific investigation which may impact this project is located here.

All contributors with no history of copyright problems are welcome to contribute to CCI clean up. There are instructions for participating on that page. Additional information may be requested from the user who placed this notice, at the process board talkpage, or from an active CCI clerk. Thank you. Moonriddengirl (talk) 20:41, 31 July 2011 (UTC)

Murder of Julia Martha Thomas featured article nomination

Murder of Julia Martha Thomas, about a notorious murder in London in 1879, is currently going through a review for featured article status (see Wikipedia:Featured article candidates/Murder of Julia Martha Thomas/archive1). The article is covered by this WikiProject; if editors are interested, please feel free to leave comments on the featured article candidates talk page. Prioryman (talk) 13:58, 1 August 2011 (UTC)

I proposed changes to this article on its Talk page. Since the subject of the article is the CEO of my current employer, I wish to stay closely in line with WP:COI. Looking to best uphold this guideline, would one of the Wikiproject Biography community members be willing to review and assess the changes that have been suggested here? Cheers, Jeff Bedford (talk) 17:32, 1 August 2011 (UTC)

Questioning sources for BLP

There is an ongoing discussion about whether certain sources are sufficiently reliable for certain statements made about Talk:John Favalora. Student7 (talk) 15:23, 2 August 2011 (UTC)

Good article review of Tim Pawlenty

I have done a good article review of Governor Tim Pawlenty and am informing wikiprojects associated with the article so that improvements can be made to the article. Ryan Vesey Review me! 23:29, 3 August 2011 (UTC)

Album perhaps missing from the discography

The first Lightning Hopkins album I ever heard was Blues for John Glenn. My Dad bought that album shortly after we moved to Houston. The title track was about John Glenn the astronaut...very fitting since Johnson Space Center is in Houston. I do know that at the time that my Dad bought the record that Hopkins was still alive because I remember seeing him twice on Austin City Limits in the proceeding years. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.11.28.147 (talk) 05:40, 4 August 2011 (UTC)

Christian Kane

My birthday is June 27 1966.Christian Kane is also a Cancer with same day.I am hoping to send a message to Christian to say I am an admirer. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.104.111.179 (talk) 08:03, 4 August 2011 (UTC)

Notable only as the father of his famous sons? Does this pass WP:GNG? What do you think? S.G.(GH) ping! 14:56, 4 August 2011 (UTC)

Carlos Morales Troncoso

The article includes the complete transcription of one of his speeches. I believe that should be excluded from the article as it is irrelevant. Full Moon (talk) 02:50, 5 August 2011 (UTC)

I would like to follow up on this article after the PRSC primaries later this year. It is probable that he will be nominated as the party's candidate for President. Full Moon (talk) 02:50, 5 August 2011 (UTC)

"Medal bar" in biographical articles

Hi there is a discussion at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Military history#"Medal bar" in biographical articles that may interest some in this project.Jim Sweeney (talk) 10:10, 8 August 2011 (UTC)

University of Maryland institution staffer wants to participate in Wikipedia

I spotted new User:UMDSpecColl making spam-like edits to Maryland related articles so I welcomed the user and linked the spam page. The user seems to be interested in participating in a larger way so I thought I'd bring this discussion to members' attention. This could be an opportunity to work with a state library special collection in a very positive way for both the pedia and the collection. BusterD (talk) 21:35, 12 August 2011 (UTC)

Matt McCoy corrections to the biography

There are some factual errors to Matt McCoy's biography.

1. Matt is the 2nd child of divorced Parents Mark McCoy and Tammy (Venezia)Grant 2. Siblings Jeff - 6/28/80, Sean - 7/14/88 and Devin 7/14/88 3. Devin McCoy passed on 10/14/88


Mark McCoy 72.130.191.65 (talk) 19:28, 13 August 2011 (UTC)

Discussion at Talk:Heroine of Hackney#Biographical information

You are invited to join the discussion at Talk:Heroine of Hackney#Biographical information. Trevj (talk) 11:03, 15 August 2011 (UTC)


RFC on identifiers

There is an RFC on the addition of identifier links to citations by bots. Please comment. Headbomb {talk / contribs / physics / books} 16:05, 15 August 2011 (UTC)

Adding Spouse field to Infobox for musical artists

There has been request to add a "spouse" field to {{Infobox musical artist}}. Interested editors are invited to voice their opinions at Template talk:Infobox musical artist#Should Template:Infobox musical artist include a "spouse" field?. WormTT · (talk) 11:38, 16 August 2011 (UTC)

Paint it grey

Who decided the default link to Keith Black should go to a neurosurgeon & not the engine builder? I never heard of this doctor before today, & I wager a lot of rodders & customizers still haven't. (I know there's a hatnote...) TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 21:40, 19 August 2011 (UTC)

Esteban Lucas Bridges

Dear Sir,

I have not signed up on your fine site yet but will later today to join some discussions. I would just like to point out that the write-up of Esteban Lucas Bridges has a minor error at the end. He did not settle a ranch in South Africa, but rather one in South West Africa and two in Rhodesia, one of which was Devuli, the most well known. Devuli was the largest privately owned ranch in the world at one satge, measuring a million acres. Just thought you'd like to know this. I know these things becasue Lucas Bridges was my great great uncle. I will sign up and help edit in due course.

Many thanks, David Hulme — Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.37.236.234 (talk) 10:34, 20 August 2011 (UTC)

Aaron ben Meïr

Aaron ben Meïr was a Palestinian Gaon. Is it in order to create a category for such people called: Category:Palestinian Geonim, as a sub-cat of Category:Geonim? Chesdovi (talk) 10:14, 22 August 2011 (UTC)

Sort of. I think if you are going to do that, it might be worth creating three sub-categories for Babylonian Geonim, Palastinian Geonim, and Egyptian Geonim (assuming those are the major subdivisions, and the naming is appropriate), and then taking to trouble to allocate the members of Category:Geonim into appropriate subcategories. Clearly Aaron will be a bit lonely if he is the only occupant of the subcat. --Tagishsimon (talk) 11:05, 22 August 2011 (UTC)
Thanks. They are major subdivisions, and the naming is appropriate and is supported by RS. Can a few more editors please add the views on this matter, just so I am sure we will not encounter any issues in future. Chesdovi (talk) 12:04, 22 August 2011 (UTC)

Biographies and Women's History project

Earlier this year, WikiProject Women's History was established. In an initial burst of enthusiasm, some editors began bannering the biographies of every woman to be found on WP. Because we are a fairly small group, most members felt that this was not an effective way for us to organize our work. (And we got complaints about spamming.) We now have specific criteria for inclusion, and most BLPs are not within the scope of the project, which focuses on history, not contemporary culture. Because hundreds if not thousands of articles were bannered, we are still in the process of weeding out. If you'd like to help with removing banners, or if you doubt that a Women's History banner belongs on a particular article, please see Wikipedia:WikiProject Women's History#Scope. Detailed criteria are provided under the heading "Biographies." Cynwolfe (talk) 15:52, 23 August 2011 (UTC)

Proposed merger and page move

There is a proposal to merge Fred West and Rosemary West into a single article entitled Fred and Rosemary West. --Ohconfucius ¡digame! 03:25, 26 August 2011 (UTC)

Living parameter on band articles?

I patrol Category:Biography articles without living parameter and try to keep it empty, but I've noticed a lot of band articles added all at once. What is the general consensus on filling the living parameter on band articles? Are they generally living=yes? What if one or more members of the band are dead, or the band isn't together anymore? A lot of new band articles don't specify if the band members are alive or dead (specifically in the case of old bands that no longer exist). Before simply guessing on what to do, I thought I'd check here and ask. - SudoGhost 15:39, 26 August 2011 (UTC)

TBH, I don't see how you apply the parameter to a group to begin with. "Defunct", maybe, for groups long broken up; otherwise, is it "living" til they're all dead? "Living" if any original members are still in it? If any are alive? If their records still get airplay? :/ TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 04:31, 27 August 2011 (UTC)
That's what I'm unsure of. I have no idea what to put in that parameter for bands. I'm of the opinion that bands are not living people, and don't need that parameter, but apparently the consensus is against me on that. - SudoGhost 04:52, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

We add |living=yes if at least one member of the group is still alive. This is because the article discusses living persons and we have to protect them. -- Magioladitis (talk) 07:37, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

Peer Reviews

On several articles on the WikiProject Biography, I have said "yes" to a "Peer Review". While not trying to start a fight or edit war, would like these articles to be either "Peer Reviewed" or "Assessed". It would be appreciated greatly and would have less backlog articles unassessed on the WikiProject Biographies. Adamdaley (talk) 02:55, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

Can a band include both Reg Dwight and Elton John?

Elton John was originally named Reginald Dwight, but the Long John Baldry article in Wikipedia seems to list them as two differenet members of Bluesology. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.64.145.176 (talk) 14:51, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

I think you need to reread the sentence; it is in essence seeking to set out how RD adoped the EJ name. THe sentence is "After Steampacket broke up in 1966, Baldry formed Bluesology featuring Reg Dwight on keyboards and Elton Dean, later of Soft Machine, as well as Caleb Quaye on guitar. Dwight adopted the name Elton John, his first name from Dean and his surname from Baldry.[4]". So the assertion you imply is not being made. --Tagishsimon (talk) 22:18, 27 August 2011 (UTC)

Biographical lead sections

Following some recent discussions, I recently started a discussion on the lead sections in biographical articles to try and unify those aspects of the discussion, rather than have the discussions spread all over the place. Please see Wikipedia talk:Manual of Style (biographies)#Style of lead sections and comment there. Thanks. Carcharoth (talk) 16:05, 29 August 2011 (UTC)

I would like a third party to take a look at. I have tried to edit it, but I am getting reverted by a possible WP:SPA named Mayor Smith (talk · contribs) that I feel is having some WP:COI issues.--TonyTheTiger (T/C/BIO/WP:CHICAGO/WP:FOUR) 05:46, 1 September 2011 (UTC)

Questionable notability of Mariano Laya Armington

You are invited to join the discussion at Talk:Mariano Laya Armington#Notability. RightCowLeftCoast (talk) 15:34, 5 September 2011 (UTC)

Incorrect spelling of mineral named after Y.O. Fortier. The name is Yofortierite not Yfortierite. O after Y is missing. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.31.225.130 (talk) 18:08, 5 September 2011 (UTC)

News about Jerzy Soltan

For your interest. There is a new article in Wikipedia The Theory TK of Visual Proportions that refers to the person of Jerzy Soltan. This article is an orphan. It is possible to link to it?. Cordial EspaisNT --EspaisNT (talk) 18:18, 5 September 2011 (UTC)

Use of German characters in English language articles

There is a discussion at Talk:Michael Groß#Spelling of surname in English; contested 2011 page move which may be of interest to members of your project, on which you may be able to share your knowledge and expertise. Dirtlawyer1 (talk) 15:21, 6 September 2011 (UTC)

"Marwan Bishara": rather opinion supported by data than a biography, I think

I'm new here, and I'll first try a minimal comment/opinion in order to see the reaction. As stated above the subject is the biography of Marwan Bishara I've read it with risen eyebrows and came to following "judgment": this has very little in common with an objective bio. Instead, it is an appraisal from a project member who tries again and again to point out that Marwan is a great fellow. Which isn't exactly the purpose of the entry. Maybe I'm wrong and my sunglasses distort the reality. Therefore I politely ask an experienced member to take a careful look at the entry. It won't take more than 2 minutes to find the 2-3 spots emanating subjectivity. Many thanks, --Rmsoran (talk) 07:33, 11 September 2011 (UTC) Robert

Yes, it needs toning down (but I've seen worse!). Hohenloh + 10:40, 11 September 2011 (UTC)

Igor Korolev

I've opened a discussion of Igor Korolev being described as a "Russian-Canadian" at Talk:Igor Korolev. Is it appropriate or not to label him a "Russian-Canadian"? I'm not aware of precedents to follow, but I'm looking for help. ʘ alaney2k ʘ (talk) 17:55, 11 September 2011 (UTC)

How do I request a rerate?

I am not a member of this project, but I see that Ben Shapiro is rated as a stub, which I believe it not longer is. How do I get it re-rerated? I hope people can keep their personal politics out of it; this seems to be a problem on that page.Mzk1 (talk) 19:16, 11 September 2011 (UTC)

Talk:Johnny_Cymbal : rewrite discussion

I'm working through a number of music books to add references to articles about musicians and bands, and have come across Johnny Cymbal's article. To date it's the article I've found which most needs work which might be contentious (I've avoided The Dubliners). The re-write will involve an extreme reduction in the size of the article, and consequent removal of a significant amount of unverified information. As the article as it stands is clearly written by people intimately involved with Johnny Cymbal, I suspect there may be difficulties in handling this. I've therefore posted my reasoning on the talk page in advance of re-writing, so that any issues can be discussed first.

If anybody is interested in commenting, please join in - all comments welcome and will be taken into consideration. I'll be leaving the re-write until early October to give people time to thrash out my suggestions. Thanks Brieflysentient (talk) 00:23, 12 September 2011 (UTC)

Lori_and_George_Schappell

Hi,

Just a note on the above article [[17]]. The article uses a mixture of she / he pronouns to refer to one person, George Schappell, the conjoined twin and country singer, who is biologically female but refers to himself as male. Sometimes George is referred to as "he", others with "she" or "her".

I haven't edited it because I don't know the policy. Would someone take a look?

188.29.153.14 (talk) 10:59, 13 September 2011 (UTC) Greenaum.

