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Government

A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.

In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a means by which organizational policies are enforced, as well as a mechanism for determining policy. In many countries, the government has a kind of constitution, a statement of its governing principles and philosophy.

While all types of organizations have governance, the term government is often used more specifically to refer to the approximately 200 independent national governments and subsidiary organizations.

The main types of modern political systems recognized are democracies, totalitarian regimes, and, sitting between these two, authoritarian regimes with a variety of hybrid regimes. Modern classification system also include monarchies as a standalone entity or as a hybrid system of the main three. Historically prevalent forms of government include monarchy, aristocracy, timocracy, oligarchy, democracy, theocracy, and tyranny. These forms are not always mutually exclusive, and mixed governments are common. The main aspect of any philosophy of government is how political power is obtained, with the two main forms being electoral contest and hereditary succession.

Definitions and etymology
A government is the system to govern a state or community. The Columbia Encyclopedia defines government as "a system of social control under which the right to make laws, and the right to enforce them, is vested in a particular group in society". While all types of organizations have governance, the word government is often used more specifically to refer to the approximately 200 independent national governments on Earth, as well as their subsidiary organizations, such as state and provincial governments as well as local governments.

The word government derives from the Greek verb κυβερνάω [] meaning to steer with a gubernaculum (rudder), the metaphorical sense being attested in the literature of classical antiquity, including Plato's Ship of State. In British English, "government" sometimes refers to what's also known as a "ministry" or an "administration", i.e., the policies and government officials of a particular executive or governing coalition. Finally, government is also sometimes used in English as a synonym for rule or governance.

In other languages, cognates may have a narrower scope, such as the government of Portugal, which is actually more similar to the concept of "administration".

Earliest governments
The moment and place that the phenomenon of human government developed is lost in time; however, history does record the formations of early governments. About 5,000 years ago, the first small city-states appeared. By the third to second millenniums BC, some of these had developed into larger governed areas: Sumer, ancient Egypt, the Indus Valley civilization, and the Yellow River civilization.

One reason that explains the emergence of governments includes agriculture. Since the Neolithic Revolution, agriculture was an efficient method to create food surplus. This enabled people to specialize in non-agricultural activities. Some of them included being able to rule over others as an external authority. Others included social experimentation with diverse governance models. Both these activities formed the basis of governments. These governments gradually became more complex as agriculture supported larger and denser populations, creating new interactions and social pressures that the government needed to control. David Christian explains

"As farming populations gathered in larger and denser communities, interactions between different groups increased and the social pressure rose until, in a striking parallel with star formation, new structures suddenly appeared, together with a new level of complexity. Like stars, cities and states reorganize and energize the smaller objects within their gravitational field."Another explanation includes the need to properly manage infrastructure projects such as water infrastructure. Historically, this required centralized administration and complex social organisation, as seen in regions like Mesopotamia. However, there is archaeological evidence that shows similar successes with more egalitarian and decentralized complex societies.

Modern governments
Starting at the end of the 17th century, the prevalence of republican forms of government grew. The English Civil War and Glorious Revolution in England, the American Revolution, and the French Revolution contributed to the growth of representative forms of government. The Soviet Union was the first large country to have a Communist government. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, liberal democracy has become an even more prevalent form of government.

In the nineteenth and twentieth century, there was a significant increase in the size and scale of government at the national level. This included the regulation of corporations and the development of the welfare state.

Classification
In political science, it has long been a goal to create a typology or taxonomy of polities, as typologies of political systems are not obvious. It is especially important in the political science fields of comparative politics and international relations. Like all categories discerned within forms of government, the boundaries of government classifications are either fluid or ill-defined.

Superficially, all governments have an official de jure or ideal form. The United States is a federal constitutional republic, while the former Soviet Union was a federal socialist republic. However self-identification is not objective, and as Kopstein and Lichbach argue, defining regimes can be tricky, especially de facto, when both its government and its economy deviate in practice. For example, Voltaire argued that "the Holy Roman Empire is neither Holy, nor Roman, nor an Empire". In practice, the Soviet Union was a centralized autocratic one-party state under Joseph Stalin.

Identifying a form of government is also difficult because many political systems originate as socio-economic movements and are then carried into governments by parties naming themselves after those movements; all with competing political-ideologies. Experience with those movements in power, and the strong ties they may have to particular forms of government, can cause them to be considered as forms of government in themselves.

Other complications include general non-consensus or deliberate "distortion or bias" of reasonable technical definitions to political ideologies and associated forms of governing, due to the nature of politics in the modern era. For example: The meaning of "conservatism" in the United States has little in common with the way the word's definition is used elsewhere. As Ribuffo notes, "what Americans now call conservatism much of the world calls liberalism or neoliberalism"; a "conservative" in Finland would be labeled a "socialist" in the United States. Since the 1950s conservatism in the United States has been chiefly associated with right-wing politics and the Republican Party. However, during the era of segregation many Southern Democrats were conservatives, and they played a key role in the conservative coalition that controlled Congress from 1937 to 1963.

Social-political ambiguity
Opinions vary by individuals concerning the types and properties of governments that exist. "Shades of gray" are commonplace in any government and its corresponding classification. Even the most liberal democracies limit rival political activity to one extent or another while the most tyrannical dictatorships must organize a broad base of support thereby creating difficulties for "pigeonholing" governments into narrow categories. Examples include the claims of the United States as being a plutocracy rather than a democracy since some American voters believe elections are being manipulated by wealthy Super PACs. Some consider that government is to be reconceptualised where in times of climatic change the needs and desires of the individual are reshaped to generate sufficiency for all.

Measurement of governing
A quality of a government can be measured by Government effectiveness index, which relates to political efficacy and state capacity.

Forms
Plato in his book The Republic (375 BC) divided governments into five basic types (four being existing forms and one being Plato's ideal form, which exists "only in speech"):

 * Aristocracy (rule by law and order, like ideal traditional "benevolent" kingdoms that are not tyrannical)
 * Democracy (rule by pure liberty and equality, like a free citizen)
 * Oligarchy (rule by wealth and market-based-ethics, like a laissez-faire capitalist state)
 * Timocracy (rule by honor and duty, like a "benevolent" military; Sparta as an example)
 * Tyranny (rule by fear, like a despot)

These five regimes progressively degenerate starting with aristocracy at the top and tyranny at the bottom.

In his Politics, Aristotle elaborates on Plato's five regimes discussing them in relation to the government of one, of the few, and of the many. From this follows the classification of forms of government according to which people have the authority to rule: either one person (an autocracy, such as monarchy), a select group of people (an aristocracy), or the people as a whole (a democracy, such as a republic).

Thomas Hobbes stated on their classification:

"The difference of Commonwealths consisteth in the difference of the sovereign, or the person representative of all and every one of the multitude. And because the sovereignty is either in one man, or in an assembly of more than one; and into that assembly either every man hath right to enter, or not every one, but certain men distinguished from the rest; it is manifest there can be but three kinds of Commonwealth. For the representative must needs be one man, or more; and if more, then it is the assembly of all, or but of a part. When the representative is one man, then is the Commonwealth a monarchy; when an assembly of all that will come together, then it is a democracy, or popular Commonwealth; when an assembly of a part only, then it is called an aristocracy. Other kind of Commonwealth there can be none: for either one, or more, or all, must have the sovereign power (which I have shown to be indivisible) entire."

Modern basic political systems
According to Yale professor Juan José Linz, there a three main types of political systems today: democracies, totalitarian regimes and, sitting between these two, authoritarian regimes with hybrid regimes. Another modern classification system includes monarchies as a standalone entity or as a hybrid system of the main three. Scholars generally refer to a dictatorship as either a form of authoritarianism or totalitarianism.

