NIGHT OF 100 STARS II {LUCILLE BALL, JOE NAMATH, JOE DIMAGGIO, GEORGE BURNS, AND OTHERS} (TV)
Summary
This special is the second "Night of 100 Stars" to benefit The Actors Fund of America. Edited from a seven-hour live entertainment marathon that was taped February 17, 1985, at New York's Radio City Music Hall, this sequel to the 1982 "Night of 100 Stars" special features 288 celebrities and opens with young Drew Barrymore wishing to see one hundred stars. Her dream is fulfilled as a Pan Am jet flies over New York City -- passing Mayor Ed Koch dressed as a traffic cop -- until it stops at Radio City Music Hall. As the stars disembark at the Music Hall, the bestangled Rockettes dance onstage to "This Is a Star," and Barrymore joins them in a kickline finale. Highlights include: a production number about New York with Leonard Bernstein conducting "New York, New York"; Peter Allen descending on a crescent moon while singing "The Best That You Can Do" (the theme from "Arthur"); Ashford & Simpson with Rodgers and Hart's "Manhattan"; Placido Domingo strolling arm and arm with Marisa Berenson and Deborah Raffin while singing "Every Street's a Boulevard in Old New York" to pushcart vendor Maureen Stapleton; Robert Klein with "My Town, That's Manhattan"; Lucie Arnaz with "New York, New York (It's a Helluva Town)"; Jerry Orbach crooning "42nd Street," Leslie Uggams with "The A Train"; Melba Moore with "Uptown" and Petula Clark with her hit "Downtown"; Carol Channing and Big Bird in a duet to "How About You?"; Dinah Shore with the bittersweet "Autumn in New York"; Patti LaBelle with "On Broadway"; Jennifer Holliday with "New York City Rhythm"; Joe Namath with "When You're a Jet"; the Muppets with Kander and Ebb's "New York, New York"; and an all-star finale, "New York State of Mind." Next, John Forsythe introduces a celebration of American television; Lucille Ball recalls the Golden Age of television; Hal Linden, as ringmaster, and Michele Lee and Nancy Dussault, dressed as showgirls, sing "TV Is a Circus" with lyrics that include titles of TV series, featuring the following stars, who take a bow and join in a balloon-filled finale: Nell Carter, Tony Danza, Harry Anderson, Gary Coleman, Soleil Moon Frye, James Noble, Inga Swenson, Dick Clark, Charlotte Rae, Michael J. Fox, Meredith Baxter-Birney, Scott Baio, Tempestt Bledsoe, Lisa Bonet, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Gavin MacLeod, Marla Gibbs, Bob Newhart, Emmanuel Lewis, Tyne Daly, Heather Thomas, Doug Barr, Pierce Brosnan, Stephanie Zimbalist, Jameson Parker, David Hasselhoff, Lee Horsley, Kate Jackson, Daniel Hug-Kelly, William Shatner, Rex Smith, Perry King, Pernell Roberts, William Daniels, Jack Palance, Tony Franciosa, Rene Enriquez, Bruce Weitz, Joe Spano, Betty Thomas, Jennifer O'Neill, Linda Gray, Lorenzo Lamas, John Forsythe, Linda Evans, Joan Collins, Diahann Carroll, Julie Harris, Lisa Hartman, Joan Van Ark, Donna Mills, and Anne Baxter. Next, George Burns discusses the origins of vaudeville and the following entertainers perform brief excerpts: the McGuire Sisters with a medley of pop songs; Doug Henning with a paper-tearing illusion; Roby Gasser and his performing Sea Lions; ventriloquist Ronn Lucas with his dummy; Robert Klein in a stand-up routine; and the Manhattan Transfer with a scat number.