Featured article review for Francis Petre

I have nominated Francis Petre for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Brad (talk) 08:38, 14 September 2011 (UTC)

"Stub" Class Biography Articles

I'm writing to the WikiProject Biography, to say that the articles I've come across in the "Stub" class section (Some are also combined with the WikiProject Military History, as I am a member of both) seem to lack Wikipedia references, inline citations, sources, pictures, persondata, or articles that seem very unclear and confusing. I've come across one article which has been on Wikipedia since August 17th, 2006 and it's in an awful state of improving/updating by someone who has an interest in that type of Biography. I have tagged it using Twinkle. This is not to be pointed towards anyone and is suppose to bring articles that do need more work on them before being assessed and meeting Wikipedia's standards. Adamdaley (talk) 06:19, 20 September 2011 (UTC)

Question about editing bio

How come I cant edit the biography section of DR Margaret Ogola, yet she has died today? — Preceding unsigned comment added by David Kyalo (talkcontribs) 16:48, 22 September 2011 (UTC)

The problem (whatever it was) appears to have been solved.--JayJasper (talk) 16:52, 22 September 2011 (UTC)
Actually, at the present time, there appears to be no reliable secondary sources available to confirm that this person has died. Until such sources can be produced, the article has been reverted to prior version to avoid violations of WP:NOR & WP:BLP.--JayJasper (talk) 17:12, 22 September 2011 (UTC)

Proposed deletion of Vito Cataffo

The article Vito Cataffo has been nominated for deletion. Bleaney (talk) 23:37, 28 September 2011 (UTC)

Honours

I have just come across this, amongst others. Royalty are routinely given these by countries as part of their reciprocal diplomacy efforts, making them many in number and without any real significance that I can see. Can anyone state a good rationale for not plainly remove these types of laundry list on sight? --Ohconfucius ¡digame! 03:03, 30 September 2011 (UTC)

Fatty Arbuckle's pub in England

We were in England in the 1990's and stumbled upon a tavern named Fatty Arbuckle's attributed to the American Actor. Does anyone know anymore on this subject — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.164.68.121 (talk) 02:36, 1 October 2011 (UTC)

Anything to do with this, although it's not strictly speaking a pub ( not every licensed premises is a pub). Britmax (talk) 08:36, 1 October 2011 (UTC)

Rocky Aoki biography

This article is shot through with errors, possibly due to the PR apparatus that surrounded Rocky as CEO of the Benihana restaurant chain. I can easily document these false claims, but when I tried to correct some online my comments were either disregarded or immediately removed. Although a teammate of Rocky's who was with him a lot in the early 60's and thus saw close up his early history in NYC, I have the feeling that hidden forces somehow control what is on Wikipedia and thus perpetuate many self-serving myths about someone who doesn't need myths to remain a fascinating character. ˜˜˜˜Andy — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.118.125.144 (talk) 16:50, 2 October 2011 (UTC)

New Born Avicen

Is not big deal if we agree that another Avicen is Born in Iran and is serving equally the whole world, same as Avicen did and his books have been and are the basis of the new medicin. We hope soon another Samii will appear from Germany or any other country too. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.157.35.229 (talk) 22:26, 4 October 2011 (UTC)

Early Career

I think there should be some mention of Jim Leyland's time spent managing the Evansville Triplets. I believe that he enjoyed some success there, plus it would nice to see the Triplets and Bosse Field mentioned as it was the best thing that ever happened to Evansville and they are no longer. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.112.238.46 (talk) 14:58, 9 October 2011 (UTC)

Honorifics in Infobox scientist

How should display honorifics? Your comments are invited. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 11:42, 12 October 2011 (UTC)

Need books

hello,

if someone has any books about Otis Redding, please ping on my talk page. Thanks.--♫GoP♫TCN 10:59, 14 October 2011 (UTC)

Nationality claims in articles

Hi, I made this post at BLP recently, but the query applies to biographies generally really. Please post any comments there. Thanks. Eldumpo (talk) 09:37, 19 October 2011 (UTC)

Occupy Wall Street could use a look

The article is about a current event and is beginning to see large amounts of information being used from living persons with attribution to those individuals. I am adding the article to the project and asking members to take a minute to run through the article for accuracy and MOS in relation to all Wikipedia guidelines for living persons.--Amadscientist (talk) 04:49, 26 October 2011 (UTC)

Partner? Girlfriend? Wife?

I'm wondering if there is-- somewhere I can't find-- guidelines on the use of terms for same-sex relationships? That is-- in a lot of cases you can go off what someone has identified their relationship as, sure-- but are there actual stated guidelines? I could see this being a theoretically contentious issue, so I'd like to have some kind of recognized policy. mordicai. (talk) 19:15, 22 October 2011 (UTC)

Just doing a little more digging, & came across Template:Close_relationships. Actually, on a closer look it doesn't seem so helpful, but at least points to a starting place.
& it might be worth noting that I've cross-posted this discussion at WP:LGBT-- if either this thread or that one seems more appropriate, let me know. -- mordicai. (talk) 17:49, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
Seems pretty straightforward to me and rather independent of whether these are same-sex or different-sex couples: If not married: "partner" or "boyfriend"/"girlfriend". If married, then husband/wife. --Crusio (talk) 17:58, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
I'd tend to agree that it seems straight foreward, but recent discussions at User Talk: Shylocksboy bring up the fact that some people may see ambiguity in the term "partner." I tend to think, well, that may be part of the problem with the current state of marriage inequality, but it would be easiest it have a set of simple agreed upon policies for similar cases of confusion. I can see a point to doing it beyond that, since same sex relationships may be recognized in one country but not another-- if two women get married in Canada, & then immigrate to a state in the US without recognized same-sex marriage, what does their Wikipedia page say? WP:BIO policies on the matter might clear things up. -- mordicai. (talk) 18:35, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
The style guide says to "use gender-neutral language when this can be done with clarity and precision." Therefore the terms "partner" (unmarried) and "spouse" (married) would seem to be the preferred terms. Cervenka (talk) 19:57, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
You're right, that certainly is better. --Crusio (talk) 20:30, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
I agree in principle. But what about people in a civil union/civil partnership, should we refer to them as "partners" even though their relationship has a legal status beyond that of regular "boyfriend/girlfriend" partners? (Of course that question applies only if they refer to themselves as spouses, like Elton John and his husband.) And what about people who consider themselves married/spouses even though their legal status says otherwise? (Like Rosie O'Donnell and her then-wife, whose San Francisco marriage was later voided, or Melissa Etheridge and her then-wife, who held a commitment ceremony.) I find the terms "partners" and "relationship" (rather than "spouses" and "marriage") lacking in these instances. Prayer for the wild at heart (talk) 20:38, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
Awesome. Gender-neutral language is a nice point to be able to refer back to, & obviously a good starting place if we want to spin a more cogent essay/guideline, because as Prayer for the Wild at Heart mentions, there are still places of debate & discussion. -- mordicai. (talk) 20:43, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
(edit conflict)♠IMO, "spouse" is a loaded term in some circumstances. The opponents of same-sex marriage are bound to object to using it.
♠Also, I don't think place of residence bears on it. If, taking mordicai's example, they're married in Canada, that a U.S. state hasn't recognized same-sex marriage for its own citizens is of no moment: they are married. I believe U.S. states are obliged to recognize relationships recognized elsewhere (so, frex, California same-sex marriages would still be, have to be, recognized by, say, Alabama).
♠Good question, tho. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 20:49, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
Individual states do NOT have to recognize marriages performed in other jurisdictions, and DOMA prohibits the federal government from recognizing them as well. Alabama does not recognize same-sex marriages performed in California, or Iowa, or Canada. Cervenka (talk) 21:12, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
As I understand the law (not a lawyer...), they have to, because there isn't an option to recognize only some marriages. Put it the other way: does Alabama, frex, have the option to refuse to recognize interracial marriages? No. Nor, AFAIK, does any jurisdiction, or many would. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 21:33, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
Many U.S. states have constitutional amendments that explicitly declare same-sex marriages to not have force of law in their jurisdictions. In the absence of a SCOTUS ruling declaring such amendments and/or statutes invalid, and as long as DOMA remains in effect, individual states do not have to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions, just as they did not have to recognize interracial marriages until 1967, when the Loving v. Virginia SCOTUS decision overturned anti-miscegenation laws in the states that still had them. Cervenka (talk) 21:45, 23 October 2011 (UTC)
I don't understand why "spouse" would be a loaded term for same-sex married couples, unless you're referring to my examples of people who aren't really married. I agree that a legal marriage performed elsewhere should be recognized as such whether other countries acknowledge it or not. One country's laws don't trump another's. A Saudi Arabian's four wives are still his wives, even though bigamy is illegal in most of the world. Prayer for the wild at heart (talk) 07:00, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
"I don't understand why 'spouse' would be a loaded term for same-sex married couples" Because the opponents in some places in the U.S. (& Canada, & for all I know, elsewhere) don't consider a same-sex marriage "real", so anything suggesting equivalence is "red flag to a bull". (Personally, I'd be happy to wave it, but on WP, maybe not an ideal situation.) TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 07:43, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
I see what you mean, but I don't think that's presently an issue on Wikipedia. A legal marriage is a legal marriage, and the partners in that marriage, same-sex or otherwise, are referred to as spouses (in the Infoboxes at least; obviously the term is a little formal for the main body). Prayer for the wild at heart (talk) 07:53, 24 October 2011 (UTC)
As an encyclopedia we are centered around encyclopedic information. While some may refer to their "partner" one way or another, wouldn't we be inclined to write prose by the definitions in the same legal sense regardless of gender? Just a thought. Any word from Project LBGT studies or is there still a bit of consensus forming going on there?--Amadscientist (talk) 02:24, 27 October 2011 (UTC)
It sure would be easier if we did that, but things aren't always as black and white as they are according to the law. Like it's policy to refer to transgenders with the terminology of their self-identified gender, even though that's sometimes not their legal sex. Prayer for the wild at heart (talk) 07:08, 27 October 2011 (UTC)

Christiane Pflug

This is a request for help or a look at the Christiane Pflug article I have edited. She is a German-Canadian artist. Any suggestions on how to make it better? Are there any Canadian art historians out there who might be of help? Jacqbennett 15:40, 26 October 2011 (UTC)

Defining "Celebrity"

How does the project define the use of the term celebrity when speaking about individuals where the question is...are they or aren't they?--Amadscientist (talk) 02:19, 27 October 2011 (UTC)

Could some kind soul please assess Francesco Guccini (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views)?

It has just been totally re-written; Zidanie5 (talk · contribs) has done fantastic work by translating and adapting material from the Italian FA [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Francesco_Guccini&diff=4 57657151&oldid=457085633] and it has expanded from 11kB to 81kB. I've helped a (very) little, so it'd be great to get an independent assessment. Any and all comments and suggestions are, of course, very welcome on the talk page. Thank you in anticipation.  Chzz  ►  14:12, 27 October 2011 (UTC)

Thank you so much for reviewing and assessing Francesco Guccini, I really appreciate it! Zidanie5 (talk) 02:40, 29 October 2011 (UTC)

Voss was not "second only to "The Baron" as article states...Loewenhardt had 54 victories...and another pilot had 56...the one with "Lo" painted on his wing..went on to fly in WW 2..forget his name...facts in Voss article need adjusting. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 108.192.105.153 (talk) 04:44, 28 October 2011 (UTC)

Catch-22

Yes! I read the bit at the top of this page saying that it is not for discussing individual articles! But at...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:James_Ferguson_%281710%E2%80%931776%29

... the talk page has no "Edit" provision that I can find.

His date of death, as reported in the Royal Society's archive....

http://www2.royalsociety.org/DServe/dserve.exe?dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqCmd=Show.tcl&dsqDb=Persons&dsqPos=1&dsqSearch=%28%28text%29%3D%27james%20ferguson%27%29

is 16 Nov 1776. Okay... only a day different from what Wikipedia says.. but still(?) wrong(?).

Tkbwik (talk) 15:53, 28 October 2011 (UTC)

Advice needed

My colleague and I have set up a page for Vaneeesa Blaylock for a university project. We need some wikipedians to come and interact with our page. Any advice or ideas to increase the chances of this would be greatly appreciated AbiSciberras (talk) 17:06, 30 October 2011 (UTC)

Grieffith Mxenge the forggotten Hero

The 19th of November 2011 would mark the 30th year ever since Griffith Mxenge the Human Rights Lawyer, Apartheid Activists, ANC member was assasinated by the apartheid government.He serve a prison term on Robben Island for our liberation . One of his murderers Nofemela, who received a death penalty for the murder of a white farmer which was later commuted to life imprisonment was recently released from Pretoria central prison. Nofemela and Dirk Coetze were never prosecuted for killing of the beloved son of the soil. My question is were is justice in this issue.

While Nofemela, Dirk Coatze and their co-perpetrators are enjoying the fruits of our democracy, which Mxenge's blood was shed for, what recognition, or medals does Mxenge receive as a human rights lawyer and a freedom fighter. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.116.44.183 (talk) 21:27, 30 October 2011 (UTC)

Leslie Bradshaw

I have proposed an expansion of the article about the businessperson Leslie Bradshaw on the discussion page for the article about her, here. It so happens she is a friend and business associate, and she has asked me to improve the article, so I have a potential COI and am seeking feedback before making any direct edits. If you're interested in reviewing the draft (in my user space here) and moving it, making edits or offering feedback, I'd welcome any thoughtful responses. Cheers, WWB Too (talk) 18:46, 31 October 2011 (UTC)

Noel Coward article

There seems to be an editor on the article who reverts any changes to the phrasing because of the article's FA status. Is this biog policy? My beef is with the line:

"Why", asked Coward, "am I always expected to wear a dressing-gown, smoke cigarettes in a long holder and say 'Darling, how wonderful'?"[127] The answer lay in Coward's assiduous cultivation of a carefully crafted image.

Which I think is too chatty. Like an essay or magazine article not an encyclopedia. But looking at the discussion page the same editor has the same argument with other people. Duggy 1138 (talk) 21:44, 31 October 2011 (UTC)

Link to Leslie Harris is not the correct Leslie Harris in question as shown in

Academic offices
Preceded by
The Lord Taylor of Harlow
President of Memorial University of Newfoundland
1973–1981
Succeeded by
Leslie Harris — Preceding unsigned comment added by 142.163.115.110 (talk) 20:04, 2 November 2011 (UTC)

Johnny Cymbal revision ...

