Anya Major
{{Short description|English athlete, actress, model and singer}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Anya Major
| image =
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| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1966}}
| birth_place = United Kingdom
| death_date =
| death_place =
| nationality =
| other_names =
| occupation =
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| spouse = Kim Rajah
| children = 3
| known_for =
| notable_works = Apple Computer's "1984" commercial.
"Nikita" music video (Nikita)
}}
Anya Major (born 1966) is an English athlete, actress, model and singer who starred in Apple Computer's "1984" commercial and, in 1985, appeared as "Nikita" in the video to Elton John's song of the same name.
Career
="1984" advertisement=
{{Main|1984 (advertisement)}}
In 1983, the Chiat/Day advertising agency held a casting call in London, on behalf of their client, Apple Computer, for what would prove to be a landmark television commercial. The vision of the agency and director Ridley Scott stipulated an actress capable of running up to a large video screen, spinning with a sledgehammer, and releasing it at the video screen. Most of the models and actresses tested struggled to do this; one errant throw nearly struck a passerby at the Hyde Park casting call.{{cite book |last=Linzmayer |first=Owen |title=The Mac Bathroom Reader |url=https://archive.org/details/macbathroomreade00linz |page=117| format=reproduction of chapter from book |access-date=2007-04-02 |date=July 1994 |publisher=Sybex Inc |location=San Francisco |isbn=978-0-7821-1531-4 }}{{registration required}} She won the role with her ability to handle the hammer convincingly.{{cite web |url=http://www.folklore.org/StoryView.py?project=Macintosh&story=1984.txt |title=1984 |access-date=2007-04-02 |last=Hertzfeld |first=Andy |authorlink=Andy Hertzfeld |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20070405001838/http://www.folklore.org/StoryView.py?project=Macintosh&story=1984.txt |archivedate=5 April 2007 |url-status=live}}
The commercial officially aired only twice on American television. It was first screened in December 1983, right before the 1:00 am sign-off on KMVT in Twin Falls, Idaho, so that it would be eligible for advertising industry awards for that year.{{cite web |url=http://www.curtsmedia.com/cine/1984.html |title=1984 Apple Commercial: The making of a legend |access-date=7 July 2008 |work=The Mac Bathroom Reader |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705224912/http://www.curtsmedia.com/cine/1984.html |archivedate=5 July 2008 |url-status=dead }}{{cite book |last=Pogue |first=David |authorlink=David Pogue |author2=Joseph Schorr |title=Macworld Macintosh SECRETS |publisher=IDG Books Worldwide |location=San Mateo, California |year=1993 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/macworldmacintos00pogu/page/251 251] |isbn=1-56884-025-X |url=https://archive.org/details/macworldmacintos00pogu/page/251 }} In addition, starting on January 17, 1984 it was screened prior to previews in movie theaters for a few weeks. Its best-known appearance was just after half-time of Super Bowl XVIII on 22 January 1984. Even with these limited appearances, the ad created such a media frenzy that it gained many subsequent free TV airings and print mentions, as it was discussed in the media.
="Nikita" music video=
{{Main|Nikita (song)}}
Major later portrayed "Nikita" in the Elton John 1985 music video for his song of the same name. As a spin-off, she released a single named "Moscow Nights" using the name Anya, and with that name, in 1987, she released another song named "One Word".{{cite web |url=http://www.discogs.com/artist/454839-Anya-2 |title=Anya (2) Discography |publisher=Discogs |access-date=2014-07-26}}
Later life
In 2006, Andy Hertzfeld of the Macintosh development team incorrectly stated that Major had died of breast cancer in 2000.{{cite video |people=Hertzfeld, Andy (speaker) |date=2006-03-15 |title=Andy Hertzfeld at Google New York |url=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8134536071712056670 |publisher=Google |access-date=2007-04-02 |archive-date=22 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060522033429/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8134536071712056670 |url-status=dead }} As of 2009, she was living in England with her husband Kim Rajah and their three children.{{cite news |url=http://www.magicvalley.com/news/local/article_d6982634-38ba-5483-b38e-4faf8dae3455.html |date=27 January 2009 |title=How KMVT launched Apple's Macintosh |work=Times-News |location=Twin Falls, Idaho |first=Steve |last=Crump |quote=The 42-year-old British mother of three still gets fan mail... |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120115051632/http://magicvalley.com/news/local/article_d6982634-38ba-5483-b38e-4faf8dae3455.html |archivedate=15 January 2012 |access-date=15 March 2012 |url-status=live }} More recently in 2016, she starred in the documentary "Silicon Cowboys{{Cite web |title=Silicon Cowboys | publisher=IMDb |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4938484/?ref_=nm_flmg_arf_1}}" produced by Jason Cohen, to represent her involvement in the Macintosh commercial.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|6937143}}
- {{cite news |last1=Leopold |first1=Todd |title=Why 2006 isn't like '1984' Maybe the big game is better than the commercials now |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/02/02/eye.ent.commercials/ |publisher=CNN|date=3 February 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060204144720/http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/02/02/eye.ent.commercials/ |archive-date=4 February 2006}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Major, Anya}}