Next, in a segment about dance, Dick Van Dyke narrates the tale of actor Conrad Kenson, who left money to the Actors Fund to give shoes to unemployed actors; Van Dyke then sings and dances to Kander and Ebb's original song, "A New Pair of Shoes," which segues into a tap number by Gregory Hines, Hinton Battle, Lee Roy Reams, Victor Griffin, and Gregg Burge, followed by the tapping of Georgia Engel, Elaine Joyce, Beth Howland, Bonnie Franklin, Marge Champion, Nanette Fabray, and Christopher Walken, then by ballet stars Cynthia Gregory and Alexander Godunov in a brief pas de deux, and by ballroom dancing couples Sandy Duncan and Don Correia, and Jane Powell and Van Johnson; the dance installment concludes with Alfonso Ribeiro and Van Dyke in a soft shoe number, followed by Ribeiro, the Rockettes, and all the tap dancers in a finale featuring Gwen Verdon, Charles "Honi" Coles, Juliet Prowse, Maurice Hines, Chita Rivera, Donny Osmond, Debbie Allen, Donald O'Connor, Van Dyke, and Ginger Rogers. Next, Bob Elliott and Ray Goulding toast the popularity of radio and the Pointer Sisters sing "Jump" as the U.S. Olympic gymnasts Tim Daggett, Peter Vidmar, Jim Hartung, Mitch Gaylord, and Julianne McNarmara perform intricately choreographed athletic demonstrations; Howard Cosell then introduces the following sports heroes: Carl Lewis, Glenn Cunningham, Valerie Brisco-Hooks, Wilma Rudolph, Angel Cordero Jr., Eddie Arcaro, Nancy Lopez, Patty Berg, Scott Hamilton, Tiffany Chin, Peggy Fleming, Peter and Kitty Carruthers, Esther Williams, Candi Costie, Tracy Ruiz, Al Unser, Danny Sullivan, Tracy Austin, Don Budge, Bernard King, Bob Cousy, Mark Gastineau, Walter Payton, Jim Brown, Dan Marino, Y.A. Tittle, Hank Aaron, Stan Musial, and Joe DiMaggio. Next, Kenny Rogers explains the popularity of the fiddle, the banjo, and the guitar to illustrate the origins of country music and introduces Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers who sing "Houston"; Anita Morris then describes the origins of burlesque and introduces comedian Henny Youngman, who performs a stand-up routine; Bernadette Peters hosts a segment on "The Fearless Females of the Silent Screen," featuring film clips of and onstage appearances by silent film actresses Billie Dove, Laura LaPlante, Leatrice Joy, and Lillian Gish; next, Peters presents clips from the work of contemporary stars before introducing them: a bald-headed Dustin Hoffman, Lana Turner, Robert Preston, Sidney Poitier, Olivia DeHavilland, Robert DeNiro, Danny Kaye, and Laurence Olivier.
Next, in a segment on fashion, Joan Collins introduces the following stars, who are modeling contemporary fashions: Shari Belafonte-Harper wearing a design by Tracy Mills, Gregory Harrison wearing Giorgio Armani, Ali MacGraw and Tony Roberts wearing Missoni, Florence Henderson wearing Neil Bieff, Treat Williams wearing Lanin for the Greif Companies, Valerie Bertinelli wearing Margi Kent, Lynn Swann wearing Alan Flusser for JCPenney, Cathy Lee Crosby wearing Karl Lagerfeld, Georg Stanford Brown wearing Lanvin for the Greif Companies, Heather Locklear and David Birney wearing Lee Wright for JCPenney, Brooke Shields and Michael Ives wearing Perry Ellis, Morgan Fairchild wearing Fabrice, Teri Garr wearing Halston III for JCPenney, Dyan Cannon wearing Carole Little, Ellen Burstyn wearing Geoffrey Beene, Cristina Ferrare wearing Albert Capraro, Colleen Dewhurst wearing Pauline Trigere, Morgan Brittany wearing Fernando Sanchez, Susan Lucci wearing Karl Lagerfeld, Jill St. John wearing Halston III for JCPenney, Cynthia Sikes wearing Mary McFadden, Mary McFadden wearing her own design, Janet Leigh wearing Oleg Cassini, Jacqueline Bisset wearing OMO Norma Kamali, Jaclyn Smith wearing Bill Blass, Deidre Hall wearing Bob Mackie, Jane Seymour wearing Carolina Herrera, Carolina Herrera wearing her own design, Joan Van Ark wearing Oscar de la Renta, Gloria Loring wearing Oleg Cassini, Donna Mills wearing Tracy Mills, Lisa Hartman wearing Fernando Sanchez, Lynda Carter wearing Jacqueline de Ribes, Jacqueline de Ribes, Jacqueline de Ribes wearing her own design, Diahann Carroll and Linda Evans wearing Galanos, Claudia Cardinale wearing Valentino, Priscilla Presley wearing Oscar de la Renta, Linda Gray wearing Bob Mackie, Raquel Welch wearing OMO Norma Kamali, Angie Dickinson wearing Albert Caprano, Laura Branigan and Michael Vollbracht wearing Michaele Vollbracht. Following this is a procession of designers Tracy Mills, Fabrice, Geoffrey Beene, Carole Little, Halston, Fernando Sanchez, Bob Mackie, Albert Capraro, Oleg Cassini, and the Emanuels, concluding with Ann-Margret in a gold gown by Emanuel.