This article has been flagged since Nov 2007 for cleanup, and Nov 2010 for citations. I posted a propsal and rationale in September and now a draft rewrite at User:Brieflysentient/Johnny_Cymbal_draft_rewrite

Not finished yet - more citations definitely needed, and I'm not sure about the video links. I'm also aware that there's associated parties work being changed, and there has to be a balance with good Wiki practice. Any comments appreciated, preferably on the JC talk page, before I gallop boldly on. Thanks Brieflysentient (talk) 16:21, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

Infobox sportsperson: generic biography fields

Should we add generic biography fields to {{Infobox sportsperson}}? Your comments are invited. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Andy's talk; Andy's edits 21:13, 9 November 2011 (UTC)

Featured article review for Rosa Parks

I have nominated Rosa Parks for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Brad (talk) 03:37, 12 November 2011 (UTC)

Dr Samuel Fuller

I am a direct decendant, I can trace everything back to Benjamin Fuller. 1810. we lost papers before & need help. Dr Samuel Fuller was the first to reach the americas. His wife came on the 2nd Mayflower. The last of our name was my grandmother, Mary Ann Elizabeth Fuller. Please help me to find my folks prior to 1800. We have some second hand reports by fellow shipmates, but would like any other that you have. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 97.93.89.225 (talk) 03:41, 4 November 2011 (UTC)

You claim that Samuel Fuller (Mayflower physician) is your Great Great Grandfather. Well the page 'Fuller (surname)' lists all people called 'Fuller' that have an article on Wikipedia. You may want to go there if you haven't already. I'm afraid that's all i can do. Check out the Wikipedia Reference Desk. - Benzband (talk) 12:40, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Elvis Presley and TCB Band

TCB Band page claims Elvis invented the acronym (for "Taking Care of Business"). I thought it was common amongst African American communities at the time. Is there any documentation that he invented it? 173.164.183.149 (talk) 07:07, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

Selena

Selena Quintanilla Perez was shot on March 31, 1995, but, upon arrival at the hospital, was not given a blood transfusion, as her religious belief was Jehovah's Witness. It is against a Jehovah's Witness' belief to introduce anything foreign into the body, regardless of whether or not it is a lifesaving measure. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.53.194.237 (talk) 18:18, 10 November 2011 (UTC)

There's an article about her already Selena. Best, Jonayo! Selena 4 ever 21:48, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

Will someone in this project more familiar with the policies and guidelines related to its material plesae take a look at the article Boys Noize and determine what if anything from the removed talk page templates below should be readded as a result of the page's reinstatement on Wikipedia? In particular, I am concerned about the OTRS ticket as it relates to the article in its current format. TomStar81 (Talk) 02:04, 20 November 2011 (UTC)

{ConfirmationOTRS|source=http://www.facebook.com/boysnoize?v=info%7Clicense=d%7Cotrs=2011012110008037 }

{WPBiography |living=yes |class=Stub |auto=yes |musician-work-group=yes |listas=Boys Noize }

{WikiProject Germany|class=stub|importance= }

Infobox of people born on the island of Ireland, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

I proposed that such bios (people born on the island of Ireland, between 1801 & 1922) pipe-link United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as Ireland, within their infoboxes concerning birthplace & deathplace. GoodDay (talk) 20:01, 12 November 2011 (UTC)

The comment above is cross posted between here and and the WP:IMOS. I responded there before seeing this comment. Can we keep discussion in one place, please. --RA (talk) 20:29, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
I'd suggest moving things here. GoodDay (talk) 20:34, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
Agreed. It is a question that affects more than just Ireland. I've closed the discussion at the IMOS. The substance of my comments there was that it is common practice is to give the place of birth of people born in the United Kingdom (1801—present) as England, Ireland (or Northern Ireland), Scotland or Wales and as being English, Irish (or Northern Irish), Scottish or Welsh. Similarly, it is common practice to give the birth place of people in the Kingdom of Great Britain (1707—1801) as England, Scotland or Wales and as being English, Scottish or Welsh.
You are certainly free to seek to change that consensus. However, the issue affects more than just Ireland. It affects the whole of the United Kingdom (and the Kingdom of Great Britain before it).
(Other may be interested in a previous related discussion.) --RA (talk) 20:48, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
The practice on Wikipedia needs changing. Post-1922, needs to show United Kingdom & use British. 1800 to 1922, needs United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland pipe-linked as Great Britain and Ireland & use British for those born on GB & Irish for those born on Ireland. GoodDay (talk) 20:58, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
I understand, many will chime in that we should go along with how these people self-indentified or self-indentify. However, if one self-indentifies as a martian or whatever, would we place that in the infobox & content? I hope not. GoodDay (talk) 21:02, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
I understand what you mean. It's just not very common practice to say that Charles Dickens, for example, was British and was born in the United Kingdom. Usual practice, both on Wikipedia and off it, is to say he was born in England and was English. This is a particular idiosyncrasy of the United Kingdom but one that is understood throughout the English speaking world, particularly historically. --RA (talk) 21:23, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
TBH, my major concern is around the island of Ireland. Indeed, I won't put up much of a fight in the infoboxes, concerning usage of England, Northern Ireland, Wales & Scotland. Afterall, we use Manitoba, Alberta, Prince Edward Island (for example) in the infoboxes of Canadians & Virgina, North Carolina, Texas etc in the American infoboxes. GoodDay (talk) 22:39, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
GoodDay , that hs come across as point blank POV , racist and discriminatory . I praised the editing you done yesterday but this is horrific . Surely if it goes for one in the greater view of Wiki , it should go for all , we cant pick and choose to ignore issues that are the same just because the involve different sub-entities .Murry1975 (talk) 22:53, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
Using England, Wales, Northern Ireland & Scotland in the Infobox is acceptable. How can it be racist & discriminatory? GoodDay (talk) 22:56, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
GoodDay says he has no problem with this issue regarding England, Scotland and Wales but has a problem with Ireland, how pathetic is that. Snappy (talk) 23:37, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
I've no problem with Northern Ireland. But when dealing with before 1922, we enter muddier waters. PS: Please don't comment on the contributor. GoodDay (talk) 23:40, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
The fact that you're making such a flawed contribution is the problem, so I'll comment as I see fit. Snappy (talk) 23:49, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
Please don't comment on the contributor. GoodDay (talk) 23:51, 12 November 2011 (UTC)
For the British bios, it wouldn't hurt to have British in the lead & E/W/S/I in the infobox - with UK added (if you like). GoodDay (talk) 07:09, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Then call me racist & discriminatory, too, 'cause if there's a division between "Ulster" & "Ireland" in Irish minds (not being from there, I don't see it), you may have a problem. As for the 1922 cutoff date, my Irish history isn't good enough to know what issue arises with it... I would sooner hear the reasoning than make accusations. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 06:41, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Before partition, the whole island of Ireland & Great Britain were one country. GoodDay (talk) 06:44, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Back in the dinosaur age, all pangaea was one country, including but not limited to: Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Timbuktu and Antarctica. How simple it must have been for Wikipedians then! [sarcasm] - Benzband (talk :) 12:19, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Giggle, giggle. GoodDay (talk) 17:09, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
I agree with GoodDay that Ireland was not partitioned at the time. I agree with myself that Ireland never should have been partitioned. I also think that seperating 'Ulster' people from 'Ireland' people in such a manner would not help to attain the goal of reunification we all hope for. Therefore, and thereafter, it should be Ireland. - Benzband (talk) 12:50, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Benzband the point GoodDay is making is the Ireland should not be used but instead a pipelink from Ireland to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as Ireland , even as a good portion of articles on Wiki bios dealing with the same time period show other parts of the United Kingdom as England , Scotland and Wales . As soon as it becomes apparent on an Ireland article people object . Thats why we are here . All we are trying to do is treat the subject the same as other parts of the United Kingdom at that time but some people are not letting eqaulity happen in this regards .Murry1975 (talk) 15:56, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Example: If 'John Doe' was born in England, Scotland, Wales or Ireland in 1845, we could use British in the intro & the constituent country in the infobox accompanied by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland -pipelinked as UK. This can be done for post-partition, 'John Doe' was born in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland in 1923, we could use British in the intro & the constituent country in the infobox accompanied by the United Kingdom -pipelinked as UK. GoodDay (talk) 17:43, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Changing this [[18]] would be practically impossible . I could see nothing but edit wars and more discussions on it . I dont think that the definition of nation and soveriegn state are compatible , there were 4 nations making up a single soveriegn state all with recognised nationalities , which is the crux of the problem . Also if you do it for the UK , what about the multi-changed maps of European nations , The Holy Roman Empire being an example .Murry1975 (talk) 18:34, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
I'm focusing on the British Isles. GoodDay (talk) 18:40, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
In the Burns situation, I'd recommend British in the lead & adding Kingdom of Great Britain to the infobox, pipe-linking as Great Britain or GB. GoodDay (talk) 18:37, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Im focusing on Wiki , as editors I believe we are meant to do , to improve it. If we create more problems then we have failed in our actions , that is why we are here to gain what is needed for the bios so we dont create more inconsistency and still give a level of understanding to the readers .Murry1975 (talk) 18:57, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
There's already inconsistancies in the British & Irish bios. GoodDay (talk) 20:04, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Have you gauged any editors views on Burns? I will just throw a link uo on his talk page so they can have an imput here .Murry1975 (talk) 20:55, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
No probs. The more editors involved, the more input there'll be. GoodDay (talk) 20:59, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
I threw it out over there , I dont know if many will come from it , but Burns as an example would give a strong Scottish nationalist feeling , is there an opposite that we can highlight it on thier talk page aswell , to keep it even?Murry1975 (talk) 21:19, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
It's usually better to link to related WikiProjects, rather then articles. GoodDay (talk) 21:27, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Bang on there buddy then , we need to find out what editors think and what way we should go about this . As I have already expressed if we flip it up there is going to be a mess and Wiki will not be any better for it - which is a concern of mine.Murry1975 (talk) 21:37, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
The WikiProjects for the United Kingdom, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland & England, would likely be the ones. GoodDay (talk) 21:40, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

I saw the proposal for that article , maybe you should outline them here in one place , so I dont misunderstand the way you discribe things.Murry1975 (talk) 21:58, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

First of all, the adjective "British" would be quite incorrect for Irish people, even if it were to be used for those from Britain, i.e. England Wales and Scotland. I oppose the broader proposal on the grounds that it is quite unnecessary and that to refer to people from Ireland as being from Ireland is just as accurate and more helpful, as well as less likely to look like it's making a political point. It's also, on principle, historically dubious to project our way of dealing with the modern era of nation states back to previous periods in a blanket manner. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 22:03, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

I oppose this is a flawed nonsense proposal so full of holes that it isn't even funny. Question: when do we draw the line on wikipedia on trolling?. SFC9394 (talk) 23:08, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Please AGF, in this discussion. GoodDay (talk) 23:20, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
AGF isn't inexhaustible, so I shall hold my own prerogative, thanks very much. The question stands. SFC9394 (talk) 23:22, 13 November 2011 (UTC)
Please AGF, SFC9394. GoodDay (talk) 23:29, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

I personally would class all born in Ireland as Irish. i.e. Duke of Wellington was born in Ireland in 1769 when it was part of the Kingdom of Ireland. Or Ian Paisley was born in Northern Ireland in 1926. But I would still say that Ian Paisley is Irish, born in Ireland. Northern Ireland I grant you, but Ireland just the same. --BSTemple (talk) 23:41, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

The Duke of Wellington's infobox would have him born in the Kingdom of Ireland, pipelinked as Ireland. I'd have Paisley's infobox showing it as Northern Ireland, UK. -- GoodDay (talk) 23:46, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

Oppose. Attempting to impose uniformity where it is never, ever, going to work. This essay has sound advice on a very complex matter. It concludes that there is no "right" answer, and changing existing nationalities in an attempt to attain uniformity is futile and not sustainable. Self identification and usual association is far, far more indicative of how someone should be described. Concern about people self-identifying as "Martian" is a risible red-herring. If anyone chooses to identify themselves in a way that is totally at odds with the facts, then it can be addresses on a case by case basis. --Escape Orbit (Talk) 00:22, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

True, C. S. Lewis, the example given below, often refered to himself as Irish and not British. --BSTemple (talk) 10:39, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
My main concern is the infobox. However these people are undisputedly British & so British should be used in the intros. Scotland hasn't been independant since 1707. GoodDay (talk) 15:03, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

Examples

Example: Robert Burns, would have British in the intro & Scotland, GB or show as Great Britain in the infobox.