Autocracy
An autocracy is a system of government in which supreme power is concentrated in the hands of one person, whose decisions are subject to neither external legal restraints nor regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perhaps for the implicit threat of a coup d'état or mass insurrection). Absolute monarchy is a historically prevalent form of autocracy, wherein a monarch governs as a singular sovereign with no limitation on royal prerogative. Most absolute monarchies are hereditary, however some, notably the Holy See, are elected by an electoral college (such as the college of cardinals, or prince-electors). Other forms of autocracy include tyranny, despotism, and dictatorship.

Aristocracy
Aristocracy is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, elite ruling class, such as a hereditary nobility or privileged caste. This class exercises minority rule, often as a landed timocracy, wealthy plutocracy, or oligarchy.

Many monarchies were aristocracies, although in modern constitutional monarchies the monarch may have little effective power. The term aristocracy could also refer to the non-peasant, non-servant, and non-city classes in the feudal system.

Democracy
[[File:Democracy claims.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|{{legend|green|National governments which self-identify as democracies}}

{{legend|red|National governments which do not self-identify as democracies}}]]

Democracy is a system of government where citizens exercise power by voting and deliberation. In a direct democracy, the citizenry as a whole directly forms a participatory governing body and vote directly on each issue. In indirect democracy, the citizenry governs indirectly through the selection of representatives or delegates from among themselves, typically by election or, less commonly, by sortition. These select citizens then meet to form a governing body, such as a legislature or jury.

Some governments combine both direct and indirect democratic governance, wherein the citizenry selects representatives to administer day-to-day governance, while also reserving the right govern directly through popular initiatives, referendums (plebiscites), and the right of recall. In a constitutional democracy the powers of the majority are exercised within the framework of a representative democracy, but the constitution limits majority rule, usually through the provision by all of certain universal rights, such as freedom of speech or freedom of association.

Republics
A republic is a form of government in which the country is considered a "public matter" (res publica), not the private concern or property of the rulers, and where offices of states are subsequently directly or indirectly elected or appointed rather than inherited. The people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people.

A common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of state is not a monarch. Montesquieu included both democracies, where all the people have a share in rule, and aristocracies or oligarchies, where only some of the people rule, as republican forms of government.

Other terms used to describe different republics include democratic republic, parliamentary republic, semi-presidential republic, presidential republic, federal republic, people's republic, and Islamic republic.

Federalism
Federalism is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. The term "federalism" is also used to describe a system of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent political units, variously called states, provinces or otherwise. Federalism is a system based upon democratic principles and institutions in which the power to govern is shared between national and provincial/state governments, creating what is often called a federation. Proponents are often called federalists.

Branches

Governments are typically organised into distinct institutions constituting branches of government each with particular powers, functions, duties, and responsibilities. The distribution of powers between these institutions differs between governments, as do the functions and number of branches. An independent, parallel distribution of powers between branches of government is the separation of powers. A shared, intersecting, or overlapping distribution of powers is the fusion of powers.

Governments are often organised into three branches with separate powers: a legislature, an executive, and a judiciary; this is sometimes called the trias politica model. However, in parliamentary and semi-presidential systems, branches of government often intersect, having shared membership and overlapping functions. Many governments have fewer or additional branches, such as an independent electoral commission or auditory branch.

Party system
Presently, most governments are administered by members of an explicitly constituted political party which coordinates the activities of associated government officials and candidates for office. In a multiparty system of government, multiple political parties have the capacity to gain control of government offices, typically by competing in elections, although the effective number of parties may be limited.

A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties together holding an absolute majority of seats in the parliament, in contrast to a minority government in which they have only a plurality of seats and often depend on a confidence-and-supply arrangement with other parties. A coalition government is one in which multiple parties cooperate to form a government as part of a coalition agreement. In a single-party government a single party forms a government without the support of a coalition, as is typically the case with majority governments, but even a minority government may consist of just one party unable to find a willing coalition partner at the moment.

A state that continuously maintains a single-party government within a (nominally) multiparty system possesses a dominant-party system. In a (nondemocratic) one-party system a single ruling party has the (more-or-less) exclusive right to form the government, and the formation of other parties may be obstructed or illegal. In some cases, a government may have a non-partisan system, as is the case with absolute monarchy or non-partisan democracy.

Maps
Democracy is the most popular form of government with more than half of the nations in the world being democracies-97 of 167 nations as of 2021. However the world is becoming more authoritarian with a quarter of the world's population under democratically backsliding governments. EIU Democracy Index 2017.svg by the Economist Intelligence Unit, 2017

Full Democracies {{legend|#006837|9–10}} {{legend|#1a9850|8–9}}

Flawed Democracies {{legend|#66bd63|7–8}} {{legend|#a6d96a|6–7}}

Hybrid Regimes {{legend|#fee08b|5–6}} {{legend|#fdae61|4–5}}

Authoritarian Regimes {{legend|#f46d43|3–4}} {{legend|#d73027|2–3}} {{legend|#a50026|0–2}} ]]

Map of unitary and federal states.svg ( blue )

{{legend|#0000b0|Unitary states}} {{legend|#00e000|Federations}}]]

title: Government


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Gary Coleman

Gary Wayne Coleman (February 8, 1968 – May 28, 2010) was an American actor, known as a high profile child star of the late 1970s and 1980s. Born in Zion, Illinois, Coleman grew up with his adopted parents, and a kidney disease; due to the corticosteroids and other medications used to treat it, his growth was limited to 4 ft. In the mid-1970s Coleman appeared in commercial and acted in an episode of Medical Center. Coleman caught the attention of a producer after acting in a pilot for a revival of The Little Rascals (1977), who decided to cast him as Arnold Jackson in the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes (1978–1986), the show became successful and launched Coleman into stardom. For playing the role of Arnold, he received several accolades, which include two Young Artist Awards; in 1980 for Outstanding Contribution to Youth Through Entertainment and in 1982 for Best Young Actor in a Comedy Series; and three People's Choice Awards; a consecutive three wins for Favorite Young TV Performer from 1980 to 1983; as well as nominations for two TV Land Awards.

Coleman was the highest-paid child actor on television throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. During his prime Coleman reprised the role of Jackson in Hello, Larry (1979), The Facts of Life (1979–1980) and Silver Spoons (1982), and Amazing Stories (1985). He acted in high profile television such as The Jeffersons (1978), Good Times (1978), Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979 - 1980), and Simon & Simon (1986). He starred in the television films The Kid from Left Field (1979), Scout's Honor (1980), The Kid with the Broken Halo (1982), The Kid with the 200 I.Q. (1983), The Fantastic World of D.C. Collins (1984) and Playing with Fire (1985). Additional he was the star of his own Saturday morning cartoon The Gary Coleman Show (1982). Finally he headlined two motion pictures On the Right Track (1981), and Jimmy the Kid (1982). Both were financial successes.

Coleman struggled financially in later life; in 1989, he successfully sued his parents and business adviser over misappropriation of his assets, only to declare bankruptcy a decade later. Very few details of Coleman's medical history have been made public, although his battles with issues such as growth deficiency, substance abuse, and depression during his life earned significant media coverage.

Moving forward, a lot Coleman's acting career consisted of him playing himself in guest appearances on television shows and films. He played roles in various television shows and films. They were rarely recurring roles. Coleman also found work as security guard. Coleman provided his acting talents to two high profile video games The Curse of Monkey Island (1997) and Postal 2 (2003).

Coleman died at Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo, Utah on May 28, 2010, aged 42. He had been admitted two days earlier after falling down the stairs at his home in Santaquin and striking his head, resulting in an epidural hematoma.

Coleman became a pop culture icon. He was rated first on a list of VH1's "100 Greatest Kid Stars", and an influential child actor.

Early life
Gary Wayne Coleman was born in Zion, Illinois, on February 8, 1968. He was adopted by W. G. Coleman, a fork-lift operator, and Edmonia Sue, a nurse practitioner. Due to focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, a kidney disease, and the corticosteroids and other medications used to treat it, his growth was limited to 4 ft, and his face kept a childlike appearance even into adulthood. He underwent two unsuccessful kidney transplants in 1973 and again in 1984, and required dialysis.

