The Paley Center for Media presents pioneering television comedy legends Carol Burnett, Norman Lear, Bob Newhart, Carl Reiner, and Lily Tomlin with 2019 Paley Honors Awards November 21 at a gala event at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
The Paley Honors: A Special Tribute to Television’s Comedy Legends will feature tributes to the honorees, including groundbreaking comedy moments from sitcoms, animated series, variety, talk, and sketch shows. The evening begins at 6:30 PM.
Presenters include Anthony Anderson, Kristin Chenoweth, Sean Hayes, D.L. Hughley, Allison Janney, Jimmy Kimmel, Lisa Kudrow, George Lopez, Debra Messing, Conan O’Brien, and Rob Reiner plus guests Jason Alexander, Tichina Arnold, Mayim Bialik, Cocoa Brown, Novi Brown, Yvette Nicole Brown, Terry Crews, Kat Dennings, Juan Pablo Espinosa, Mitzi Gaynor, Marla Gibbs, Zulay Henao, Marilu Henner, Vicki Lawrence, Jane Leeves, Bob Mackie, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Jane Seymour, Jimmie Walker, Michaela Watkins, Palmer Williams Jr., and Cedric Yarbrough.
The gala will help fund the creation of the Paley Center’s Comedy Collection, a new part of the Paley Archive that will document programs, artists, and groundbreaking moments from the last 80 years of television comedy.
“From the hilarious antics of Carol Burnett, Bob Newhart, Carl Reiner, and Lily Tomlin to Norman Lear’s unique ability to highlight the important social issues of the day, the marriage of comedy and television has brought so much joy to generations of television audiences,” said Maureen J. Reidy, the Paley Center’s President and CEO, in an earlier statement. “We’re thrilled to pay special tribute to the comedic trailblazers who left their indelible mark on television.”
Burnett, Reiner, and Tomlin started their careers in the theatre prior to their TV and film stardom. Burnett was Tony-nominated for her breakout Broadway debut in Once Upon a Mattress (1959), which was followed by Fade Out - Fade In (1964), and her subsequent stage returns in Moon Over Buffalo (1995), Putting It Together (1999), and Love Letters (2014). She received a Special Tony Award in 1969.Reiner appeared in the Broadway musicals Inside U.S.A. (1948) and Alive and Kicking (1950), prior to returning as writer and director of Something Different in 1967. He also directed the one-night-only special events Tough to Get Help and The Roast.
Tomlin received a Special Tony Award in 1977 for her solo show Appearing Nightly, which marked her Broadway debut. She returned in 1985 with The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, for which she received the Best Actress in a Play Tony Award. She reprised her performance in a 2001 revival.
For tickets, visit Paley.me.