James Earl Jones discusses the uniquely American contribution to entertainment -- the minstrel show -- from the song "Jump Jim Crow" to the tradition of white people telling jokes and singing songs in what they claimed was a Negro dialect; this leads to a tribute to turn-of-the-century African-American performer Bert Williams with Whoopi Goldberg in blackface offering her impression of him singing "Nobody"; Goldberg then portrays a junkie with a Ph.D in literature who describes the experience of watching "Bonanza" on German television; Ashford & Simpson perform their hit "Solid as a Rock"; Mary Tyler Moore introduces a sketch about the origins of The Actors Fund in 1882, featuring Edward Asner as a crusty newspaper editor dictating an editorial about the theatre to his secretary (Zoe Caldwell): he recalls the famous Porter case in which Maurice Barrymore (Jeremy Irons) and two actors (Linda Lavin and Christopher Reeve) went into a bar in Marshall, Texas, where a drunk patron (Vincent Gardenia) shot and killed Ben Porter. Though money was raised for Porter's widow, the editor conceives of a permanent fund for the entire theatrical community; Mary Tyler Moore continues with a brief history and a statement of purpose of The Actors' Fund. Anne Murray then sings "Time Don't Run Out on Me" and Linda Evans tries to recall Kermit the Frog's name as he sings "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face." In a segment on jazz that is set in a nightclub and introduced by Lena Horne, Dick Moore delivers a drink to Joe Williams, who sings a jazz medley; the Wynton Marsalis Quintet performs, Mel TormŽ scats and sings a number, Sarah Vaughan sings, Al Jarreau sings "Take Five," Woody Herman plays the clarinet, and everyone joins a jumping ensemble scat number.
Next, Barbara Walters and Walter Cronkite host a special salute to the following achievers who have widened horizons and contributed to the service of mankind: Nobel Prize-winning chemist and peace activist Dr. Linus C. Pauling; civil rights heroine Rosa L. Parks; surgical procedure and heart transplant pioneer Dr. Christian Barnard; pediatrician and anti-nuclear proliferation activist Dr. Helen Caldicott; National Farm Workers Association founder Cesar E. Chavez; feminist leader and Ms. Magazine co-founder Gloria Steinem; Pulitzer Prize-winning author John Updike; Dr. Seuss creator Theodor S. Geisel; educator and author Henry Steele Commager, psychologist, author, and educator and Dr. Kenneth B. Clark; and modern dance choreographer and dancer Martha Graham. Next, a young dancer performs a solo dance to an instrumental version of John Lennon's "Imagine" while Cronkite comments that one person can make a difference and that "we must acknowledge that we are truly one"; this comment segues into the Rockettes in white top hat and tails dancing to "One" from "A Chorus Line" and partnering the following performers who take a bow: Mark Hamill, Lloyd Bridges, Bert Convy, Charles Bronson, Cab Calloway, Michael Caine, Yul Brynner, Dabney Coleman, Vic Damone, Billy Crystal, Richard Dreyfuss, Matt Dillon, Bob Fosse, Charles Durning, Ben Gazzara, David Frost, Jim Henson, Marvin Hamlisch, Rock Hudson, Geoffrey Holder, Burgess Meredith, Rod McKuen, Bert Parks, Jim Nabors, Tony Randall, Vinent Price, Richard Thomas, James Stewart, Robert Wagner, Robert Urich, Billy Dee Williams, Edward I. Koch, and star number 288, Carol Burnett. Everyone joins the Rockettes in a kick line and are rewarded with a standing ovation. The special concludes with the entire complement of stars joining on stage to sing Jerry Herman's "The Best of Times Is Now." Includes commercials, promos, and a public service announcement.
(This program contains minor technical problems. This represents the best copy of this program currently available to the Museum.)