Example: C. S. Lewis, would have British in the intro & for his birth Ireland, UK in the infobox.
GoodDay (talk) 22:13, 13 November 2011 (UTC)

GoodDay, may I observe that your position seems to have moved significantly compared to your OP. Pipelinking the word "Ireland" in an infobox to United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland where arguably appropriate for historical reasons is worth discussing. But a proposal that would need community consensus for removing the words "Scottish", "Welsh", "Irish" from articles such as Robert Burns, Shirley Bassey and Éamon de Valera and substituting the word "British" should really be closed per WP:SNOW.
Why not instead look to explaining why your original proposal might be a good idea, notwithstanding anything else? --FormerIP (talk) 01:59, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
I belive we need to show wich 'sovereign state' these individuals were born & died in, at the infobox. I accept that editors are going to oppose the intro proposal. GoodDay (talk) 02:23, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Then what's the point in making it? --FormerIP (talk) 02:32, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Concerning the intro proposal, I assumed that consensus can change. GoodDay (talk) 02:34, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Why do we need to show which 'sovereign state' these individuals were born & died in? Is the fact that Burns was born and died in the Kingdom of Great Britain significant? Can this not be determined, if the reader wishes, from the fact he was Scottish? The lead and the info box are all about hitting the most significant elements of a person's life and notability. I do not believe the 'sovereign state' is that important to most people, not nearly as significant as their identified nationality. And any attempt to cover such a complicated matter from both angles, in all articles, is bound to confuse and be disputed. --Escape Orbit (Talk) 10:39, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
On the contrary, I believe it is important to show their sovereign state of birth & death. These people are British, a fact that can't be retroactively denied. GoodDay (talk) 15:33, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
So the reason why this should be done is because you think it is important? Is that all you have to support your proposal? --Escape Orbit (Talk) 17:49, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Also, so we don't mislead readers into thinking England, Scotland, Northern Ireland & Wales are sovereign states. Pluss we don't want to mislead readers into thinking that the island of Ireland was a sovereign state since 1801. GoodDay (talk) 17:55, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
It does not mislead people into thinking that England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, & Wales are independent. just as you were told only a short time ago that the maps on those articles did not mislead them into thinking they were independent. Like Formerip, I too wonder why you raised this proposal when you confess that you knew that editors would disagree with it. Carson101 (talk) 18:07, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
There'll always be editors in disagreement on 'any' WikiProject discussion. GoodDay (talk) 18:11, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
That's true. But, if I "knew" that a proposal of mine had no chance of consensus I wouldn't bother proposing it in the first place. It's like putting a bet on a horse that you knew for sure was not going to win. A bit pointless. Carson101 (talk) 18:24, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Consensus can change. Meanwhile, I've not attempted to impliment my proposals. GoodDay (talk) 18:27, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Generally speaking, very few bio articles have any relevance to sovereign states, do not discuss sovereign states, and can't be accused of leading the reader to any conclusion about sovereign states. What they do convey is the person's "nationality", which is a flexible term with some leeway. If the reader wishes to know about sovereign states then Biographies are not the place to find out about them on Wikipedia. --Escape Orbit (Talk) 22:56, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Would anybody object to Nationality being deleted from the intro & infoboxes of bio articles? GoodDay (talk) 23:07, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
If you have a point, please make it. --Escape Orbit (Talk) 13:38, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
If it's of little importance to show where a person was born or died (in terms of their nationality), one may aswell not have any of it in the infobox or in the intro. GoodDay (talk) 16:20, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
Where a person was born or died does not determine their nationality. So I am at a loss to the relevance. And even more so as to what this has to do with sovereign states. --Escape Orbit (Talk) 17:11, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
I'm trying to avoid mis-representation in the intro & infoboxes. Readers could get the impression that England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland & the whole island of Ireland are sovereign states. GoodDay (talk) 17:33, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
Show me what, in the introduction or infobox for Robert Burns would give people the impression that Scotland is, or was at his time, a sovereign state. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 19:59, 15 November 2011 (UTC)

It says he's a Scottish poet (in the intro) & was born & died in Scotland (in the infobox). In most other bios, we use Iranian/Iran, Japanese/Japan, Russian/Russia. But as I said before, I'm flexible with infobox concerning England, Scotland & Wales - due to provinces/territories & states being 'ony' used in many Canadian & American bio infoboxes. GoodDay (talk) 20:15, 15 November 2011 (UTC)

We also describe various people as Italian and German even though there wasn't an Italian or German state at the time. I don't see why Scotland, England or Ireland (and, to judge by your latest comment, particularly Ireland) should pose any greater problem. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 20:59, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
I'm only concentrating on the British Isles, now. If my proposals are passed - then I will check into the other cases. GoodDay (talk) 21:09, 15 November 2011 (UTC)

Other thoughts

The IMOS issue on what to state Ireland as pre-1922 has been bubbling under my skin for a while as it appears to be possibly politically motiviated. Here is the clause:

For people born before independence in 1922, describe their birthplace as simply Ireland (not Ireland). Similarly, for people born before 3 May 1921 in what today is Northern Ireland say Ireland, not Northern Ireland or Ireland, and do not describe them as Northern Irish.

Why must we link to a land mass rather than the state? Other bio's that have someone born in a former state, state it, not the land mass. Is it to cover-up the fact Ireland was part of the UK?

Regardless of that this isn't an issue for England, Scotland, or Wales as they are historical countries/states and are also regions of the UK with their own articles that can be easily linked to. There is no article that covers Ireland for this time period at this moment in time.

Thus my suggestion for amending this clause to bypass this discrepiency:

  1. For people born between 1800 and 1922 we use the following pipe-link: [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Ireland]]
  2. For people born between 1542 and 1800 we use the following pipe-link: [[Kingdom of Ireland|Ireland]]

That way we don't link to an island, but follow the style of other bio's and link to the actual state at the time, though we keep the link to just stating "Ireland". Also this point 1 would be a temporary measure until an article can be created that covers the island of Ireland during its stint as part of the UK, which we could then pipe-link to, i.e.: [[Ireland (1800-1921)|Ireland]]

Thoughts? Mabuska (talk) 14:33, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

That's what I'm suggesting, link to UKofGB&I (1801-1922) & KoI (1542-1800). GoodDay (talk) 15:00, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
To a degree, but you had other ideas you'd like implemented that'd be going a bit too far for some people. England/Scotland/Wales all have their own wiki-articles that can be linked to so they don't need piped. Ireland for its stint in the UK at present doesn't, and a more relevant link than just the island is needed. Mabuska (talk) 17:28, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
I don't wanna pipelink England, Scotland & Wales. I wanna have the United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland or Kingdom of Great Britain, placed next to'em in the infobox, pipe-linked as UK, UKGBI & GB. GoodDay (talk) 17:39, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
The link to Ireland is perfectly relevant and quite adequate - just as plenty of articles about Italian people, for example, say they were born in Italy even if they were born before 1861. The only potentially more relevant alternative would be History_of_Ireland_(1801–1923), and it should be immediately obvious in fact that that article is likely to be far more relevant to any Irish person from that period - even if they emigrated to Britain! - than United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, which is essentially an article about the history of the legal union between Britain and Ireland. The history of Britain during that period, incidentally, is not covered in that article but in History of the United Kingdom. However, no-one was ever born in History of Ireland, and anyway, there's no need to change what isn't broken. The article about Ireland is an article about a country (albeit not a state), not just a land-mass. Land masses don't have distinct cultures, political histories, etc. I congratulate GoodDay, however, on a reasonably successful piece of provocation.
Neither, for that matter, do I see much basis for the argument that Ireland is in some way less suitable than England or Scotland as a link for these purposes. Yes, those articles state that those countries are part of the United Kingdom. But Ireland states that Ireland was part of the United Kingdom in the period in question, so this is hardly a problem. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 20:08, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Please strike your comment "I congratulate GoodDay, however, on a reasonably successful piece of provocation" from your post. GoodDay (talk) 20:45, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Why? You have succeeded in starting a whole new argument on a topic which you presumably knew would be controversial, since you had made the same proposal about this time last year and it was (a) controversial and (b) resoundingly defeated. I am commenting on it now because, unfortunately, in Wikipedia sometimes silence is indeed taken as consent. But my congratulations are sincere. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 20:53, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Plese strike your comment "I congratulate GoodDay, however, on a reasonably successful pierce of provocation" from your post. GoodDay (talk) 20:57, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Again I ask, why? ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 21:02, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
You're attacking my motives & thus breaching AGF. So again, would you please strike that comment. GoodDay (talk) 21:22, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
If I agree to strike my comments, will you agree to explain why it is necessary to resurrect a failed proposal on a controversial issue (without, incidentally, having mentioned that this was a second go)? That way, I will be assuming good faith, and you will be, per WP:DGF, be demonstrating good faith. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 21:30, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
I believe that consensus could change. Now, please strike your aforementioned comment. GoodDay (talk) 21:35, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
Very well, I will strike it out of respect for your feelings on the matter, but I would suggest that you consider whether bringing the matter up was well-advised. I remain of the opinion that it is (and could have been predicted to be, given the failure of the same proposal last year) highly unlikely to change consensus, and it has clearly already succeeded in provoking controversy. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 21:42, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
IMHO, controversy only exists when political sensativities aren't laid aside. GoodDay (talk) 21:58, 14 November 2011 (UTC)
WP:LAME suggests that while political sensitivities certainly help create controversy, they're by no means a necessary ingredient. ComhairleContaeThirnanOg (talk) 22:07, 14 November 2011 (UTC)

There already is an article covering Ireland during the relevant period, it can be found at Ireland. I will ask what people believe happened to Ireland when the Act of Union occurred? Did it cease to be a country and become a "landmass"? Did the same thing happen to England, Scotland and Wales at similar points in their histories too? There is zero chance of any proposal succeeding if it attempts to impose a standard on Ireland related articles only. 2 lines of K303 13:18, 24 November 2011 (UTC)

GoodDay's proposal withdrawn

It's been over 3-days & it's obvious that my proposals aren't gonna be adopted. There's one thing in the Wikipedia:UKNAT essay, that I can't dispute -- It is impossible to gain uniformity across these bio articles. I imagine it would be 10 times as difficult to get uniformity with (for example) Italian & German bio articles. GoodDay (talk) 00:09, 16 November 2011 (UTC)

Yours might be, but mine isn't. Mabuska (talk) 12:02, 18 November 2011 (UTC)

Richard Stilwell's huge stature

General Stilwell's Stature: I met Dick just after he stepped down from the UN top spot. Nixon had just given our intel mechanism a big black eye and we were like now, on the verge of anarchy. I worked briefly for him and witnessed his addresses an many occasions. He was the greatest orator I have ever heard. No one who heard one of his addresses, ever failed to give him a standing ovation. His voice boomed like a cannon, mesmerizing the entire audience. You knew he gave you the truth. Sitting in the audience while Dick was standing alone, delivering an address on a stage or at the podium, you might speculate this man's height might be well over 6 feet. In one of the "Alcatraz" movies, a scene has Dick boating over to the rock and telling the warden, in his office, that he was there to help. The moviegoer could easily relate to Dick's extreme stature by subconscious comparison to his aides. They didn't even reach his shoulders. I have related this history of Dick's saga of perception to note that Dick actually shared a physical statistic with Audie Murphy, they were both smaller than I am. My friend Gary had Murphy's shoe last to make him boots. The lasts were for a 100 lb. guy. I worked for Dick on several projects and we spent a lot of time together in hotel rooms. In our bare feet, I was an inch taller than Dick. I am 5' 8" and I weigh 150 pounds.

Stature is all about perception, creating the icon. Richard Stilwell was the Icon of all Icons. He was the brains behind saving us from that meltdown. He will probably never be known for what his greatest accomplishment was, because of the administrative need for secrecy.

Patrick Michael — Preceding unsigned comment added by Patrickmichael2012 (talkcontribs) 04:00, 23 November 2011 (UTC)

User:Noherzl is making wild, unsubstantiated claims on these articles (about some kind of "monetarist coup against democracy"). Needless to say such edits have been reverted (by numerous editors including myself), but the editor in question has just reverted them back each time. I've tried to reason with the editor on their talk page, but it seems this is being ignored. Perhaps sanctions need to be taken against this editor and/or the articles need to be protected. «dæɑðe jekwæɑld» (talk) 23:36, 16 November 2011 (UTC)

It looks like the problem has ceased (at least temporarily) - either the message did get through, or they just got bored... «dæɑðe jekwæɑld» (talk) 11:55, 17 November 2011 (UTC)

Agreed! Watch closely... Colleagues, blogs are for debating politics; Wikipedia is for getting the facts straight. Maria Ashot (talk) 07:31, 3 December 2011 (UTC)

copvio?

Much of the text at Randolph Kirkpatrick is the same as at its 2nd reference. I can't be sure which way round the copying went, but it looks more likely to have been copied into wikipedia. Lavateraguy (talk) 11:47, 25 November 2011 (UTC)

Peter Carter-Ruck

Non notable person. The article should be deleted or merged with the law firm 'carter ruck'.

Lawyers that start law firms are ten a penny. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 93.96.46.187 (talk) 01:53, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

Per the rubric at the top of the edit screen, it would be better simply to put a pointer from here to Talk:Peter Carter-Ruck where you've also (correctly) raised the issue. --Tagishsimon (talk) 02:03, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

Lansing Brown Jr. page

This article speak more about Refugio Ruiz than it does about Lansing Brown Jr, and should be either removed or totally rewritten to cover the the subject not his assistant — Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.82.38.21 (talk) 05:16, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

  • That material was inserted back in 2009 by an anonymous IP. You're right, it's not about Brown at all and not relevant. I've removed it. Thanks for bringing this to our attention. --Guillaume2303 (talk) 07:26, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

Muriel Paget -- actually, an excellent biography!

Why on earth would anyone rate the page on Muriel Paget as "Start Class" and "Low Importance"?

Is it because she was a witness to Bolshevik atrocities and we would like to forget those ever occurred?

Is it because her life story reveals a moment of closeness between the UK and Imperial Russia at the time of the First World War, and references charitable acts, including acts in which the Empress Alexandra of Russia, grand-daughter of Queen Victoria, was involved?

Or is it because she was a woman?

I have read and used many articles on Wikipedia that are less important, more trivial and more poorly written -- especially in the Russian-language portal, which I am well-qualified to evaluate, but also sometimes in the French portal (which can use considerable expansion). I should also mention that I am, indeed, quite favourably impressed by the calibre of the Polish articles, their breadth and depth.

Lady Paget's life became a matter of investigation for me in connection with some professional historical research into World War I. To my surprise, you have an excellent article here on Wiki about her, yet why is it rated so unfavourably?

I have been around enough, teaching and reading, to know that there are plenty of people who for all of the reasons I enumerate above will attempt to get a piece buried or dismissed.

I should like to point out, if I may, that the contributions of women, especially at critical times during the war-plagued 20th century, are extremely important for study and generally poorly known. That does not make such articles 'less important' -- it makes them, if anything, more important.

Furthermore, the article on Lady Muriel Paget has good detail, whilst also opening up avenues for further elaboration, but rather well covering many of her impressive contributions and extraordinary travels during wartime and revolution. There is no lack of clarity in the article. Neither is there error.

I appeal to the community of users not to be too hasty in dismissing articles -- especially Biographies -- which seem to be of small consequence to you in your field. I can imagine, for example, that a Physicist might not readily discern what is important in the life and accomplishments of Lady Paget. But someone who writes military history, or the history of medicine, who happens to know which distinguished neurosurgeon served at her Anglo-Russian hospital and there advanced his expertise in neural trauma (Dr Jeffers) -- or someone who is interested in the rise of international philanthropy, not to mention the influence of women at a time when the matter of allowing women to vote was still very much a struggle even in the UK & US -- would find this article enormously useful.