1974–1978: Early works to breakthrough
In 1974, Coleman's career began when he appeared in a commercial for Harris Bank. His line (after the announcer said, "You should have a Harris banker") was "You should have a Hubert doll." "Hubert" was a stuffed lion representing the Harris bank logo. The same year, he appeared in an episode of Medical Center. In 1977, Coleman appeared in a pilot for a revival of The Little Rascals as Stymie, which ultimately ended up not getting picked up as a series. His work on the Little Rascals pilot caught the attention of an executive, and in 1978 Coleman was cast as Arnold Jackson in Diff'rent Strokes, playing one of two black brothers from Harlem adopted by a wealthy white widower in Manhattan. After the premiere, Diff'rent Strokes became a hit, and ran for 8 seasons, ending in 1986.

1979–1986: Subsequent success
Coleman received recognition and praise for his work on Diff'rent Strokes; for his role he received five Young Artist Award nominations, of which he won two, and won the People's Choice Awards for Favorite Young TV Performer four years in a row, from 1980 to 1983. At the height of his fame on Diff'rent Strokes, he earned $100,000 per episode, and he became known by his character's catchphrase "What'chu talkin' 'bout, Willis?", uttered skeptically in response to statements by his brother Willis, who was portrayed by Todd Bridges. According to Bridges' autobiography Killing Willis, Coleman was forced to work long hours on the set of Diff'rent Strokes despite his age and debilitating health problems, which contributed to him feeling depressed and withdrawn from the rest of the cast. A Biography Channel documentary estimated that Coleman was left with a quarter of the original amount of money he received from his years on Diff'rent Strokes after paying his parents, advisers, lawyers, and taxes. In 1989, Coleman sued his adoptive parents and former business advisor for $3.8 million for misappropriating his trust fund and won a $1.28 million judgment in 1993.

In 1978, Coleman acted in one episode of The Jeffersons, and two of Good Times. In 1979, Coleman made his television film debut playing the lead in The Kid from Left Field, a baseball comedy. The television film was made by NBC to enhance Coleman's name recognition and boost his commercial value. It was the 15th highest-rated prime time show of the week, with a Nielsen rating of 21.4.

In that same year, he acted in "Cosmic Whiz Kid" an episode of the first season of science-fiction show Buck Rogers in the 25th Century as a time-displaced whiz kid; and appeared later in that season, in a 1980 episode named "A Blast for Buck".

In 1980, Coleman played the lead in the television film Scout's Honor.

In 1981, Coleman made his feature film debut with the comedy On the Right Track, headlining as Lester, a young shoeshine orphan who lives in a locker in a train station, who achieves fame for having an uncanny talent for gambling on horses. Coleman's mother explained that "it was a script written some time ago for someone else, it was rewritten for Gary reconstructed for him. It was one of several ideas presented us for him. Gary has a very big love for trains, and we thought this might be a good one for him to do". Though it received a number of reviews concluding that it was sappy and capitalizing on Coleman's TV following, many found the film charming, well written, well acted, with Coleman being a solid actor in his first lead role in a motion picture. The film was a financial success, it grossed 13 million at the box office ranking it at 61 on highest grosses of that year. On home-video rentals that film added 10 to 15 millions to their revenue.

In 1982, Coleman starred in Jimmy the Kid. The film was financially successful, but received resoundingly negative reviews, with critic Roger Ebert writing "... movies like this don't really have room for brilliant performances. They're written by formula, cast by computer and directed by the book, and when a little spontaneity creeps in, it seems out of place."

On April 4 of that year, Coleman starred in the television film The Kid with the Broken Halo. The film served as the basis for Saturday morning cartoon The Gary Coleman Show, which started that year on September 11, where Coleman had the lead voice role as Andy LeBeau, an angel in training who comes to earth to help others and gain his wings.

Finally in 1982, Coleman played Arnold Jackson in a crossover episode of Silver Spoons.

Moving forward, Coleman played the lead in the comedic television films The Kid with the 200 I.Q. (1983), and The Fantastic World of D.C. Collins (1984).

In 1985, Coleman played a teenage arsonist in the television film Playing with Fire, it was his first dramatic project.

In 1986, Coleman hosted the made-for-home video educational film Gary Coleman: For Safety's Sake, in it Coleman provides various safety advice around a home.

1987–2010: Hiatus and return to acting
When Diff'rent Strokes ended Coleman went on a hiatus.

From thereon, the majority of Coleman's adult roles were single appearances in television episodes. He played himself in The Ben Stiller Show, The Jackie Thomas Show, Sherman Oaks, The Parent 'Hood, The Wayans Bros., The Naked Truth, Shasta McNasty, The Simpsons, My Wife and Kids, The Hughleys, Baby Bob, The Parkers, and Drake & Josh. Shows where he played a character were 227, Martin, Unhappily Ever After, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (his last appearance as Arnold Jackson), Married... with Children,Homeboys in Outer Space, The Jamie Foxx Show, The Drew Carey Show, The Rerun Show, Son of the Beach, and Robot Chicken.

Coleman also played roles in television films these are Like Father, Like Santa (1998), A Carol Christmas (2003), and A Christmas Too Many (2006).

In films Coleman played himself in S.F.W. (1994), Dirty Work (1998), Shafted! (2000), The Flunky (2000), Frank McKlusky, C.I. (2002), Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003), The Great Buck Howard (2008), and Midgets vs. Mascots (2009). Films where he played a different character were Fox Hunt (1997), Church Ball (2006), and An American Carol (2008).

From 1996 to 1997, Coleman had a recurring role as the voice of Kevin in the animated show Waynehead.

In 1997, Coleman voiced Kenny Falmouth in the video game The Curse of Monkey Island, which gained him attention, being one of the first few major mainstream actors to appear in a video game. The adventure game was critically acclaimed, considered one of the best of its genre and has a strong legacy due to its feel, graphics, and voice acting. Jeff Green of Computer Gaming World gave it a rave review and that Coleman "played wonderfully" a "shifty character."

Coleman ventured into politics, and in the 2003 California recall election he was a candidate for governor. His campaign was sponsored by the free newsweekly East Bay Express as a satirical comment on the recall. After Arnold Schwarzenegger declared his candidacy, Coleman announced that he would vote for Schwarzenegger. Coleman placed 8th in a field of 135 candidates, receiving 14,242 votes.

In 2003, Coleman portrayed a fictional version of himself in the video game Postal 2, the second game in the Postal franchise. Upon its release, the game received "mixed or average reviews" according to review aggregator website Metacritic. Over time, it gained a cult following.

In 2005, Coleman appeared in John Cena's music video for his single "Bad, Bad Man" (from the album You Can't See Me) and played himself as a villain taking Michael Jackson and Madonna hostage. The video was a spoof of 1980s culture, focusing on The A-Team.

Coleman's final television role was a voice role in the animated series Robot Chicken.

Personal life

Coleman was an avid railroad fan, and he later worked part-time at Denver-area, Tucson-area, and California hobby stores to be around his hobby. Coleman built and maintained miniature railroads in his homes in several states throughout the 1990s. Currently, at least one of Coleman's model railroads is being preserved in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In a 1993 television interview, Coleman said he had twice attempted suicide by overdosing on pills. Coleman lived in Santaquin, a small town about 50 mi south of Salt Lake City, Utah, from 2005 to the remainder of his life.

In early 2007, Coleman met Shannon Price, 22, on the set of the film Church Ball, where she was working as an extra. Price and Coleman married several months later. On May 1 and 2, 2008, they made a well-publicized appearance on the show Divorce Court to air their differences in an attempt to save their marriage. However, they divorced in August 2008, and Coleman was granted an ex parte restraining order against Price to prevent her from living in his home when he was hospitalized after their divorce. According to a court petition later filed by Price, she and Coleman continued to live together in a common-law marriage until his death. However, a judge ultimately ruled against Price after hearing testimony that she engaged in love affairs with other men during the time when she claimed to have been with Coleman, and "physically abused Coleman in public, led him around by the hand like a child [and] displayed no physical affection toward him in front of anyone."

