Jenna Ortega attends the world premiere of “Scream VI” at AMC Lincoln Square Theater in New York on March 06, 2023.
Credit: © Lev Radin, Shutterstock

From starring in horror movies to television shows, Jenna Ortega is moody and talented! Ortega began her acting career as a child, appearing in minor motion picture and television roles before gaining popularity on the Disney Channel. She later transitioned into more adult television and theatrical roles. Ortega gained widespread attention in 2022 for her portrayal of the title character in the television series “Wednesday,” based on the Addams Family characters originally created by Charles Addams. Ortega opened a new chapter of fame through her dark, moody, and unique portrayal of Wednesday.

“Wednesday” is directed by American motion picture director Tim Burton, who brings a modern twist to “The Addams Family,” which originally aired in the 1960’s. Ortega’s character is expelled from school after releasing piranhas on the boy’s water polo practice in retaliation for the team bullying her brother. Wednesday’s parents enroll her in their alma mater Nevermore Academy, a school for kids just like Wednesday in rural Vermont. Some of the series was filmed in Transylvania, a region in Romania, which was the main site of the legend about the vampire Dracula. Spooky!

Jenna Marie Ortega was born Sept. 27, 2002, in Coachella Valley, California. Her acting career started when her mother posted a video of her on Facebook. The video soon led to minor and supporting roles in television and film. In 2014, she began to gain more attention through her roles in television, most notably programs on the Disney Channel and the CW Television Network.

From 2014 to 2019, she portrayed the young version of Jane in the CW television series “Jane the Virgin.” From 2016 to 2018, she starred in the Disney Channel television series “Stuck in the Middle.” In 2019, she appeared in the Netflix series “You.”

Since 2020, Ortega has also taken on leading roles in motion pictures, often in horror movies. She starred in The Fallout, Scream, and X (all 2022). In 2023, she starred in Scream VI, the sequel to Scream (2022). You will see Ortega more and more in new movies and television shows!

June 7, 2013

James R. Clapper, the director of the National Security Agency, confirmed yesterday that the federal government has for nearly six years been collecting information on foreigners overseas from such Internet companies as Apple and Google and from the social networking site Facebook. Director Clapper stated yesterday that the classified program to collect information from Internet providers is used to “protect our nation from a wide variety of threats,” including terrorist attacks. Awareness of the huge scope of the Internet program became public just hours after federal officials acknowledged that for the last seven years the government has collected from the phone company Verizon records of millions of telephone calls made inside the United States.

Social networks, video sharing, e-mail, and other popular Internet activities depend on data centers, which hold the digital files and do the computer work necessary for their operation. (© George Grassie, ZUMA Press)

President Barack Obama defended the surveillance programs to reporters while on a visit to San Jose, California. “Nobody is listening to your telephone calls,” President Obama said. “That’s not what this program is about. As was indicated, what the intelligence community is doing is looking at the numbers and durations of calls. They’re not looking at names and they’re not looking at content, but sifting through this so-called meta data, they may identify potential leads with respect to people that might engage in terrorism.” President Obama also discussed society’s need to balance privacy and security.

These National Security Agency telephone and Internet surveillance programs began under President George W. Bush in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and have been authorized repeatedly by Congress. A secret court validated the program before it went into effect.

Additional World Book articles:

• Congress of the United States 2001 (a Back in Time article)
• Terrorism: America’s New Enemy (a special report)

August 21, 2012

The stock price of Apple Inc., maker of the iMac, iPhone, iPad, and iPod, climbed to $664.74 a share on the NASDAQ Global Select Market yesterday, making it the world’s most valuable company–ever. Apple’s total valuation hit $622.5 billion, the highest of any corporation in history.

Computer pioneers Steve Wozniak (left) and Steve Jobs introduced the Apple II computer in 1977, making computing economical for families, schools, and small businesses. (Courtesy of Apple Inc.)

The Silicon Valley-based company is expected to release a new version of its iPhone this fall and possibly a smaller, more affordable version of the iPad tablet. Although Apple’s founder, Steve Jobs, died in October 2011, investor confidence in the company has remained high under its new chief executive officer, Tim Cook.

Other technology companies fared less well on yesterday’s market. Shares of the social networking site Facebook sank to $18.75 on NASDAQ, compared with the $38-a-share opening value at its IOP (initial public offering) in May. Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg with Harvard University classmates in February 2004. In June 2012, Facebook had more than 955 million active users worldwide. However, many investors became wary of the website’s ability to generate sufficient amounts of advertising income, depressing the value of the stock. Some market analysts suggest that the stock was simply wildly overvalued to begin with.

The American computer programmer Mark Zuckerberg cofounded Facebook in 2004. (© Christian Alminana, WireImage/Getty Images)

Additional World Book articles:

• iGenius: Steve Jobs 1955-2011 (a special report)
• Computers 2007 (a Back in Time article)
• Telecommunications 2007 (a Back in Time article)
• Computers 2010 (a Back in Time article)
• Computers 2011 (a Back in Time article)