Keep in mind, please, that very often areas where historical detail in even advanced textbooks is hazy yield nuggets of priceless discoveries, when one simply consults the biographical summary of an eye-witness to important events. That is when all kinds of fascinating details and connections jump out.

Meanwhile, whoever wrote up Lady Muriel Paget, kudos! Thank you! And Lady Paget -- wherever in whatever form you might be in the Cosmos -- thank you for your life of courage and initiative and relentless generosity! Maria Ashot (talk) 07:29, 3 December 2011 (UTC)

"Or is it because she was a woman?" Indirectly, I expect. In the grand scheme of things, her influence was pretty small (as compared to, say, Florence Nightingale or Clara Barton). And if you want to praise the originator, User:Dalkeith46 deserves the credit, as the page history reveals... TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 08:38, 3 December 2011 (UTC)
It's partly a terminology problem, I'd say. In my experience, articles marked "low" in importance are the ones it's most important for Wikipedia to have. Articles marked "start" class are often well written, adequately documented and of suitable length. But the terminology is the same across all Wikipedia projects and I can't see it changing :) Andrew Dalby 12:14, 10 December 2011 (UTC)

The "Post War" section is not well cited. Many of the statements seem more like things that would be more appropriate in a revival meeting rather than in a BLP on wikipedia. I'm not sure if it's better to put 'citation needed' on these, or on the whole section, or just remove the statements all together. I suspect that there is some truth to the statements, they may just need to be rewritten to be more neutral. Catsintheattic (talk) 02:16, 12 December 2011 (UTC)

Dee Dee Myers

Hello there, I'd like to see if there is anyone here interested in reviewing a proposed improved verison of a BLP article I've researched and written. The current article is Dee Dee Myers, about the former White House press secretary, and my proposed replacement is here. Under other circumstances I would have moved my version into place already, but it happens that I work with Ms. Myers' employer, and I have prepared it with their input, so I want to be very careful about following COI guidelines. To this end I have already placed an explanatory note on the Myers Talk page and asked for assistance at COI/N, but so far I've received no response. I'm quite certain that my draft is an improvement—certainly the current version has very few citations—but I would like to get an uninvolved editor's feedback, if at all possible. Otherwise I may just move it soon. Please respond to the Myers discussion if you are so inclined. Cheers, WWB Too (talk) 14:55, 9 December 2011 (UTC)

I don't see any COI problems. The article looks balanced and well cited. I've cleaned it up a bit. I suggest that you just go ahead and copy it over the current article. FurrySings (talk) 10:21, 10 December 2011 (UTC)
Hey, thank you very much! I've reviewed your changes, and they look good to me. I'll move it over now. Cheers, WWB Too (talk) 18:20, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Proposed deletion of Rob Graham (attorney)

This bio is a vanity piece of a bankruptcy lawyer, likely written by the subject himself or his firm.DCX (talk) 02:37, 13 December 2011 (UTC)

Request for help on W. E. B. Du Bois

The article W. E. B. Du Bois is almost ready to be submitted for consideration as a Featured Article. If anyone has time, it would be helpful to have additional reviewers at the in-progress peer review at Wikipedia:Peer review/W. E. B. Du Bois/archive1. Thanks! --Noleander (talk) 15:25, 15 December 2011 (UTC)

Historical English Roman Catholics

It has been suggested that most historical persons before the 16th century should be removed from Category:English Roman Catholics - at least those who were Roman Catholics by default without a significant impact of their Catholicism on their lives, such as, say, Henry V of England. Input would be welcome at Category talk:English Roman Catholics. Huon (talk) 17:16, 19 December 2011 (UTC)

Infobox writer

It is proposed to merge {{Infobox writer}} into {{Infobox person}}; see Wikipedia:Templates for discussion/Log/2011 December 17#Template:Infobox writer. Your views will be welcome. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 17:20, 19 December 2011 (UTC)

Request for assessing

Resolved

hello,

to avoid edit-warring, can someone say if Otis Redding is really B-status, or rather C-status. Thanks.--♫GoP♫TCN 21:52, 19 December 2011 (UTC)

Picture of Ian Kershaw

Does anyone not have a picture that can be used for Ian Kershaw's page he is well known and I think it would be good to see a picture of him on his page, he is well known and a cited historian who has done many good things like completely disproving the myth that Hitler was Jewish or of Jewish ancestry for example.--Vincentnufcr1 (talk) 15:37, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

when did robert creamer die?

For everyone that can help please answer this one simple question as soon as posible. When did Robert Creamer die? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.177.27.141 (talk) 21:34, 20 December 2011 (UTC)

Are you sure he has died? His WP bio speaks of him in the present tense, and indicates he was born in 1922. Which would make him 89 yrs old, certainly an age at which he could plausibly still be living. I did a quick Google search on him (included the word "obituary") and found no mention of his death.--JayJasper (talk) 00:14, 21 December 2011 (UTC)

Request for third opinion

Can another set of eyes please add their thoughts at Talk:Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab#Sunni or Kharijite. An editor keeps trying to support contentious claims with unreliable sources, despite repeated warnings. I've begun dialogue on the talk page, but that hasn't paused the editor's article adjustments. I've also requested at WikiProject Islam. Thank you. ClaretAsh 00:00, 21 December 2011 (UTC)

Joel Johnson

I have just posted a request on the discussion page for Joel Johnson for another editor to review a new draft I have prepared to replace the current article. As explained there, my version is improved but not radically different, and because I have been working with Mr. Johnson's firm on the article, I'm mindful of avoiding potential COI issues. I recently, successfully, sought input here for a revision to the article about Mr. Johnson's colleague, Dee Dee Myers, and so I'd like to see if there is someone here interested to offer feedback or give a thumbs up to the replacement of this one as well. Thanks for your consideration, WWB Too (talk) 15:37, 21 December 2011 (UTC)

Arlene Ackerman was superintendent of schools in San Francisco, Washington D.C., and most recently, Philadelphia, where she departed amidst great criticism. Recently an anonymous editor 174.56.115.63 ‎ (talk · contribs · ‎ WHOIS), apparently Dr. Ackerman herself, has been editing the article, inserting what appear to be large verbatim chunks from her own resume. I contacted the anonymous editor on their talk page but got no reply. They did post an aggrieved response on the the article talk page.

I do not have the stomach for a confrontation with an influential public person, but I am sure there is someone in this project who does, so I am referring the matter here. Thanks for any help you can provide. —Mark Dominus (talk) 15:34, 24 December 2011 (UTC)

I should add that some of the stuff she posted is probably suitable for inclusion in the article, so some care should be taken in removing the additions. —Mark Dominus (talk) 15:55, 24 December 2011 (UTC)

Peer review of William Bliss Baker

Please come participate: Wikipedia:WikiProject Biography/Peer review/William Bliss Baker. Thanks! ···日本穣? · 投稿 · Talk to Nihonjoe · Join WP Japan! 08:36, 29 December 2011 (UTC)

Possible expansion of core biographies list

I would appreciate any input you might have at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Biography/Core biographies#Proposed expansion of list. Thank you for your attention. John Carter (talk) 00:36, 30 December 2011 (UTC)

Please comment at Fandi Ahmad's ongoing peer review!

Fellow Wikipedians, I humbly present my latest contribution to Wikipedia and this WikiProject, an article about Singaporean football legend Fandi Ahmad, which I am trying to get to GA status! Start 2012 by supporting the quest to counter systemic bias, by commenting at the ongoing peer review of this short, but interesting, article, which I hope you enjoy reviewing as much as I enjoyed writing it! Thanks! 谢谢!Terima kasih! நன்றி! --J.L.W.S. The Special One (talk) 15:25, 31 December 2011 (UTC)

John Beddington misrepresentation

Could somebody familiar with misrepresentation, libel, etc. comment at Talk:John Beddington#Fukushima incident please? --Redrose64 (talk) 12:31, 5 January 2012 (UTC)

The name

HI to whoever writes these Hare played for the Pikiao Warriors not the Piako Warriors this has come to my attention as Hare is a wider family member and i also play for Pikiao so could you please correct this as Pikiao is also the name of our tribe thank you — Preceding unsigned comment added by Pikiao21 (talkcontribs) 07:15, 6 January 2012 (UTC)

Please address this on the talk page of the specific article in question. Thank you.--JayJasper (talk) 17:56, 6 January 2012 (UTC)

David Gries, include picture? (CC-A 3.0 picture found)

David Gries does not carry a picture yet.

This search: [19] has revealed a picture that, according to the page legalese, is CC-by-A 3.0.

cite: Material on these pages developed by Owen Astrachan is ©Owen Astrachan, is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0722274, and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. We gratefully acknowledge additional funding from IBM via an IBM Faculty Award.

BTW, one level up there's a picture of him without that paint in his face :-)

--87.175.25.165 (talk) 23:17, 6 January 2012 (UTC)

Dominic of Evesham and post-nominals

There's an interesting discussion here which relates to biographies. It would be great to have some wider input. Thanks for any attention you can give it. --John (talk) 21:16, 10 January 2012 (UTC)

Hi. I answered a help request at Talk:Pearce Robinson, and, in the process, I wondered about the notability of this article. I've not much experience of judging Bios for notability, so, since the talk page lists the article as a member of this project, I thought I'd ask for some feedback here. Sorry if my question sounds overly dumb for someone with as many edits as me, but this is outside my "comfort zone" for making snap judgements, so comments very welcome. Thanks. Begoontalk 04:43, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

Just adding a courtesy note so that people don't waste time on looking at this because I asked here - I decided to AFD. Hope I didn't miss something obvious. Begoontalk 09:05, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

Stewart Woodman

The Stewart Woodman entry should have the following caveat removed, "A major contributor to this article appears to have a close connection with its subject". While I know Stewart personally, the posting is fact-based and written without bias. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Jlerman423 (talkcontribs) 05:01, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

Please address this on the Stewart Woodman talk page first, per this page's guidelines (see top of page, 4th item). Thank you.--JayJasper (talk) 05:34, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

Is it OK to to edit a BLP to always slant it in a negative way?

Is it OK for someone to edit a BLP and to only add something negative, or to take out something positive, or to otherwise always slant it in a negative way? Yesterday, I reverted someone because, not for the first time, all his edits were designed to make the person look bad. I don't think this is good faith editing. Someone else put back the edits apparently because he believes it is OK for someone to edit to only make a person look bad. Who is right? FurrySings (talk) 08:39, 1 January 2012 (UTC)

You are. Living or dead, bio or otherwise, neutrality is the rule. A slanted article violates NPOV. Rv, & report it if necessary. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 09:17, 1 January 2012 (UTC)
Is it OK for a person to always only add negative stuff and remove positive stuff, if right now, the BLP is slanted positively so that the last edit doesn't make the article slanted? I want to ask, is it OK for someone to be a single sided warrior on a BLP regardless of neutrality? If it's not OK, how should I stop this person? FurrySings (talk) 23:23, 2 January 2012 (UTC)
No its not ok and you should report it to ANI. --Kumioko (talk) 23:27, 2 January 2012 (UTC)
The aim is balance & neutral POV. If it's not neutral, & it keeps happening, Kumioko's entirely right. Report it. And keep rv'g. (Do beware 3RR, tho.) What's the page? With a few other interested editors, you can keep the editor's bias out without getting in trouble. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 11:28, 3 January 2012 (UTC)
The problem is, FurrySings has a "creative" definition of what constitutes negative slanting. For example, an IP added an unsourced statement, and another editor reverted it. FurrySings reverted the reversion, without any rationale other than the complaint that the reversion was slanted negative.
I've posted every edit in question on the talk page of the article, and asked all editors to weigh in. So far FurrySings has contributed nothing to the discussion, and continues to revert, presumably thinking that this is following advice given here. I agree with Trekphiler that the proper sequence is rv, and report if necessary, what is missed is that we are already at the revert stage, and FurrySings is trying to revert unsourced material back into the article.
I hope someone will look at the actual issue, and give more specific advice to FurrySings, because I think FurrySings is continuing to revert based upon a misunderstanding. Of course, if FurrySings reports the issue to ANI, FurrySings will learn the meaning of WP:Boomerang--SPhilbrick(Talk) 14:43, 3 January 2012 (UTC)
Look at the history of the Krugman page. Look at every edit Vision Thing made to the article. Every single one is to make the article more negative or less positive. Every. Single. One. FurrySings (talk) 14:55, 3 January 2012 (UTC)
♠"Look at the history of the Krugman page. Look at every edit Vision Thing made to the article. Every single one is to make the article more negative or less positive." Bias by omission is still bias. If the cited sources don't support the claims, or if the sources aren't reliable, then yes, take it out. Taking something out just because it's negative is just as wrong, however: a favorable slant is no more NPOV than a negative one.
♠That said, I did, do, & shall stand by the proposition rv & discuss should be the approach. It also appears from the talk page there Krugman has been a controversial figure on WP for some while... It appears the cites are quoting sources whose own political views conflict with Krugman's, & it's bleeding through to the page.
♠Can I suggest both sides step back from the page a day or so? Let things cool off, then discuss there? Rather than go nuclear? TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 15:48, 3 January 2012 (UTC)
With all due respect, FurrySings is reverting based upon advice from you. "Everyone back off" may sound good, but could you at least retract the earlier advice, because FurrySings is claiming the right to revert (and not contributing to the talk page discussion) based upon advice from you.(or, if you don't think you gave such advice, make it clear, because FS is citing this board as rationale for reversion.)--SPhilbrick(Talk) 16:00, 3 January 2012 (UTC)

{{od]] Don't go making out like I have any part of his behavior. Or yours. On the principle, it is rv & discuss, & that hasn't changed. Nor has my position changed: that is the right course. If there's no discussion, I disclaim any responsibility for advising based on the facts as originally presented. Nor do I accept any for the facts not being as presented. As said, I am regretting ever becoming involved in this fracas. AGF? My mistake. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 16:25, 3 January 2012 (UTC)