Legal problems
In 1998, Coleman was charged with assault while working as a security guard. Tracy Fields, a Los Angeles bus driver and fan of Coleman's work on Diff'rent Strokes, approached him in a California mall and requested his autograph while he was shopping for a bulletproof vest. When Coleman refused to give her an autograph, an argument ensued, and Fields reportedly mocked Coleman's lackluster acting career. Coleman then punched Fields in the face several times in front of witnesses. He was arrested and later defended himself in court, alleging that Fields had threatened him. He said: "She wouldn't leave me alone. I was getting scared, and she was getting ugly." Coleman pleaded no contest to one count of assault, received a suspended jail sentence and was ordered to pay Fields' $1,665 hospital bill and to take anger management classes.

In 2007, Coleman was cited for misdemeanor disorderly conduct in Provo, Utah after a "heated discussion" in public with his wife, Shannon Price. In 2009, Coleman and his ex-wife were involved in a domestic dispute, after which Price was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, and both parties were cited for disorderly conduct.

In 2008, Coleman was involved in an altercation at a Payson, Utah bowling alley, which began when Colt Rushton, age 24, photographed Coleman without his permission. The two men argued, according to witnesses. In the parking lot, Coleman allegedly backed his truck into Rushton, striking his knee and pulling him under the vehicle, before hitting another car. Rushton was treated at a local hospital for minor injuries and released. Coleman later pleaded no contest to charges of disorderly conduct and reckless driving and was fined $100. In 2010, he settled a civil suit related to the incident for an undisclosed amount. Months before his death in 2010, Coleman was arrested on an outstanding domestic assault warrant in Santaquin, booked into the Utah County Jail and released the following day.

Financial problems
In August 1999, Coleman filed for bankruptcy protection. He claimed that multiple people were responsible for his insolvency, "from me, to accountants, to my adoptive parents, to agents, to lawyers, and back to me again." He lost $200,000 on an arcade that he had named the Gary Coleman Game Parlor, which was located at Fisherman's Village in Marina del Rey, California. Ongoing medical expenses contributed significantly to Coleman's chronic financial problems and sometimes compelled him to resort to unusual fundraising activities. In 1999, he partnered with UGO Networks for an online auction titled "Save Me!". Items included his couch, a "tiny pimp suit" with matching gold Nikes and an autographed ice scraper. Items attracted more than $5,000 in bids.

Health problems and death
In 2009, Coleman underwent heart surgery. Although the details of the procedure were never made public, he is known to have developed postoperative pneumonia. In January 2010, Coleman was hospitalized after a seizure in Los Angeles, and in February, he experienced another seizure on the set of The Insider television program. On May 26, 2010, Coleman was admitted to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo, Utah, in critical condition after falling down the stairs at his Santaquin home and hitting his head, possibly after another seizure, and experiencing an epidural hematoma. According to a hospital spokesman, Coleman was conscious and lucid the next morning, but his condition subsequently worsened. By mid-afternoon on May 27, he was unconscious and on life support. He died at 12:05 pm MDT (18:05 UTC) on May 28, 2010, at age 42.

The weekend after Coleman's death, a scheduled funeral was postponed and later canceled following a dispute regarding the disposition of his estate and remains among Coleman's adoptive parents, former business associate Anna Gray and Price. Coleman's former manager Dion Mial was initially involved but withdrew after Coleman's 1999 will, which had named Mial as executor, was found to have been superseded by a 2005 will replacing Mial with Gray. The earlier will had stipulated that Coleman's wake be "...conducted by those with no financial ties to me and can look each other in the eyes and say they really cared personally for Gary Coleman", but the later version directed "...that there be no funeral service, wake, or other ceremony memorializing my passing."

Aftermath
Questions were raised as to whether Price, who approved discontinuing Coleman's life support, was legally authorized to do so. The controversy was exacerbated by a photograph published on the front page of the tabloid newspaper Globe depicting Price posed next to a comatose, intubated Coleman under the headline, "It Was Murder!" While Coleman's final will named Gray as executor and awarded his entire estate to her, Coleman and Price married in 2007. Although she had divorced Coleman in 2008, Price claimed in a court petition that she had remained his common-law wife, with the two sharing bank accounts and presenting themselves publicly as husband and wife until Coleman's death. Her assertion, if validated by the court, would have made her his lawful heir.

In May 2012, judge James Taylor stated that while Price had indeed lived in Coleman's home after their marriage ended, their relationship at the time of his death failed to meet Utah's standard for a common-law marriage. The hospital later issued a statement confirming that Coleman had completed an advance healthcare directive granting Price permission to make medical decisions on his behalf. An investigation by Santaquin police was closed on October 5, 2010, after the medical examiner ruled Coleman's death accidental and no evidence of wrongdoing could be demonstrated. The disposition of Coleman's ashes remains unknown. Price said that had she been granted disposition, she would have scattered the ashes at the Golden Spike National Historic Site in Utah as a tribute to Coleman's lifelong love of trains.

Legacy
Coleman is frequently listed as one of the most influential child actors in the world. He was rated first on a list of VH1's "100 Greatest Kid Stars" on television, and was noted by MTV for having an "Undeniable Impact on Pop Culture." Mike Hogan from Vanity Fair wrote on his career, saying "He was unquestionably a superstar, overshadowing them with his radiant charisma and boundless energy, but the kidney condition that enabled him, even as a teen, to play the world's most precocious little brother on TV also complicated his life in ways most of us will never understand." Actress Lucille Ball stated in a 1980 interview with People magazine that although she rarely watched sitcoms, "I love Gary Coleman. He puts me away. He puts everybody away."

Filk music act Ookla the Mok paid tribute to Coleman on their 2003 album "oh okay LA" with the song "A.M. Suicide." He is parodied in Avenue Q, which won the 2004 Tony Award for Best Musical; a fictionalized version of him works as the superintendent of the apartment complex where the musical takes place. In the song "It Sucks to Be Me", he laments his fate. On Broadway, the role was originally performed by Natalie Venetia Belcon. The show's creators, Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez, have said the Coleman character personifies one of Avenue Q central themes: that as children we are told we are "special", but upon entering adulthood, we discover that life is not nearly as easy as we have been led to believe. They added that their original intent was for Coleman himself to play the Gary Coleman role, and he expressed interest in it but did not show up for a meeting scheduled to discuss it. In 2005, Coleman announced his intention to sue the producers of Avenue Q for their depiction of him, although the lawsuit never materialized. At the 2007 New York Comic Con, Coleman said, "I wish there was a lawyer on Earth that would sue them for me."

Following his death in 2010, the casts of the off-Broadway production of Avenue Q in New York City and the Avenue Q National Tour in Dallas dedicated their performances to his memory, and the actors playing the part of Coleman paid tribute to him from the stage at the performances' conclusions. The Coleman character remained in the show after modifications were made to relevant dialogue. Randy Kester—Coleman's attorney—told Dallas News in 2010, "The world's going to be a little less happy place without Gary. For being a small guy, he sure had a big impact on the world." Coleman appeared in 2011 in the game's intro Postal III and in 2015 in the expansion pack for Postal 2 - Paradise Lost. In the 2021 Diff'rent Strokes special, actor Kevin Hart played Coleman's signature character of Arnold Jackson.

Works and awards
Throughout his career, Coleman had garnered over sixty acting credits and over eighty television appearances. For playing the role of Arnold Jackson in the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes (1978–1986), he received several accolades, which include two Young Artist Awards and three People's Choice Awards—the latter being a consecutive three wins for Favorite Young TV Performer from 1980 to 1983—and nominations for two TV Land Awards.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Gary Coleman


text:
Garth Brooks

Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the country music single and album charts, multi-platinum recordings and record-breaking live performances, while also crossing over into the mainstream pop arena.

