Holland Taylor

Holland Virginia Taylor (born January 14, 1943) is an American film, stage and television actress, and playwright. For her role as Judge Roberta Kittleson on the ABC drama The Practice (1998–2003), she won the 1999 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. She is also known for her role as Evelyn Harper on the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men (2003–15).

Taylor's other notable television roles include the sitcoms Bosom Buddies (1980–81), and The Powers That Be (1992–93). Her film appearances include One Fine Day (1996), George of the Jungle (1997), The Truman Show (1998), and Legally Blonde (2001). She also wrote and starred in the solo play Ann, based on the life and work of Ann Richards, for which she was nominated for the 2013 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play.

Early life

Taylor was born in 1943 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Virginia (Davis), a painter, and C. Tracy Taylor, an attorney. She is the youngest of three girls in the family; her sisters are Patricia and Pamela, and through Patricia, she is the aunt of director Brad Anderson. Taylor attended high school at Westtown School, a Quaker boarding school in West Chester, Pennsylvania. She then majored in drama at Bennington College graduating in 1964, before moving to New York City to become an actress.

Holland (surname)

Holland is a toponomical surname indicative of ancestral origin in the Dutch region of Holland, the Netherlands, or the English region of Holland (Lincolnshire), or the English towns of Upholland (Lancashire) and Holland-on-Sea (Essex). It is also an Anglicized version of Ó hUallacháin (or Houlihan or Holohan) and is a common surname on the [Beara Peninsula]] in southwestern County Cork, Ireland. It is also found in places where Beara immigrants settled, such as Butte, Montana, and southeastern Massachusetts.

Architecture and engineering

Film, theatre and television

Holland (album)

Holland is the 19th studio album by the American rock group The Beach Boys, released in January 1973. It was recorded in Baambrugge, Netherlands over the summer of 1972 using a reconstructed studio sent from California, and with two Brian Wilson tracks rush-recorded in Los Angeles and added to the album at the last minute. The photograph on the album's front cover is an upside down image of the Kromme Waal, a canal that runs through the center of Amsterdam.

Holland included a bonus EP, Mount Vernon and Fairway (A Fairy Tale), a musical fairy tale written by Brian Wilson about a magical transistor radio who appears to a young prince. Narration was provided by the group's manager: Jack Rieley.

Background

Just as Carl and the Passions – "So Tough" was coming to print, the Beach Boys, at manager Jack Rieley's urging, decided to pack up and record their next album in the Netherlands. They felt the change of scenery would make for some inspirational sessions, and perhaps even snap former leader Brian Wilson out of his deep depression.

Netherlands

The Netherlands (ⁱ/ˈnɛðərləndz/; Dutch: Nederland [ˈneːdərˌlɑnt]) is the main "constituent country" (Dutch: land) of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a small, densely populated country located in Western Europe with three island territories in the Caribbean. The European part of the Netherlands borders Germany to the east, Belgium to the south, and the North Sea to the northwest, sharing maritime borders with Belgium, the United Kingdom and Germany. The largest and most important cities in the Netherlands are Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam. Amsterdam is the country's capital, while The Hague holds the Dutch seat of government and parliament. The port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe – as large as the next three largest combined – and was the world's largest port between 1962 and 2004. The name Holland is also frequently used to informally refer to the whole of the country of the Netherlands.

"Netherlands" literally means "lower countries", influenced by its low land and flat geography, with only about 50% of its land exceeding one metre above sea level. Most of the areas below sea level are man-made. Since the late 16th century, large areas (polders) have been reclaimed from the sea and lakes, amounting to nearly 17% of the country's current land mass.