I'm not asking for much. FurrySings asked who was right. You said and I quote "You [FurrySings] are". All you have to do is clarify that your answer was contingent on a truthful presentation of the facts. I won't even ask you to check into the facts, although one might think that's the point of this forum All I ask is that you tell FurrySings that one don't have carte blanche to revert if one lies about the situation. You may regret being involved, but your advice is the main fuel keeping this going. Choke off your fuel and the flaming stops.--SPhilbrick(Talk) 18:01, 3 January 2012 (UTC)
♠"your answer was contingent on a truthful presentation of the facts" Of course. If someone uses it as an excuse, however, I disclaim any responsibility for it or, indeed, any ability to do anything about it.
♠"I won't even ask you to check into the facts" Had the page in question been linked to in the first place, I would not have given the blanket statement I did; having looked at the edits in question, I wouldn't have necessarily agreed. Which is why I say POV is inappropriate for both sides, here. I get the sense the sources have a strong POV, & people are using that to introduce a POV: "The source says it, we can put it in." Well, no. Sourced bias is still bias, & negative commentary isn't necessarily grounds for deletion.
♠As said, neutrality is, must be, the goal. Take a hypothetical: Would we include an accusation Lloyd George is a baby-killer, even if it was sourced & from a reputable paper? (In Berlin. In 1916...) I think not. Would we delete mention that Hitler arranged the mass murder of Jews? I think not. Is this case that simple or clear? No. My brief glance at the sources does seem to suggest this is akin to what's happening. The result isn't entirely neutral on either side. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 20:19, 3 January 2012 (UTC)


Visionthing has been edit warring to do this[20]. Can anyone look at this and say that he is not motivated by the intention to make Krugman look bad? FurrySings (talk) 02:12, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

Serious amount of unknown importance articles

I've been doing some poking around from the military biography task force and discovered that you guys have over 350,000 articles of unknown importance total for your wikiproject (almost 30,000 from the military section alone). I think there is a serious backlog here. 76.7.231.130 (talk) 14:09, 1 January 2012 (UTC)

Does'nt anyone else think this is serious? 76.7.231.130 (talk) 21:50, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
  • Not really. I think we have more important things to do for the moment, like improving existing bios (and rating them once done), or creating one of the myriad ones that are still missing (and rate them once created... :-) --Guillaume2303 (talk) 21:59, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
Just seems to me like it shouldn't take too much time to give an importance rating to an article that one is working on. (I also just discovered that there are over 118,000 articles in this project which lack an assessment. In case someone thought this constitutes a backlog as well). 76.7.231.130 (talk) 04:25, 9 January 2012 (UTC)

Look, what's the point of having an importance rating in the first place if its not used? Either this backlog of unrated importance articles should be taken care of or the importance tag should be gotten rid of. (No point in having it if its not used.) 76.7.231.130 (talk) 04:47, 11 January 2012 (UTC)

If this bothers you then start clearing out the backlog. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.40.145.244 (talk) 04:54, 11 January 2012 (UTC)
Do you realize how long it would take one person to do over a quater million articles? I was hoping to get at least a few others in this project interested in this problem. Besides there are thirty five people in this project and they could pitch in a bit, since this is supposed to be their project. 76.7.231.130 (talk) 00:33, 13 January 2012 (UTC)

Ok, so nobody cares. So I guess I won't either. Since I'm leaving Wikipedia it won't matter. 76.7.231.130 (talk) 04:08, 15 January 2012 (UTC)

William S. Clark

Hello, I wanted to drop a note here to let people involved in this project know about an open FA nomination for William S. Clark. The article is a part of WikiProject Biography. Clark was an American educator who helped establish Hokkaido University. His significance to East/West international relations of that period would, I think, make him a good FA candidate. So far, the nomination has not attracted much attention and I hope that some folks from this project might be inclined to comment. The nomination can be found here. Thanks. Historical Perspective (talk) 14:21, 14 January 2012 (UTC)


Possible deletion of article Jessica Ahlquist

Jessica Ahlquist is a 16-year old student recently controversial for having a religiously-oriented banner removed from her school.

Ms Ahlquist may be a "person notable for only one event" ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:1E ) and thus fail notability ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NOTE ).

Additionally, though I was not able to find any specific guidelines for this, as a 16-year-old minor, it may be appropriate to treat Ms Ahlquist differently than we would an adult.

-- 186.221.134.210 (talk) 02:55, 15 January 2012 (UTC)

Carlo Buti

You know so little about Carlo Buti. He sang and recorded 1574 songs, but he was better then Bing Crosby the wife and child beater. And Frank Sinatra? Ha, ha, ha. No he didn’t belong to any Mafia gang. Elvis the druggie? Not to mention that Carlo could out sing them with two tonsils tied behind his back. The comparison is an insult. To any true Italian of that time you mock and show ignorance. you don't even know Reno Savagli and his manolin. You don't know Aureilo Fierrio.And Richard Tucker could outsing Pavoroti. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.162.228.162 (talk) 09:32, 15 January 2012 (UTC)

Comments regarding that particular article need to be addressed at Talk:Carlo Buti. Please note that talk pages are not a forum for discussion of the subject, but rather are intended for discussion on encyclopedic improvements to the article. Thank you.--JayJasper (talk) 22:22, 15 January 2012 (UTC)

Help needed about the personal life of Thore Schölermann

I raised the issue two months ago on the article talk page, but haven't got any answer to date, so I thought I should ask for help here.

I tried to include information about his relationship with actress Jana Julie Kilka. It was deleted by an user who qualified it as "gossip". I found a new, better source (which has the only problem that it's in German, something that seems inevitable if we're talking about a not so widely known German actor) and included it again. And it was deleted again without explanation, so I've started to wonder if I did anything wrong.

Could somebody help me on what should I do?

(The "Personal life" section on the article right now includes information about his language skills and childhood pets, with Youtube videos as sources.)

Thanks Not A Superhero (talk) 20:55, 15 January 2012 (UTC)

Erich Maria Remarque

Hello, I am not a scholar. I am just somoene looking for clarification and perhaps offering a small morsel of information. I have come into posession of a geneology written by my grandmother in 1996. She lists on it Eric Remarque. She lists on it that Maria, a daughter of Heinreich Poppinghaus, married him and they had children; Gertrude, and Stella. If you could clarify this for me I would greatly appreciate this. Perhaps this would also help you in your research. Thank you for your consideration. Please feel free to contact me via 1mkenc@earthlink.net Sincerely, Mark A. Kenchel --75.216.132.106 (talk) 02:12, 17 January 2012 (UTC)

Too much info?

I don't wanna be accused of owning an article, so I wondered if someone else would take a look at the edits made recently to Lowkey's page. To me the recent edits seem a bit too in depth but I don't have much experience editing biographies and musicians. Other opinions and edits are welcome. Tony2Times (talk) 11:55, 4 January 2012 (UTC)

I'm inclined to agree. Mention of his "feuds" might be merited, but so much? Not from where I stand. And his views on everything from Zionism to Arab Spring? Seriously? If he was Kissinger or Madeleine Albright, maybe. Or even Bill Buckley or Walter Cronkite. Otherwise, really not. Junk it. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 16:06, 4 January 2012 (UTC)
Those additions are totally over the top. Go back to the much shorter version from 30 December. Hohenloh + 12:54, 5 January 2012 (UTC)
I tried to incorporate some of it, but trimmed it way down however an IP has reverted it. I just wanna double check I'm not being overzealous and also maybe have some help watching it or something, I don't wanna be caught acropper of three reversals and all. Tony2Times (talk) 09:25, 23 January 2012 (UTC)

Is this an appropriate list?

Does a list like this belong in a person's article? I'm asking because this editor has added lists like this to a few different bio articles, and there is no explanation of the relevance or significance of the list, which leads me to conclude that they are WP:OR. 129.33.19.254 (talk) 20:34, 21 January 2012 (UTC)

looks like it was done by some one who does not understand what categories are for.--Traveler100 (talk) 21:06, 21 January 2012 (UTC)
Probably true. 129.33.19.254 (talk) 22:23, 21 January 2012 (UTC)

WikiProject Abraham Lincoln proposal

Hello. To editors interested in Abraham Lincoln, I just created a proposal for a new WikiProject with a focus on Lincoln, similar to the WikiProject that exists for Barack Obama. Please feel free to comment on my proposal at Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Proposals/Abraham Lincoln‎. – Muboshgu (talk) 22:39, 21 January 2012 (UTC)

Objection to Deletion of Keith Perron Bio Wiki Page

Keith Perron is absolutely a real, living, breathing person who heads up PCJ Radio / PCJ Media and he is indeed on working in bringing a new Shortwave Broadcast world Service to reality. Deleting Keith's wiki bio page would be tantamount to dismissing one of the most important, visionary people in the international broadcasting world. Keith has discovered some of the world's greatest radio talent in recent history such as Paulette MacQuarrie who heads up the Nash Holos radio program, and Dan Hensley who heads up the popular radio show, Shortwave America found at http://thelook247.com/staff and Dan is also the Radio Propagation editor for Media Network Plus, a weekly and monthly show about the world of international shortwave broadcasting. The Media Network Plus show is the brain child of Keith Perron.

Due to the world economy being in the slump it is in, and the fading away of several Shortwave Stations over the years, it is hard to source and completely document the people who work in the industry because the stations do not leave much if anything behind about th etalent who once worked for them. Those stations who are still in operation have buried their past talent files, and so the best sources out here are the listeners. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.21.168.240 (talk) 09:32, 22 January 2012 (UTC)

Reviewer needed for W. E. B. Du Bois Featured article status

The project has an opportunity to have another Featured Article: W. E. B. Du Bois is up for FA review, at Wikipedia:Featured article candidates/W. E. B. Du Bois/archive1. It has two reviewers, but needs a third to be ratified. If you want to review it, make sure you are familiar with the criteria at Wikipedia:Featured article criteria, and dont be afraid to suggest improvements. Thanks. --Noleander (talk) 20:52, 22 January 2012 (UTC)

Asking again: Is editing BLPs with a political bias breaking Wikipedia policy?

Look at these two edits. Firstly to Friedrich Hayek,[21] and secondly to Paul Krugman.[22] Vision Thing is editing right wing BLPs to puff them up, and editing left-wing BLPs to blacken their names, giving very flimsy reasons for his edits. I have looked at his history, and it looks like he comes to Wikipedia to push a political point of view. I feel that this is wrong and that there should be some rule against doing this. Is there? FurrySings (talk) 10:15, 26 January 2012 (UTC)

I have followed your suggestion and posted to Wikipedia:Biographies of living persons/Noticeboard. FurrySings (talk) 12:42, 26 January 2012 (UTC)

Wikipedia's terribly innacurate biography page for Michelangelo

As my headline states, Wikipedia's non-editable "Michelangelo" biography page is (while admittedly very greatly improved now compared to how it was the last time I read it) still unacceptably inaccurate on some critical points:

Among other things, the page sites John Addington Symonds (universally recognized as the foremost scholar of Michelangelo studies) as being the person that revealed that previously censored sonnets written by Michelangelo to Tomaso Cavalieri had been written to a man, and seems to suggest that Symonds pioneered the idea that Michelangelo was a homosexual: as a matter of fact, Symonds in his biography of Michelangelo was adamant that Michelangelo was not a homosexual (as also were Michelangelo's biographers Ascanio Condivi and Giorgio Vasari, both of whom were close personal friends of the artist), and moreover he stressed that to interpret Michelangelo's art as evidence of homosexuality was to completely misunderstand his art--and this last point made by Michelangelo's foremost biographer is in direct contradiction to the position taken in the Wikipedia article.

Beyond this, your article incorrectly suggests that the series of epigrams that Michelangelo wrote honoring the memory of young Cecchino Bracci were poems written to a young man that seems to have been his lover (and your article on Bracci's uncle Luigi Riccio repeats this same error), when as a matter of fact Michelangelo hardly even knew Bracci, and wrote the epigrams on commission for Bracci's funeral, as on the same occasion he agreed to make a good sculpture of Bracci for the boy's uncle.

I will acknowledge here that the Michelangelo article has very greatly improved from the way it was when I saw it before, especially in its descriptions of what by all accounts were the two most notable relationships of Michelangelo's life: those with Tomaso Cavalieri and Vittoria Colonna. The last time I read this article, it very greatly minimized and downplayed his relationship with Colonna (who all that knew Michelangelo agreed was the great love of his life), and at the same time somewhat exaggerated and misconstrued his friendship with Cavalieri--but as I said that really egregious fault has now been largely corrected: I'm still not certain that every fact presented is correct in regard to those relationships, but definitely the stories as described now are in the right general ballpark of what we know to have happened, and that is a huge improvement from before and is very much appreciated. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Callmetom04 (talkcontribs) 14:52, 28 January 2012 (UTC)


Pope John Paul II article improvement

The Pope John Paul II article is on peer review. If anyone would like to help improve the article please pop by :-) -- Marek.69 talk 18:52, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

Wikipedia:Templates for discussion/Log/2012 January 30#Template:Persondata

The Persondata template has been listed for deletion or modification at Wikipedia:Templates for discussion/Log/2012 January 30#Template:Persondata. As a project that would be affected if the template is deleted or modifed I am leaving this notice. --Kumioko (talk) 20:37, 30 January 2012 (UTC)

Greetings, as a WikiProject that relates to this article, this notice was sent to let you know that the article, Leon Panetta, has been nominated to be a future Collaboration of the Month article. All editors interested in voting for or improving these article are encouraged to participate. You can cast your vote here. --Kumioko (talk) 16:39, 31 January 2012 (UTC)

WikiWomen's History Month

Hi everyone. March is Women's History Month and I'm hoping a few folks here at WP:Biography will have interest in putting on events related to women's bios. We've created an event page on English Wikipedia (please translate!) and I hope you'll find the inspiration to participate. These events can take place off wiki, like edit-a-thons, or on wiki, such as themes and translations. Please visit the page here: WikiWomen's History Month. Thanks for your consideration and I look forward to seeing events take place! SarahStierch (talk) 19:10, 1 February 2012 (UTC)

What's the deal with musical groups

I notice that a lot of bands have the WPBiography template added to their talk page. According to this project's scope groups are not to be included "unless a substantial section of the article is a biography of a person related to that organization or group". Sifting through the archives of this page I see a few related discussions however that seem to suggest that a less rigid stance is taken (example). Is there any consensus on how to approach this issue? __meco (talk) 11:46, 3 February 2012 (UTC)

The lead of this article needs drastic remodelling. At the moment the weight given to the abuse allegations and their refutation (which is so strenuous it looks like "protesting too much") has turned the lead into a classic example of WP:UNDUE. I know nothing about this man but even a brief skim through his biography tells me there's more to it than this. Britmax (talk) 13:18, 5 February 2012 (UTC)

Biographical metadata and article statistics

I've mentioned this WikiProject at a proposal I made at Wikipedia:Village pump (idea lab)#Biographical metadata. Please comment there if you would be interested in helping with that proposal or have ideas or suggestions, or know where such statistics are currently documented, if anywhere. Thanks. Carcharoth (talk) 17:38, 5 February 2012 (UTC)

Occupy Wall Street reassessed to C class

Please comment on the talk page, or make a comment here.--Amadscientist (talk) 11:59, 6 February 2012 (UTC)

Firestoned

Since IDK where to take this, let me make a request here to an Admin. User:AndrewFirestone777 has, to date, repeatedly added Diego Firestone to the Firestone dab page. He's done (literally) nothing else since June 2011. He's ignored repeated requests to stop, or create the actual page. IDK if this rises to vandalism, but advisorys or warnings appear futile. Can somebody do something? Thx. TREKphiler any time you're ready, Uhura 19:44, 9 February 2012 (UTC) (FYI: not watching this page, & not looking for an answer here if action gets taken.)