Brooks is the only artist in music history to have released nine albums that were certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (surpassing The Beatles' former record of six); those albums are Garth Brooks (diamond), No Fences (17× platinum), Ropin' the Wind (14× platinum), The Chase (diamond), In Pieces (diamond), The Hits (diamond), Sevens (diamond), Double Live (21× platinum), and The Ultimate Hits (diamond). Since 1989, Brooks has released 27 records in all, which include 17 studio albums, two live albums, three compilation albums, three Christmas albums, and four box sets, along with 77 singles. He has won several awards in his career, including two Grammy Awards, 17 American Music Awards (including "Artist of the '90s") and the RIAA Award for best-selling solo albums artist of the century in the U.S.

Troubled by conflicts between career and family, Brooks retired from recording and performing from 2001 until 2005. During this time, he sold millions of albums through an exclusive distribution deal with Walmart and sporadically released new singles. In 2005, Brooks started a partial comeback, giving select performances and releasing two compilation albums. In 2009, he began Garth at Wynn, a periodic weekend concert residency at Las Vegas's Encore Theatre from December 2009 to January 2014. Following the conclusion of the residency, Brooks announced his signing with Sony Music Nashville in July 2014. In September 2014, he began his comeback world tour, with wife and musician Trisha Yearwood, which culminated in 2017. This was followed by his Stadium Tour, which began in 2019, and another Las Vegas concert residency, Garth Brooks/Plus ONE, continuing into 2024. His most recent album, Time Traveler, was released in November 2023.

Brooks is one of the world's best-selling music artists, having sold more than 170 million records. Billboard ranked Brooks as the greatest male solo artist on the Billboard 200 chart of all time. , according to the RIAA, he is the best-selling solo albums artist in the United States with 162 million domestic units sold, ahead of Elvis Presley, and is second only to the Beatles in total album sales overall. Brooks was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on October 21, 2012, having been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame the year before. He was also inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2016 with his studio musicians, The G-Men. In 2020, Brooks became the youngest recipient of the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.

Early life and education
Troyal Garth Brooks was born on February 7, 1962, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was the youngest child of Troyal Raymond Brooks Jr. (1931–2010), a draftsman for an oil company, and Colleen McElroy Carroll (1929–1999), a 1950s-era country singer of Irish ancestry who recorded on the Capitol Records label and appeared on Ozark Jubilee. This was the second marriage for each of his parents, giving Brooks four older half-siblings (Jim, Jerry, Mike, and Betsy). The couple had two children together, Kelly and Garth. At their home in Yukon, Oklahoma, the family hosted weekly talent nights. All of the children were required to participate, either by singing or doing skits. Brooks learned to play both the guitar and banjo.

As a child, Brooks often sang in casual family settings, but his primary focus was athletics. In high school, he played football and baseball and ran track and field. He received a track scholarship to Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, where he competed in the javelin. At nights, he worked as a bouncer at a local bar and formed his own band, Santa Fe, learning to play whatever the college audience wanted. Brooks graduated in 1984 with a degree in advertising. His roommate, Ty England, later played guitar in his road band until going solo in 1995.

1985–1989: Musical beginnings
In 1985, Brooks began his professional music career, singing and playing guitar in Oklahoma clubs and bars, most notably Wild Willie's Saloon in Stillwater. Through his elder siblings, Brooks was exposed to a wide range of music. Although he listened to some country music, especially that of George Jones, Brooks was most fond of rock music, citing James Taylor, Dan Fogelberg, and Townes Van Zandt as major influences. In 1981, after hearing "Unwound", the debut single of George Strait, Brooks decided that he was more interested in playing country music.

In 1985, entertainment attorney Rod Phelps drove from Dallas to listen to Brooks. Phelps liked what he heard and offered to produce Brooks' first demo. With Phelps' encouragement, including a list of Phelps' contacts in Nashville and some of his credit cards, Brooks traveled to Nashville to pursue a recording contract; he returned to Oklahoma within 24 hours. Phelps continued to urge Brooks to return to Nashville, which he did. In 1987, Brooks and wife Sandy Mahl moved to Nashville, and Brooks began making contacts in the music industry.

1989–1990: Breakthrough success
Garth Brooks' eponymous first album was released in 1989 and was a chart success. It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, and reached No. 13 on the Billboard 200 chart. Most of the album was traditionalist country, influenced in part by George Strait. The first single, "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)", was a country top 10 success. It was followed by Brooks' first number-one single on the Hot Country Songs chart, "If Tomorrow Never Comes". "Not Counting You" reached No. 2, and "The Dance" reached No. 1; its music video, directed by John Lloyd Miller, gave Brooks his first push towards a broader audience. Brooks has later claimed that out of all the songs he has recorded, "The Dance" remains his favorite. In 1989, Brooks embarked on his first major concert tour, as opening act for Kenny Rogers.

Brooks' second album, No Fences, was released in 1990 and spent 23 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. The album also reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and eventually became Brooks' highest-selling album, with domestic shipments of 17 million. It contained what would become Brooks' signature song, the blue collar anthem "Friends in Low Places", as well as other popular singles, "The Thunder Rolls" and "Unanswered Prayers".

Each of these songs, as well as "Two of a Kind, Workin' on a Full House", reached No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart. While Brooks' musical style placed him squarely within the boundaries of country music, he was strongly influenced by the 1970s singer-songwriter movement, especially the works of James Taylor, whom he idolized and named his first child after, as well as Dan Fogelberg. Similarly, Brooks was influenced by the 1970s-era rock of Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen and the operatic rock of Queen with Freddie Mercury.

In his live shows, Brooks used a wireless headset microphone to free himself to run about the stage, adding energy and arena rock theatrics to spice up the normally staid country music approach to concerts. The band KISS was also one of Brooks' early musical influences, and his shows often reflect this. Despite all the cited influences, Brooks stated the energetic style of his stage persona is directly inspired by Chris LeDoux.

In late 1990, Brooks was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry.

1991–1993: Ropin' the Wind, The Chase, and Beyond the Season
Brooks' third album, Ropin' the Wind, was released in September 1991. It had advance orders of 4 million copies and entered the Billboard 200 at No. 1, a first for a country artist. The album's musical content was a melange of country pop and honky-tonk; singles included "The River", "What She's Doing Now", and a cover of Billy Joel's "Shameless". It would become Brooks' second-best selling album, after No Fences. The success of Ropin' the Wind further propelled the sales of Brooks' first two albums, enabling Brooks to become the first country artist with three albums listed in the Billboard 200's top 20 in one week.

After spending time in Los Angeles during the 1992 riots, Brooks co-wrote a gospel-country-rock hybrid single, "We Shall Be Free", to express his desire for tolerance. The song became the first single off his fourth album The Chase. The single only reached No. 12 on the Billboard Top Country Singles chart, Brooks' first song in three years to fail to make the top 10. Nonetheless, "We Shall Be Free" peaked at No. 22 on the Billboard Christian Songs charts through a marketing deal with Rick Hendrix Company, and earned Brooks a 1993 GLAAD Media Award. The next single released from The Chase was "Somewhere Other Than the Night", followed by "Learning to Live Again", which peaked at numbers one and two on the Hot Country Songs chart, respectively. The album's final single, "That Summer", would go on to be the most successful single from the album, reaching No. 1 in July 1993.

Brooks released his first Christmas album, Beyond the Season on August 25, 1992. The album included classics such as "White Christmas" and "Silent Night" as well as an original tune "The Old Man's Back in Town." "Beyond the Season" was the best selling Christmas album in 1992, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart.

1993–1994: In Pieces and first world tour
In 1993, Brooks, who had criticized music stores selling used CDs since it led to a loss in proper royalty payments, persuaded Capitol Records to not ship his 1993 album, In Pieces, to stores which engaged in this practice. This led to several antitrust lawsuits against the record label, ending with Capitol shipping the albums to the stores.

