FAIRFAX, Va. (Top 40 Charts/ United Negro College Fund) - The United Negro College Fund (UNCF) today announced legendary songwriter, musician and singer
Stevie Wonder will receive an all-star tribute for his lifetime achievement on UNCF's annual televised fund-raiser, An Evening of Stars. The four-hour tribute, taped at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, California, will air nationwide in over 65 markets January 7th, 2006.
Over the 26-year history of An Evening of Stars, Stevie Wonder has dazzled audiences and viewers a dozen times with his brilliant performances of songs we all know and love. This year UNCF will pay homage to Stevie for his continuous support of the organization's efforts to raise money through its most popular and successful televised fund-raiser. Stevie Wonder will receive one of UNCF's greatest honors-an all-star tribute for his contributions to the music industry and role as a global humanitarian and philanthropist.
Stevie Wonder has contributed nearly four decades to the music industry, scoring more than 30 top ten hits, 11 No 1 pop singles, and 22 Grammys. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an Academy Award winner, a Billboard Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, and the youngest honoree of the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors, among countless other accolades.
An Evening of Stars Tribute to Stevie Wonder is slated to feature some of the hottest talent in the entertainment industry including Fantasia, Maroon 5, India.Arie, Toni Braxton, WGN anchor Merri Dee, actress Ruby Dee, CSI's Gary Dourdan, The Wire's Idris Elba, Vivica A. Fox, rap master Doug E. Fresh, Terrence D. Howard (Four Brothers, Crash), comedian D.L. Hughley, Regina King, Tyler Perry, Emmy nominee Jeremy Piven, entertainer and former NBA all-star John Salley, actor-director Robert Townsend, Tyler Perry and the first two recipients of the UNCF Award of Excellence, Lou Rawls and Quincy Jones.
"Stevie Wonder has been at the forefront of UNCF's efforts to raise money for deserving students through An Evening of Stars, and we are proud that he is this year's honoree," said Dr. Michael Lomax, UNCF's president and CEO. "Stevie has contributed a great deal to the music industry, so this tribute is much deserved and highly anticipated," he continued.
An Evening of Stars first aired in 1979 as the Lou Rawls Parade of Stars, and since has become one of the longest running and most successful televised events in U.S. history, raising over $200 million to supplement the cost of higher education for UNCF scholarship recipients and member institutions. The event has featured a Who's Who of the country's most recognizable talent, including Frank Sinatra, Bill Cosby, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Sammy Davis, Jr., Dick Clark, Reba McIntyre, Richard Pryor, Beyonce Knowles, Jill Scott, the late Luther Vandross, Whoopi Goldberg, Patti LaBelle, Ed McMahon, Michael Bolton, Hall and Oates, Ziggy Marley and scores of others.
Today, An Evening of Stars is broadcast nationally and supported by major corporations such as this year's national sponsors, American Airlines, McDonald's, Target, Prudential Financial, Toyota and Wachovia.
Marking his ninth year as Executive Producer and Director of An Evening of Stars is four-time Emmy Award winner Louis J. Horvitz. Horvitz's credits include The Academy Awards for eight consecutive years; The American Film Institute Life Achievement Awards for eleven years, including tributes to Tom Hanks, Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep and George Lucas; eleven years as director of The Primetime Emmy Awards; twelve years on The People's Choice Awards; and thirteen years as director of The Kennedy Center Honors.
As the nation's oldest and most successful minority higher education assistance organization, the United Negro College Fund's mission is to increase minority degree attainment by providing financial support to its 39 member institutions and reducing financial barriers to college. UNCF institutions and other historically black colleges and universities are highly effective, awarding 25 percent of African American baccalaureate degrees. UNCF administers nearly 450 programs, including scholarship, internship and fellowship programs, mentoring, summer enrichment, and curriculum and faculty development programs. Today, UNCF supports more than 65,000 students at over 900 colleges and universities across the country.