[moved to WP:ANI ]. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 20:54, 9 February 2012 (UTC)

Mike Baxter (baseball) Wrong Batting Average

I was watching Last Man Standing, and they mentioned Mike Baxter - I looked on WIkipedia, and although it was the wrong Mike Baxter, I noticed that the baseball players career average was off.

The main page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Baxter_(baseball)

Currently it states the following:

Batting average .989

I am not a baseball fan and know little of the game, but even I know that a career average of 0.325 would be impressive. I sort of assume these numbers are feeds from some baseball stat site, but I don't know which one is the best. The link shows his average way below 0.989, but I did not want to correct this for two reasons:

1. I am not an expert on the subject, and 2. There may be a data feed problem (more global problem).

Thanks,

Dsmoya31410 (talk) 00:04, 10 February 2012 (UTC)

The correction has been made. See Talk:Mike Baxter (baseball).--JayJasper (talk) 07:20, 10 February 2012 (UTC)

Valeriu Boboc and BIO1E

There is a discussion at Talk:Death of Valeriu Boboc , as to whether this person is a BIO1E person, or whether he is well known enough to have a biography article, or whether there should a bio and a death article. The event this is related to is the 2009 Moldova civil unrest. Further input would be appreciated. 70.24.247.54 (talk) 09:21, 11 February 2012 (UTC)

Unsourced changes to footballers heights

I have to go out but there are some changes here that need watching. Britmax (talk) 15:44, 11 February 2012 (UTC)

Category:Old Royals

Category:Old Royals, which is within the scope of this WikiProject, has been nominated for discussion. If you would like to participate in the discussion, you are invited to add your comments at the category's entry on the Categories for discussion page. Thank you. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 21:19, 12 February 2012 (UTC)

Category:Old Cathedralians

Category:Old Cathedralians, which is within the scope of this WikiProject, has been nominated for discussion. If you would like to participate in the discussion, you are invited to add your comments at the category's entry on the Categories for discussion page. Thank you. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 05:35, 13 February 2012 (UTC)

Ben Vereen's traffic accidents and aftermath

Well, I'm sorry to have to inform you about this, but someone at Wikipedia is clearly intentionally suppressing essential facts about Ben Vereen's life that they (for whatever bias or reason of their own) don't want the public to know about: I just now added some essential facts to the article whose omission cannot possibly be justified by Wikipedia, and literally before I could finish putting the source notation (part of which consisted of my own eye witness account, and part of which came from an online interview of Ben Vereen) in the appropriate box, had already been deleted--As the article stands right now, my source notation is there, but without the relevant (deleted) information in the text. For the editor to delete this information so quickly as he did without making any effort to check it out, or even to wait for me to finish the source notation, is clearly the deliberate and intentional suppression of factual information from the public--and I suppose it explains why the information (which involves an event in Mr. Vereen's life that was witnessed by many thousands of people in person, as well as untold others on national television) was not already in the article. This dishonest and bigoted practice can only be described as despicable, and I am without any doubt that Mr. Vereen himself will take the greatest possible exception to the suppression of truth about his life: I intend to contact Mr. Vereen personally and let him know the disgusting thing Wikipedia is doing (or allowing to be done) with his biography. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Callmetom04 (talkcontribs) 13:54, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

You do that, and come back and tell us what he said. I had a look at the breathless prose you added to the article and am not surprised it was removed. No amount of d-words - dishonest disgusting, despicable - etc, will convince us that your report is worth our time. (For others: the OP added a paragraph which suggests the subject of the article was iraculously healed on a televangelical show.) --Tagishsimon (talk) 16:58, 13 February 2012 (UTC)

Addendum to my earlier post about Ben Vereen

Okay, I want to say now that at the moment that I made that post above about Ben Vereen I was very frustrated, because I had just been deleted in exactly the time and manner that I described, and also because this whole issue is frustrating to me, as obviously there are people out there (not just on Wikipedia) actively suppressing the information about the facts regarding Ben Vereen's traffic accident. So I want to apologize to anyone out there that might have been bothered by the tone of my original statement, and also I apologize to anyone that I might seem to have falsely accused of wrong doing: at the same time, though, I do still intend to let Mr. Vereen know what is happening with this, because this by far is not right. One of the problems with this whole situation is that it is hard to properly source what happened that night on the Benny Hinn t.v. show, because some unknown person(s) has assiduously removed all reference to the incident (that so many of us witnessed) from the internet--If it wouldn't have been for that, I could just google something like "Hinn Vereen" and it would bring up all kinds of copies of the television show that I could link.

And for anyone on here that is wondering what it is I keep talking about: after first being pronounced dead at the scene, and then (having recovered of course) told that he may never walk again and that he should give up his show business career, Vereen went on the Benny Hinn show and bowed his head while Hinn prayed over him, with famous boxer Evander Holyfield sharing the stage with him and surrounded by an audience of thousands (not to mention the national television audience): after a period of Hinn praying over him, Vereen announced that the process was complete, and then he stood up and happily danced all over the stage in front of the wildly cheering audience, as if he had never been injured. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Callmetom04 (talkcontribs) 15:35, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

Look, you know the deal: assertions require sources. Improbable claims doubly so. If you wish to peddle tosh such as "some unknown person(s) has assiduously removed all reference to the incident (that so many of us witnessed) from the internet", you'll forgive us if we don't take you seriously. You're making a faith healing claim and getting pissy first with us because we don;t, without sources, believe it, and then mr. unknown person for deleting all of the "proof". All in all, it is not very convincing, not least set against the referenced "required him to undergo arduous physical rehabilitation in the ensuing months". Maybe God and the faith healers turned up somewhat late, after he'd had those months of arduous physical rehabilitation? Just a thought. --Tagishsimon (talk) 17:15, 13 February 2012 (UTC)

Three articles on two people?

We have an article on Scott Nearing. We have one on Helen Nearing. Should we really have one on Helen and Scott Nearing? Dougweller (talk) 21:24, 10 February 2012 (UTC)

Actually, arguably yes; but the third article currently has the wrong title. In essence it seems to be me from a quick skim through that the third article is about about their joint lifestyle (the back-to-the-land thing), and that is the kernel of their notability - exactly as if they'd built something tangible such as Stephenson's Rocket - in their case their very way of life was notable. It is as deserving of an article as they are as individuals; and that thing - an exposition of their lifestyle - would arguably be lost in a biography. So the third article, in my head at least, has a title something like The back to the land lifestyle of Helen and Scott Nearing. Only shorter and more snappy. Helen and Scott Nearing's good life, for instance. (I could be wrong; but let's see what you think of it. --Tagishsimon (talk) 00:06, 11 February 2012 (UTC)
Looks good to me and would solve the problem. Thanks. Dougweller (talk) 19:52, 11 February 2012 (UTC)
Today's FA is piano music of Gabriel Fauré. So, yeah, we do do that when need arises. --Tagishsimon (talk) 22:33, 13 February 2012 (UTC)
The Good Life would have been an idea, although as you can see that's taken. I wonder where the writers got the idea, though...?! Britmax (talk) 20:43, 11 February 2012 (UTC)

Category:Old Lancastrians

Category:Old Lancastrians, which is within the scope of this WikiProject, has been nominated for renaming. If you would like to participate in the discussion, you are invited to add your comments at the category's entry on the Categories for discussion page. Thank you. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 17:13, 13 February 2012 (UTC)

Category:Old Elizabethans

Category:Old Elizabethans, which is within the scope of this WikiProject, has been nominated for renaming. If you would like to participate in the discussion, you are invited to add your comments at the category's entry on the Categories for discussion page. Thank you. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 18:55, 13 February 2012 (UTC)

Obscure Old Fooians

Several biographical categories relating to the schools attended by people have been nominated for discussion and renaming to 'Category:People educated at Foo School'. The categories involved are: Category:Old Decanians, Category:Old Dolphins, Category:Old Foleyans, Category:Old Savilians, Category:Old Stopfordians, Category:Old Tridents, Category:Old Verlucians, Category:Old Vigornians, Category:Old Waconians, Category:Old Waynfletes, Category:Old Wulfrunians.

You are invited to add your comments at Obscure Old Fooians on the Categories for discussion page. Thank you. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 12:44, 11 February 2012 (UTC)

Can someone please have a look over the above article.

It was created looking like a LinkedIn profile. I initially prodded it other commitments kept me off WP for a time so I couldn't monitor it properly. It was deprodded by an SPA. In fact, it has been primarily maintained by a few SPAs/part-SPAs. Every so often, I've tried copyediting and wikifying the article. I've also checked the refs and removed blacklisted sources but, in the absence of Wikipedia:Notability (business people) or a similar subject-specific guideline, I'm not sure whether the sources are adequate or even if the subject is indeed notable.

The history of SPA editing, the subject's field of work, even the multi-referencing in the lead paragraph (common to self-promoters, I've found) all suggest that this may be a case of (self?-) promotional puffery. But that's just my impression. The principles of WP:DUCK might suggest this go to AfD but I'd like to base any arguments on more than just an impression. But that's all I have. I can't make a judgement about notability without referring to the sources and I simply have no idea whether the sources are reliable or not.

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated.

On a related note, I've started a discussion here about having a notability guideline for business people.

Thank you. ClaretAsh 13:32, 15 February 2012 (UTC)

It certainly looks self-promotional. There is a forest of references, but most of them seem to be either blogs or Craven's own work. I don't see any sign of substantial coverage in reliable sources independent of the subject, so it looks like it fails WP:GNG.
I'd say take it to AFD. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 19:23, 15 February 2012 (UTC)

Recommendation to break up this project

I would like to recommend that this project be broken up into smaller more managable projects. The currently structure of this project and its size (with more than 800, 000 articles) makes many things and many bots not able to function properly. Additionally, community consensus has recently dictated that super large projects such as this are failures in waiting and are unmanagable. I recommend splitting it based on the existing subproject taskforces. Additionally, MILHIST has a biography task force which could be separated away from this project and there is also WikiProject Criminal Biography which is duplicitive of this one. Community consensus has determined that if a smaller project (Such as MILHIST Biography or Criminal biography) has a more specific scope within a larger one like this, then the smaller project should contain the article and the larger project should not because the smaller project, by default and scope, is more specific and the duplication is unneeded. --Kumioko (talk) 16:48, 17 February 2012 (UTC)