Despite the delay in shipping, In Pieces was another success, peaking at No. 1 on both the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts, and selling a total of nearly 10 million copies. After a delay in its worldwide release, the album also peaked at No. 2 on the United Kingdom Albums Chart. That same year, "The Red Strokes" became Brooks' first single to make the UK Singles Chart, reaching a high of No. 13; it was followed by "Standing Outside the Fire", which reached No. 23. Previous albums No Fences, Ropin' the Wind and The Chase also remained in the top 30 in the UK Albums Chart.

Brooks' first world tour began in 1993, reaching the UK after many domestic concerts. Brooks sold-out venues such as Birmingham's National Exhibition Centre and London's Wembley Arena, a feat never accomplished by an American country music artist. He also began the London radio station, Country 1035. Despite the disdain of the British media, Brooks' overall popularity in the country was evident, with a top disc jockey, Nick Barraclough, referring to Brooks as Garth Vader (a play on Darth Vader) for his "invasion" of the charts and his success in the country genre. Unlike Alan Jackson, who refused to return to the UK after being treated in a similar negative manner by the press, Brooks would later return in 1996 for more performances. Brooks also took his World Tour to other regions throughout Europe, as well as Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand.

In 1994, Brooks paid homage to one of his musical influences, KISS, appearing on the tribute compilation, Kiss My Ass: Classic Kiss Regrooved, a collection of songs performed by popular artists from various genres. The unlikely collaboration of Brooks and KISS' rendition of "Hard Luck Woman" was performed live on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and despite its hard-rock appeal, Brooks' version appeared on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

1995–1998: More albums released and second world tour
In November 1995, Brooks released Fresh Horses, his first album of new material in two years. Within six months of its release, the album had sold over three million copies. Despite its promising start, Fresh Horses plateaued quickly, topping out at quadruple platinum. The album's lead single, "She's Every Woman" peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart; however, its follow-up single, "The Fever" (an Aerosmith cover) only peaked at No. 23, becoming Brooks' first country single to not chart on the top 10. However, Brooks had three additional top 10 singles from the album, including "The Beaches of Cheyenne", which reached No. 1.

Following the release of Fresh Horses, Brooks embarked on his second world tour. Its total attendance, approximately 5.5 million, ranks third on the all-time list of concert attendance, and its gross of over $105 million ranks it among the highest-grossing concert tours in the 1990s.

In 1997, Brooks released his seventh studio album, Sevens. The album was originally scheduled to be released in August 1997, allowing for promotion during Brooks' Central Park concert; however, plans went awry after a dispute within Capitol Records. The Central Park concert went on as planned, receiving 980,000 fans in attendance and becoming the largest concert in park history.

Sevens debuted at No. 1 on both the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts. It later became Brooks' fourth album to reach sales of 10 million copies. The album included the duet "In Another's Eyes" with Trisha Yearwood, which reached No. 2 on Hot Country Songs chart, and its first single, "Longneck Bottle", with Steve Wariner, reached No. 1. The album spawned two additional number-one singles, "Two Pina Coladas" and "To Make You Feel My Love" (a Bob Dylan cover), which also was a top 10 hit on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart and was released on the soundtrack to the film, Hope Floats.

Brooks' first live album, Double Live was released in 1998. Recorded at various shows over the course of his second world tour, the album contained new material not previously released, such as "Tearin' It Up (and Burnin' It Down)" and "Wild as the Wind," featuring Trisha Yearwood. Peaking at No. 1 on both the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts, Double Live went on to become the best-selling live album of all time, certified 21× Platinum by the RIAA, and is the seventh-most shipped album in United States music history.

In 1998, Brooks also released the first installment of The Limited Series, a six-disc box set containing reissues of his first six studio albums. Each of the reissued albums included a bonus track not available on the original release.

1999: "Chris Gaines" and holiday album
In 1999, Brooks took on the persona of "Chris Gaines", a fictitious rock-and-roll musician and character for an upcoming film titled The Lamb. In October 1999, the film's pre-release soundtrack, Garth Brooks in...the Life of Chris Gaines (also dubbed Gaines' Greatest Hits), was released to much public criticism. Brooks also appeared as Gaines in a television mockumentary for the VH1 series Behind the Music, and as the musical guest on an episode of Saturday Night Live, which he also hosted as himself.

Brooks' promotion of the album and the film did not garner excitement, and the failure of the Gaines project was evident mere weeks after the album was released. The majority of the American public was either bewildered, or completely unreceptive to the idea of Brooks portraying a rock-and-roll musician. Sales of the album were unspectacular, at least compared with most of Brooks' previous albums, and although it made it to No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart, expectations had been higher and retail stores began heavily discounting their oversupply. Less-than-expected sales of the album (more than two million) brought the project to an indefinite hiatus in February 2001 and Gaines quickly faded into obscurity.

Despite the less-than-spectacular response to the Gaines project, Brooks gained his first (and only) Billboard Top 40 pop single in "Lost in You". The album was later certified Double Platinum by the RIAA.

On November 23, 1999, Brooks released his second holiday album, Garth Brooks & the Magic of Christmas. The album peaked at No. 7 on Billboard's Top 200 and No. 1 on the Top Country Albums, making it Brooks' 10th number-one album.

2000–2004: Scarecrow and retirement
As his career flourished, Brooks seemed frustrated by the conflicts between career and family. He first talked of retiring from performing in 1992, and again in 1995, but each time returned to touring. In 1999, Brooks appeared on The Nashville Network's Crook & Chase program, again mentioning retirement in a more serious tone. On October 26, 2000, Brooks officially announced his retirement from recording and performing. Later that evening, Capitol Records noted Brooks' achievement of selling 100 million albums in the US, celebrating at Nashville's Gaylord Entertainment Center.

Brooks' final album before retirement, Scarecrow, was released on November 13, 2001. The album did not match the sales levels of Brooks' heyday, but still sold well, reaching No. 1 on Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts. Although he staged a few performances for promotional purposes, Brooks stated that he would be retired from recording and performing at least until his youngest daughter finished high school.

2005–2008: Compilation albums and special performances
In 2005, Brooks expressed his interest in returning to live performances; however, he remained adamant to the premise of not releasing new music until 2014. Despite this, later that year, Brooks signed a deal with Walmart, leasing them the rights to his entire catalog following his split with Capitol Records. Brooks was one of the first musicians to sign an exclusive music distribution deal with a single retailer (along with fellow country music artist Ricky Van Shelton, who issued his 1998 album Making Plans through the chain as well).

Three months later, in November 2005, Brooks and Walmart issued an updated The Limited Series compilation, a box set containing reissues of Brooks' albums, including Double Live, and The Lost Sessions, featuring eleven previously unreleased recordings. The box set sold more than 500,000 physical copies on its issue date. By the first week in December 2005, it had sold over 1 million physical copies.

Brooks took a brief break from retirement early in 2005 to perform in various benefit concerts. He also released a new single, "Good Ride Cowboy", as a tribute to his late friend and country singer, Chris LeDoux, via Walmart.

In early 2006, Walmart reissued The Lost Sessions as a single CD apart from the box set, with additional songs, including a duet with Trisha Yearwood, "Love Will Always Win", which reached the top 25 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The couple were later nominated for a "Best Country Collaboration With Vocals" Grammy Award.

On August 18, 2007, Brooks announced plans for a new box set, The Ultimate Hits. The new set featured two discs containing 30 classic songs, three new songs, and a DVD featuring music videos. The album's first single, "More Than a Memory", was released on August 27, 2007. It debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, becoming the highest-debuting single in the chart's history.

In November 2007, Brooks embarked on Garth Brooks: Live in Kansas City, performing nine sold-out concerts in Kansas City at the Sprint Center, which had opened a month prior. Originally scheduled to be only one show, the performance expanded to nine due to incredibly high demand, with all nine shows (equaling about 140,000 tickets) selling out in under two hours. The final concert of the series was simulcast to more than 300 movie theaters across the U.S.

