What is "harold"

masc. proper name, Old Norse Haraldr, Old Danish, Old Swedish Harald, from Proto-Germanic *harja-waldaz "army commander." For first element, see harry; second element is related to Proto-Germanic *waldan, source of Old English wealdan (see wield). It shares an etymology with herald.\n

Harold may refer to:

Harold is a structure used in longform improvisational theatre. Developed by Del Close and brought to fruition through Close's collaboration with Charna Halpern, the Harold has become the signature form of Chicago's iO Theater and the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York and Los Angeles. It is now performed by improv troupes and teams across the world.

The Committee, a San Francisco improv group, performed the first Harold in Concord, California in 1967. They were invited to a high school and decided to do their improvisations on the war in Vietnam. On the way home in a Volkswagen Bus, they were discussing the performance, when one of them asked what they should call it. Allaudin (Bill) Mathieu called out "Harold", which was a joking reference to a line from A Hard Day's Night where a reporter asks George Harrison what he calls his haircut and he answers "Arthur". Close later remarked that he wished he had chosen a better name.

When The Committee disbanded in 1972, improv company Improvisation, Inc. was the only company in America continuing to perform Close's "original" Harold: a 45-minute free-form piece that would seamlessly move from one "Harold technique" to another. In 1976, two former I-Inc performers, Michael Bossier and John Elk, formed Spaghetti Jam, performing in San Francisco's The Old Spaghetti Factory through 1983. Spaghetti Jam performed Harolds while also turning Spolin games and Harold techniques into stand-alone performance pieces (i.e., shortform improv).

Close and Halpern's 1994 book Truth in Comedy is the definitive text on the form. It describes a "training wheels Harold" as three acts (or "beats"), each with three scenes and a group segment. With each beat, the three scenes return. By the end of the piece, the three scenes have converged.

Harold is a 2008 American comedy film co-written by Greg Fields and T. Sean Shannon, starring Spencer Breslin in the titular role, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Nikki Blonsky, Ally Sheedy and Stella Maeve. The film is T. Sean Shannon's first full-length feature and is partially adapted from his earlier short film, which itself was adapted from one of his Saturday Night Live sketches. It was also released six years after the death of Greg Fields.

Harold was filmed in August 2007 in and around Great Neck, Long Island, New York, and had a limited release on July 11, 2008 in Los Angeles, Miami, and New York City.

Harold (foaled 1876 in Pennsylvania) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse.

Harold is a surname in the English language. In some cases the name may be an Anglicised form of the Irish Ó hArailt.

Harold is a Christian name derived from the Old English name Hereweald, derived from the Germanic elements here "army" and weald "power, leader, ruler". The Old Norse cognate, Haraldr, was also common among settlers in the Danelaw. Diminutives of Harold are Harry and Hal.