WP:POINT much, Kumioko? --SarekOfVulcan (talk) 16:59, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
Also, there is the peson task force of WikiProject LGBT studies that should probably be split out. --Kumioko (talk) 17:03, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
With all due respect Sarek I am not trying to make a point I am following the instructions of the discussion. The discussion indicated from multiple editors arguments and multiple policies that the WPUS project was too large to manage at 179, 000 articles. I freely admit that I now agree they were right. As such this project, with more than 800, 000 articles must also be too big and unmanagable. It needs to be split up, so that it can be more managable per consensus. I'm not trying to be pointy, silly or argumentatice, I am just trying to go with "community consensus". Please let the discussion unfold. --Kumioko (talk) 17:06, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
I though that work groups were the means of dividing the project into more manageable elements? What will splitting this project achieve, that good implementation of workgroups will not? --Tagishsimon (talk) 17:53, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
I'm still trying to understand that myslelf. I am inclined to agree with the new community determination that large projects are unwieldy, unmanageble monsters but the details of exactly why are still not quite clear to me either. My own opinion is that there would be several benefits to this:
  1. Smaller pieces would allow some of the tools such as Article Alerts, which don't work with WPBIO due to its size, that don't work to function.
The smaller pieces would be more specific and in that sense would be more attractive to editors with those interests rather than be lost in a large generic project.
Aside from that this project, with its large scope and large list of editors is pretty inactive currently. For sure editors are doing stuff related to Bios but the project itself has little activity. There's no organized content creation, no newsletter or collaboration anymore except this page. Just a bunch of individuals doing whatever. --Kumioko (talk) 18:08, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
I think you completely missed the point which was explained to you a few times. Large number of articles does not mean a project too big. Too wide a scope means a project is too big. The two are different things. WPBio only focuses on biographies thus it has a small scope. It doesn't focus on books about people and houses people lived in and food people ate and every other thing remotely related to biographies. It just focuses on biographies. Whereas the project people complained about was that WPUS was tagging articles that had the word American in it even if they had nothing to do with the US.....they were tagging articles that were so remotely related to the US as to be laughable. -DJSasso (talk) 18:21, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
Maybe I missed the point. But wouldn't All biographies be a pretty wide scope? That seems pretty wide to me. As for the tagging of American, thats a dead horse. Its dead. I have stated repeatedly and no one seems to be listening. THERE WERE PROBLEMS WITH THAT BOT RUN. I know that, I was working on fixing that. I have about 150 articles I was going to remove to start that accidentally got dropped in that scope. But, the vast majority of the 11, 000 articles I tagged were in the right scope. Take for instance the 3 that Mark editwarred over and for which I was blocked for. American Elec. Power Co. v. Connecticut concerned six states as defendants, American Cruise Lines is active in multiple states including Alaska. Need I go on. The root cause of the problem is article ownership issues plain and simple and this is all a huge tangent from the current discussion. That you and several others have convinced me that the Biography project and several others are too big and unmanagable. I am starting here because this is the biggest project that exists and with 800, 000 articles is way too big to be managable. --Kumioko (talk) 18:30, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
No a scope is the areas you are covering. You are covering too many areas which means you are bringing in topics that are so remotely related to the US that they would not help anyone by being included and in fact may actually hinder work on more relevant articles. Where as WPBio covers one topic and one topic only which makes it a very narrow scope. You also keep accusing people of ownership while constantly spouting off about how no one who isn't an official member of your project may comment on your scope...which is guess what? Ownership. You can't accuse others of it while you are very much doing it. Not to mention people said that WPUS could be reorganized to make it more efficient and manageable just like WPBio is with its work-groups/task forces. But you don't want to work together to streamline things, you instead want to make WP:POINT edits here instead. -DJSasso (talk) 18:34, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
Were really off topic here and this would have been more appropriate on my talk page but your looking at the forest and missing the trees. Don't forget that WPUS supported about 70 projects. Most of the aricles I was tagging would have had 1 or more of the other projects tag in the coming couple months. Because of the complication of slicing the categories and creating the code to tag and assess articles it requires multiple runs. I NEVER EVER told a project that they couldnt add their tag to an article under the scope of WPUS, NEVER. I cannot say the same of others. Yes there is some inherint ownership of the project and its scope to its members. Your right and that is by design and the way it should be. We never showed ownership over what this place is about, the articles and content. You sir (I assume sir, sorry if its Maam) are missing the point. I want to work with the other projects. That is one of the primary reasons I recreated the project. Because the xenophobic actions of some of the projects is counterproductive to the pedia. But they won't work with us. They don't want our help. They want us to stay away. You need to talk to them about why. I have worked with ANYONE, who has asked for it whether they were a part of the project or not. --Kumioko (talk) 18:46, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
You want to work with other projects? Yet you keep telling them their opinion is wrong and ignoring them. You tell them that they can't have an effect on how things are done cause they aren't "true" members. You tell me if that seems like you are trying to work with other projects. To me it certainly seems like you are trying to bully other projects with it should be your way or no way. -DJSasso (talk) 18:53, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
Not true, I respoect that each project can lay its own scope, procedures, etc. What I do not accept is that a project can tell another project it can't tag an article. I also stated that an outside member cannot tell a project how to set its scope, function and procedures. I don't tell USroads, Connecticut, birds or anyone else what its scope is and I don't try and orchestrate a mutiny to change it. I don't have to agree with it but I also don't have to be a member of the project. THIS SHOULD NOT BE HERE. Please move to my talk page if you want to keep discussing this. --Kumioko (talk) 18:59, 17 February 2012 (UTC)
I also think its a little strange DJSasso that you were one of the primary architects of the scope is to big, project is too big = unmanagable philosophy and now it doesn't apply. Scope = Biography, Scope = United States/70 supported prjoects. It seems kind similar to me. In fact Biography is the unmanagable onen to me because WPUS is broken up into about 70 pieces, each one able to finction autonomously from the main project (with the excetion of the template and a standardized naming for certain related pages and categories). --Kumioko (talk) 18:59, 17 February 2012 (UTC)

tl;dr, but the subject heading reminded me that I've been meaning to mention the issue that some editors are using this project talk page instead of WP:BLPN, or for matters more appropriate to article talk pages. If we could deflect reports of BLP violations/ content dispute discussions to more appropriate pages (with a pointer posted here if necessary), and reserve this one for meta-discussion of how to write biographies, that would surely help everyone involved? Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 19:33, 17 February 2012 (UTC)

Category:Old Gregorians

Category:Old Gregorians, which is within the scope of this WikiProject, has been nominated for renaming to Category:People educated at Downside School. If you would like to participate in the discussion, you are invited to add your comments at the category's entry on the Categories for discussion page. Thank you. --BrownHairedGirl (talk) • (contribs) 13:45, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

Jane Barker

I am not contributor to Wikipedia, just a concerned academic. I've tried to find a way of reporting plagiarism, but failing that I have decided to post here in hopes someone could fix the entry on Jane Barker. Much of this article is badly plagiarized from the Kathryn King article “Jane Barker and Her Life (1652-1732): The Documentary Record.”

For instance: King writes, “Like other families of only moderate prosperity, the Barkers pinned their ambitions and concentrated their limited resources on the eldest son and heir. Edward's academic career witnesses to the minor gentry's pursuit of advancement through the channels of elite education: when nearly thirteen he was sent to the prestigious Merchant Taylors' School in London; 25 he matriculated five years later (on 3 July 1668) at St. John's College, Oxford, 26 receiving a B.A. in 1672 and an M.A. from Christ Church on 8 March 1675. 27” Which in the article becomes: “Like other families of the gentry class, the Barkers dedicated their limited resources to the education of the eldest son and heir, Edward, who received a B.A. in 1672 and an M.A. in 1675 at St. John's College, Oxford.”

Needless to say, King’s article is not out of copyright. While the Wikipedia entry acknowledges King's article as a source, it appropriates significant portions of her text without citation. The entire article needs to be either rewritten or returned to a plagiarism free earlier version as nearly the entire article is like this. By the standards I use to judge plagiarism in the classroom, this would get a student put on either academic probation or expelled if it was a repeat offense. I am not familiar with Wikipedia's standards and therefore have not reverted the page. If someone with more knowledge of Wikipedia's policy's could take charge of this, I would greatly appreciate it. I am not at liberty to write original material for the page, due to professional commitments. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.193.111.225 (talk) 21:49, 21 February 2012 (UTC)

Colin Larkin (writer)

An anon IP who appears to be Colin Larkin (writer) has taken offense to a series of edits made to the article about him. He asserts that they are malicious and introduce factual errors into the article. I did not make the edits, but have looked over them and can see nothing wrong with them. Basically it was a copyedit and removal of unreferenced or poorly referenced praise.

Nevertheless, I feel the strength of feeling from the subject is enough to warrant a third opinion from someone experience in biographical articles. Perhaps someone could take a look and give their thoughts at Talk:Colin Larkin (writer).

Many thanks. GDallimore (Talk) 18:28, 22 February 2012 (UTC)

Request to add Tara Grinstead

Tara Grinstead High School Teacher disappeared without a trace in 2005 from her home in Ocilla Georgia — Preceding unsigned comment added by Leeleesnana (talkcontribs) 02:42, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

Deirdre O'Connell actress

Her biography states that she died in 2001. She was on a 2012 episode of "Person of Interest" this evening.

75.76.223.162 (talk) 03:41, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

There are 2 different Deirdre O'Connells. Deirdre O'Connell died in 2001 and Deirdre O'Connell (actress) is still alive. You saw Deirdre O'Connell (actress) on person of interest. GB fan 04:06, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

Thoughs on nationality/ethnicity and language categories (the last as in Category:French-language writers

These three categories overlap somewhat. My main thoughts on the issues follow. First off, in the United States the rule to use ethnic and not racial categories needs to be enforced. Too often racial categories are used, thus classifying people in ways that go against their actual ethnic origin.John Pack Lambert (talk) 05:13, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

The general rule, especially with writers (which is where I have most often noticed these problems) should be as follows. To start with people should be classified by nationality. They should also be classified by profssion. This is especially true of politicians, writers and so on. In most cases they can be classified by the intersection of these two. This gets us to the tricky cases. Ethnic groups that do not have a corresponding nation-state that uses the same name are easy. However, what of people who are ethnic minorities in a different country, such as Greeks in the Ottoman Empire (especially from 1830-1918). Another complexed issue is Armenians. I will suggest some general rules. I invite others to add comments on the issue.John Pack Lambert (talk) 05:13, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

My general impression is that first off, people who were part of specific ethno-national groups before the current nation state was formed, should be put in the same category with those from the current nation-state. Thus a Ukrainian writer who died in 1985 can still be so classified. Secondly, people are "German" if they were citizens of Germany in 1930, even if they are ethnically Polish. I would suggest that we create seperate nationality and ethnic categories for Armenians and Greeks. For people who are writers, singers or others where the language they use is of major concern we adopt specific rules to limit the number of over-categorizations. In general such language use should only be noted if it is not the dominant language of the nation the person is from. Thus an English-language writer who is a citzen of China can be so categorized, but one who is a citizen of the United States would not be so categorized. In cases like India and the Phillipines I see no particular reason to avoid categorizing any particular languages, although it is not neccesary in all cases. Also in general classifying someone in multiple language categories should be based on a substantial body of work in that language, not very short or fleeting uses of it.John Pack Lambert (talk) 05:13, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

FAR

I have nominated Frederick_Russell_Burnham for a featured article review here. Please join the discussion on whether this article meets featured article criteria. Articles are typically reviewed for two weeks. If substantial concerns are not addressed during the review period, the article will be moved to the Featured Article Removal Candidates list for a further period, where editors may declare "Keep" or "Delist" the article's featured status. The instructions for the review process are here. Nikkimaria (talk) 14:03, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

More eyes needed please

George Harrison (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views)

Hello to the members of this project. There has always been some dispute over Harrison's birth date. Previous discussion on the talk page reached a consensus but editing on his page has hotted up again in the last few days. There has been done without new discussion on the talk page. Let me state that I am not adverse to changing the date if new info has come to light but it would be much appreciated if any of you who have the time could take a look at the situation. MarnetteD | Talk 16:06, 24 February 2012 (UTC)


Crystal Bird Fauset

I have recently stated an article on Crystal Bird Fauset who was the first female African American state legislator. Any help on making this a better article would be greatly appreciated. Littlei76 (talk) 18:22, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

Wikipedia:WikiProject Occupy movement

Wikipedia:WikiProject Occupy movement

I have begun the procedure for beginning the project by making the proposal at Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Proposals. To add your name to support the proposal go to Wikipedia:WikiProject Council/Proposals/Occupy movement.--Amadscientist (talk) 23:08, 24 February 2012 (UTC)

New article on film director Oliver Blackburn

I've created this new article. If you've got additional input for secondary sources, please feel free to suggest them at the article's talk page, I'd really appreciate it. :) Cheers, — Cirt (talk) 07:43, 25 February 2012 (UTC)

The article Alireza Asgharzadeh has been proposed for deletion because of the following concern:

Because the person does not meet the criteria of notability (WP:ACADEMIC) and also the page is not a place for propaganda and advertising : WP:NOTPROMOTION and WP:SOAPBOX

While all contributions to Wikipedia are appreciated, content or articles may be deleted for any of several reasons.

You may prevent the proposed deletion by removing the {{proposed deletion/dated}} notice, but please explain why in your edit summary or on the article's talk page.

Please consider improving the article to address the issues raised. Removing {{proposed deletion/dated}} will stop the proposed deletion process, but other deletion processes exist. In particular, the speedy deletion process can result in deletion without discussion, and articles for deletion allows discussion to reach consensus for deletion. Alborz Fallah (talk) 17:59, 25 February 2012 (UTC)

Sourceless alert: Eraric

In my experience bogus data sometimes emerge and perpetuate on Wikipedia. My shallow googling for the spurious ostrogothic king Eraric indicates no source except the infinite number of wikipedia copies. Did he exist, or did a false meme slink into wikipedia? Rursus dixit. (mbork3!) 16:58, 26 February 2012 (UTC)

He might have existed, see History of the later Roman Empire from the death of Theodosius I ..., Volume 2 by John Bagnell Bury. Rursus dixit. (mbork3!) 17:26, 26 February 2012 (UTC)
It looks to me that you have answered your own question. John Bagnell Bury's work is now nearly 100 years old, but I'd generally regard it as reliable unless contradicted by a definitely reliable modern source. Even then, I'd usually look for a second modern source for confirmation. PWilkinson (talk) 23:33, 26 February 2012 (UTC)

Gordon H. Bower

I think it would be a really good idea to discuss more about his contribution to memory research on chunking. Stolstrup (talk) 05:42, 27 February 2012 (UTC)

New article on music composer François-Eudes Chanfrault

I've created this new article. If you've got additional input for secondary sources, please feel free to suggest them at the article's talk page, I'd really appreciate it. :) Cheers, — Cirt (talk) 06:51, 27 February 2012 (UTC)

Brian Lamb

I'd like to invite members of this WikiProject to review and comment on a new draft for the article about C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb which I have written, and is currently under discussion on the Paid Editor Help page of WikiProject Cooperation. I have indeed written the new draft on behalf of C-SPAN, and because of my COI I'm seeking consensus for the change as opposed to making changes directly. However, at present there's one independent editor who finds the article a clear improvement and another who prefers the current one, so further views would be helpful. Cheers, WWB Too (talk) 16:59, 27 February 2012 (UTC)

Corrections to Mani Lal Bhaumik page

The part that can be considered by Wikipedia as a violation of the policy of Neutrality has been edited out. The rest of the material is well documented, so the warning sign at the top of the page should be removed, otherwise, it would cast a shadow of doubt on the entire bio, which would be unfair. Mlbhaumik (talk) 18:32, 27 February 2012 (UTC)02/27/2012

  1. ^ Haines, R.C. ed and transl, Marcus Aurelius, Harvard U Press Loeb Classical Library #58 Introduction page xv
  2. ^ Blog post, thus not to WP standards