In January 2008, Brooks embarked on another incredible feat performing five sold-out shows (in less than 48 hours) at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for a fundraiser towards the 2007 wildfires season that impacted much of Southern California's cities and counties. The first concert (of the five) titled Garth Brooks: Live in LA was taped and broadcast repeatedly on CBS with all donations going to all of the victims and families in state of California who were impacted by the fires.

2009–2013: Las Vegas concert residency

In January 2009, Brooks made another one of few public appearances since his retirement, performing at the We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial concert in Washington, D.C.. In his three-song set, Brooks performed "We Shall Be Free", along with covers of Don McLean's "American Pie" and the Isley Brothers' "Shout".

On October 15, 2009, Brooks suspended his retirement to begin Garth at Wynn, a periodic weekend concert residency at Encore Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip. The schedule allowed Brooks both to have the family life during the week and to continue to perform on the weekend. The financial terms of the agreement were not announced, but Steve Wynn did disclose that he gave Brooks access to a private jet to quickly transport him between Las Vegas and his home in Oklahoma.

Brooks' first weekend on shows in Vegas received positive reviews and was called the "antithesis of Vegas glitz and of the country singer's arena and stadium extravaganzas" by USA Today. The shows featured Brooks performing solo, acoustic concerts, and included a set list of songs that have influenced him. Artists covered in the show include Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Seger, Billy Joel, and Don McLean. His first performances at Encore Las Vegas coincided with his wedding anniversary, and his wife Trisha Yearwood joined him for two songs.

In 2013, influenced by the set list of the Las Vegas shows, Brooks released Blame It All on My Roots: Five Decades of Influences via Walmart, a compilation album consisting of songs Brooks attributes to the development of his unique country pop genre. The box set's albums were individually certified Platinum and the compilation received a Billboard Music Award nomination. In a December 2013 appearance on Good Morning America to promote the album, Brooks also surprisingly announced plans for a world tour, beginning in 2014.

2014–2015: Man Against Machine, GhostTunes, and world tour

In February 2014, Brooks announced two concerts at Croke Park, Dublin, Ireland, to be held on July 25 and 26, 2014. Due to high demand, three additional shows were added, and a total of 400,000 tickets were sold. However, due to licensing conflict, Aiken Promotions and Croke Park management were prompted to cancel two of the five concerts after conflict among nearby residents. Brooks, committed to performing the five original concerts, refused to follow through with the request to only perform three, and all concerts were cancelled.

On July 10, 2014, Brooks held a press conference where he announced his signing with Sony Music Nashville, as well as confirming plans for a new album, world tour, the release of his music in a digital format, and remorse for the Ireland concert controversy. Fifteen days later, tickets first went on sale for the world tour.

On September 3, 2014, Brooks released his comeback single, "People Loving People", in promotion of his world tour and new album, Man Against Machine. The song debuted onto the Nielsen BDS-driven Country Airplay chart at No. 19, tying for the third-highest debut of Brooks' career. On September 4, 2014, Brooks released his entire studio output on digital for the first time ever. Bypassing traditional digital music service providers, Brooks opted into releasing his albums directly his own new online music store, GhostTunes. On September 19, Brooks confirmed the release date for his next album, scheduled for November 11 via a press conference in Atlanta. Man Against Machine was released via Pearl and RCA Nashville and was available online exclusively through GhostTunes. GhostTunes closed on March 3, 2017. Brooks' digital catalogue moved to Amazon Music, who maintain exclusive rights over it.

In September 2015, it was announced Brooks would reissue his album No Fences later in the year to commemorate its 25-year release anniversary. The release would include a new version of "Friends in Low Places", featuring George Strait, Jason Aldean, Florida Georgia Line, and Keith Urban singing along with Brooks. The album release has since been delayed due to royalty disputes. The track was later featured on his 2016 compilation album, The Ultimate Collection.

2016–2017: Gunslinger, Christmas Together, and online streaming
On October 13, 2016, Brooks released the first single, "Baby, Let's Lay Down and Dance", from his upcoming album. The following week, Brooks released the upcoming album's title, Gunslinger, via Facebook Live. It was released on November 11, 2016, as a part of The Ultimate Collection, a compilation album Brooks released through Target. Brooks' other project for 2016 was a duet holiday album with wife Trisha Yearwood, Christmas Together.

After years of royalty disputes and an opposition to online music streaming, Brooks launched a streaming channel on Sirius XM Radio. He also reached an agreement to stream his entire catalogue via Amazon Music.

2018–present: Stadium Tour and other ventures

On June 19, 2018, Brooks released a new single, "All Day Long", the first off his 2020 album, Fun. The release also included a B-side, "The Road I'm On". In August 2018, Brooks announced new live album, Triple Live, to be released in partnership with Ticketmaster.

In August 2018, Brooks announced his Stadium Tour, which will visit thirty North American stadiums and showcase Brooks in a football-centric environment. In promotion of the tour, Brooks performed the first concert at the University of Notre Dame's football stadium in 2018 He released the second single, "Stronger Than Me", from his upcoming 2019 album release following a performance dedicated to his wife Trisha Yearwood at the CMA Awards. On August 14, 2021, he performed his largest ever ticketed concert at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb., selling 90,000 tickets.

The third single from his upcoming album, "Dive Bar", a duet with Blake Shelton, was released in June 2019. Brooks also embarked on the Dive Bar Tour, a promotional tour in support of the single, visiting seven dive bars throughout the United States.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Brooks and wife Trisha Yearwood performed an informal concert broadcast on Facebook Live. The website crashed multiple times as an estimated 5.2 million streamed the broadcast. As a result of this, Brooks and Yearwood performed a concert in the same format the following week, broadcast live on CBS, along with a donation of $1 million to relief efforts. The CBS special scored an estimated 5.6 million viewers. On July 7, Brooks and Yearwood performed a "part 2" to their previous online concert, taking song requests and again broadcast on Facebook Live. On June 27, 2020, Brooks performed a concert broadcast at 300 drive-in theaters throughout North America.

Brooks released his most recent album, Fun, on November 20, 2020.

On January 20, 2021, Brooks performed "Amazing Grace" at the inauguration of Joe Biden. He said his performance was an opportunity "to serve" and is a "statement of unity."

On April 30, 2022, Brooks performed in Tiger Stadium on the campus of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. When he performed his signature hit "Callin' Baton Rouge," he became the second person, after LSU quarterback Tommy Hodson, to excite the crowd to a degree that the noise level registered on the university's seismograph – registering as an earthquake caused by excited fans.

On November 14, 2022, Brooks announced his second concert residency, Garth Brooks/Plus ONE, at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. He released his most recent album, Time Traveler, in November 2023.

On November 24, 2023, Brooks headlined an Amazon Music Live concert special, Garth Brooks: Dive Bar Concert. The concert took place at Brooks' Nashville bar Friends in Low Places Bar & Honky-Tonk.

The G-Men
The vast majority of Brooks' recordings have used the same studio band, known collectively as the "G-Men". These are Bruce Bouton (steel guitar), Mark Casstevens (acoustic guitar), Mike Chapman (bass guitar), Rob Hajacos (fiddle), Milton Sledge (drums), and Bobby Wood (keyboards), along with sound engineer Mark Miller, who took over from Allen Reynolds as Brooks' producer starting with Blame It All on My Roots: Five Decades of Influences. Chapman died on June 13, 2016.

Professional baseball
In 1998, Brooks launched his Touch 'em All Foundation with Major League Baseball. He also began with a short career in baseball, when he signed with the San Diego Padres for spring training in 1998 and 1999. Brooks' performance on the field did not warrant management placing him on the regular season roster; however, he was offered a non-roster spot, but declined it. The following season, Brooks signed with the New York Mets. This spring-training stint was also a poor performance for Brooks, resulting in a zero-for-seventeen batting record. In 2004, Brooks returned to baseball with the Kansas City Royals. He got his first and only hit off Mike Myers during his final spring training game with the Royals.

In 2019, Brooks made a return to spring training, joining the Pittsburgh Pirates to promote his charity.

Pearl Records
In 2005, Brooks ended his association with Capitol Records and established his own record label, Pearl Records. Brooks has released four compilation albums via Pearl Records, as well as his 2014 and 2016 studio albums plus any future releases (also released through RCA Records Nashville).

GhostTunes
In September 2014, Brooks established GhostTunes, an online music store featuring his own digital music, as well as over ten million songs from other artists. The store, contracted with "the big three" record labels, allows for autonomous pricing and distribution format, resulting in the most proper royalty payments for artists and songwriters. In March 2017, GhostTunes officially closed, merging with Amazon Music.

Personal life
Brooks graduated from Oklahoma State University where he starred on the track and field team in the javelin throw. He later completed his MBA from Oklahoma State and participated in the commencement ceremony on May 6, 2011.

Brooks married songwriter Sandy Mahl on May 24, 1986. The couple later had three daughters: Taylor Mayne Pearl (born 1992), August Anna (born 1994), and Allie Colleen Brooks (born 1996). Brooks and Mahl separated in March 1999, announcing their plans to divorce on October 9, 2000, and filed for divorce on November 6, 2000. The divorce became final on December 17, 2001. Brooks remarried on December 10, 2005, to country singer and cookbook author Trisha Yearwood. Yearwood has included various recipes created or inspired by Brooks in her published works, including Garth's Breakfast Bowl, a breakfast dish including cheese and garlic tortellini.

In July 2013, Brooks became a grandfather when August had daughter Karalynn with Chance Michael Russell.

Charitable activities
In 1999, Brooks began the Teammates for Kids Foundation, which provides financial aid to charities for children. The organization breaks down into three categories spanning three different sports:

 * Touch 'Em All Foundation – Baseball Division
 * Top Shelf – Hockey Division
 * Touchdown – Football Division

Brooks is also a fundraiser for various other charities, including a number of children's charities and famine relief. With wife Trisha Yearwood, Brooks sang Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Who'll Stop the Rain" on the Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast nationwide telethon for Hurricane Katrina relief. He performed the Garth Brooks: Live in LA benefit concerts, five sold-out concerts over a two-day period at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California on January 25 and 26, 2008 (setting numerous records at the high-profile venue in the process and accomplished a feat done by no other artist in music history to perform all 5 shows in a 48-hour time frame). These concerts were staged to raise money for Fire Intervention Relief Effort, serving those impacted by the 2007 California wildfires. Tickets were priced at $40 each and all five shows (totaling more than 85,000 tickets) sold out in 58 minutes. CBS broadcast the first concert live as a telethon for additional fundraising.

Brooks, along with wife Yearwood, has supported Habitat for Humanity's work over the years. In December 2010, Brooks played nine shows in less than a week in Nashville at Bridgestone Arena to benefit victims from the May 2010 Nashville flood. Over 140,000 tickets were sold and $5 million raised.

On July 6, 2013, Brooks joined with Toby Keith for a benefit concert for victims of the 2013 Oklahoma tornadoes. The sold-out show featured artists Mel Tillis, John Anderson, Willie Nelson, Trisha Yearwood, Sammy Hagar, Kellie Coffey, Ronnie Dunn, Carrie Underwood and Krystal Keith. It was held at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Most recently, while between legs of his world tour in 2015, Brooks performed a sold-out concert in Barretos, Brazil to benefit the Hospital de Câncer de Barretos.

Support for gay rights
In a 1999 interview with George, Brooks said, "But if you're in love, you've got to follow your heart and trust that God will explain to us why we sometimes fall in love with people of the same sex." Lyrics to his song, "We Shall Be Free", features the line, "When we're free to love anyone we choose," which has been interpreted as a reference to same-sex relationships. Brooks won a 1993 GLAAD Media Award for the song.

In 2000, Brooks appeared at the Equality Rocks benefit concert for gay rights. He sang a duet with openly gay singer George Michael.

Brooks' half-sister, Betsy Smittle, who died in 2013, was a musician who released her own album Rough Around the Edges (as Betsy) and was part of Brooks' band for some years. She also worked with the late country star Gus Hardin and other musicians in Tulsa. Smittle was a lesbian, and Brooks has credited her with some of the inspiration for his support for same-sex marriage.

Awards and records

Brooks has won a record 22 Academy of Country Music Awards and received a total of 47 overall nominations. His 13 Grammy Award nominations have resulted in 2 awards won, along with Billboard Music Awards, Country Music Association Awards, and many others. Brooks' work has earned awards and nominations in television and film as well, including the Primetime Emmy Awards and Golden Globe Awards. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2012. In 2010, he was inducted into the Cheyenne Frontier Days Hall of Fame. He has also been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.

In 2020, Brooks was awarded the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. Age 57 at the time he was named as the Gershwin honoree, he is the youngest recipient of the award. Also in 2020, Cher presented Brooks with the Billboard Icon Award.

In 2021, Brooks was named a recipient for the 43rd Annual Kennedy Center Honors.

Records
According to the Recording Industry Association of America, Brooks was the best-selling solo artist of the 20th century in America. This conclusion drew criticism from the press and many music fans who were convinced that Elvis Presley had sold more records, but had been short-changed in the rankings due to faulty RIAA certification methods during his lifetime. Brooks, while proud of his sales accomplishments, stated that he too believed that Presley must have sold more.

The RIAA has since reexamined their methods for counting certifications. Under their revised methods, Presley became the best-selling solo artist in U.S. history, making Brooks the number-two solo artist, ranking third overall, as the Beatles have sold more albums than either he or Presley. The revision brought more criticism of the accuracy of the RIAA's figures, this time from Brooks' followers. On November 5, 2007, Brooks was again named the best selling solo artist in US history, surpassing Presley after audited sales of 123 million were announced. In December 2010, several more of Presley's albums received certifications from the RIAA. As a result, Elvis again surpassed Brooks. , the RIAA lists Presley's total sales at 134.5 million and Brooks' at 134 million. Subsequently, Man Against Machine has been certified by the RIAA as Platinum and listing Brooks sales as exceeding 136 million, placing Brooks again as the number 1 selling solo artist.

In 2012, Brooks officially passed the Beatles as the top-selling act of the past 20 years, moving 68.5 million units worldwide, almost 5 million more than the Beatles. In May 2014, Brooks' total album sales reached 69,544,000 copies, which makes him the best-selling album artist in the U.S., ahead of the Beatles (65,730,000), Metallica (54,365,000), Mariah Carey (54,280,000) and Celine Dion (52,234,000).

In September 2016, Brooks became the first and only artist in music history to achieve seven career Diamond Award albums, according to the RIAA (surpassing the previous tied record of six next to The Beatles).

On June 16, 2021, Brooks won the Pollstar award as the "country touring artist of the decade" (2010s). Brooks thanked his band for the companionship during all those years.

Other
In 2014, Brooks was awarded the Arkansas Traveler certificate.

Discography

 * Garth Brooks (1989)
 * No Fences (1990)
 * Ropin' the Wind (1991)
 * Beyond the Season (1992)
 * The Chase (1992)
 * In Pieces (1993)
 * Fresh Horses (1995)
 * Sevens (1997)
 * Garth Brooks in...the Life of Chris Gaines (1999)
 * Garth Brooks & the Magic of Christmas (1999)
 * Scarecrow (2001)
 * Man Against Machine (2014)
 * Christmas Together (with Trisha Yearwood) (2016)
 * Gunslinger (2016)
 * Fun (2020)
 * Time Traveler (2023)

Concert tours and residencies

 * The Garth Brooks World Tour (1993–1994)
 * The Garth Brooks World Tour (1996–1998)
 * Garth at Wynn (2009–2014)
 * The Garth Brooks World Tour (2014–2017)
 * Dive Bar Tour (2019)
 * The Garth Brooks Stadium Tour (2019–2022)
 * Garth Brooks/Plus ONE (2023)

title: Garth Brooks