Cataloging of this program was made possible by Verizon Foundation, 2003.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: March 10, 1985 Sunday 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 2:54:30
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:05154
- GENRE: Specials
- SUBJECT HEADING: Baseball; Comedy; Football; Music, popular (songs, etc.); Sports; African-American Collection - Music
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV, 1985
- COMMERCIALS:
- TV - Commercials - American Express credit cards
- TV - Commercials - Avon Fantasque perfume by Louis Feraud
- TV - Commercials - Avon beauty products
- TV - Commercials - Clairol Loving Care hair coloring
- TV - Commercials - Datril pain reliever
- TV - Commercials - DeBeers diamonds ("A Diamond Is Forever.")
- TV - Commercials - DuPont
- TV - Commercials - Halston III collection at JCPenney
- TV - Commercials - JCPenney stores
- TV - Commercials - L'eggs hosiery
- TV - Commercials - Lee Wright collection at JCPenney
- TV - Commercials - Mercury Cougar automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Mercury Topaz automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Mercury automobiles
- TV - Commercials - Metropolitan Life Insurance
- TV - Commercials - Perma Soft shampoo for permed hair
- TV - Commercials - Roman Meal bread
- TV - Commercials - Rubbermaid products
- TV - Commercials - Stafford collection at JCPenney
- TV - Commercials - Texaco gasoline
- TV - Commercials - Vivage perfume from Avon
- TV - PSA - "Don't Drink and Drive"
- TV - Promos - "ABC World News Tonight"
- TV - Promos - "Benson"
- TV - Promos - "Hardcastle & McCormick"
- TV - Promos - "Kicks"
- TV - Promos - "MacGruder and Loud"
- TV - Promos - "Moonlighting"
- TV - Promos - "Mr. Belvedere"
- TV - Promos - "Off the Rack"
- TV - Promos - "Webster"
CREDITS
- Alexander H. Cohen … Executive Producer
- Joe Goldstein … Producer
- David Herscher … Producer
- John Springer … Producer
- Hildy Parks … Producer, Writer
- Martha Mason … Co-Producer
- Clark Jones … Director
- Buz Kohan … Composer
- John Kander … Composer
- Richard Mullins … Composer
- John Lennon … Composer
- Jerry Herman … Composer
- Fred Ebb … Lyricist
- Jim Morgan … Lyricist
- Mary Jo Kaplan … Lyricist
- Albert Stephenson … Choreographer
- Mary Beth Kurdock … Choreographer
- Ed Nolfi … Choreographer
- Violet Holmes … Choreographer
- Elliot Lawrence … Music (Misc. Credits), Musical Director
- Glen Roven … Music (Misc. Credits), Dance and vocal arrangements by
- Michael Gibson … Music (Misc. Credits), Orchestrations by
- Tommy Newsom … Music (Misc. Credits), Orchestrations by
- Lanny Meyers … Music (Misc. Credits), Orchestrations by
- Torrie Zito … Music (Misc. Credits), Orchestrations by
- Ann-Margret
- Hank Aaron
- Debbie Allen
- Peter Allen
- Harry Anderson
- Eddie Arcaro
- Lucie Arnaz
- Ashford & Simpson
- Tracy Austin
- Scott Baio
- Lucille Ball
- Doug Barr
- Drew Barrymore
- Hinton Battle
- Anne Baxter
- Meredith Baxter-Birney (see also: Baxter, Meredith)
- Geoffrey Beene
- Shari Belafonte-Harper (see also: Belafonte, Shari)
- Marisa Berenson
- Patty Berg
- Leonard Bernstein
- Valerie Bertinelli
- David Birney
- Jacqueline Bisset
- Tempestt Bledsoe
- Bob and Ray
- Lisa Bonet
- Laura Branigan
- Lloyd Bridges
- Valerie Brisco-Hooks
- Morgan Brittany
- Pierce Brosnan
- Georg Stanford Brown
- Jim Brown
- Don Budge
- Gregg Burge
- George Burns
- Ellen Burstyn
- Dyan Cannon
- Albert Capraro
- Claudia Cardinale
- Diahann Carroll
- Kitty Carruthers
- Peter Carruthers
- Lynda Carter
- Nell Carter (see also: Nell Carter-Ruth)
- Oleg Cassini
- Marge Champion
- Carol Channing
- Konstantin Chernenko
- Tiffany Chin
- Dick Clark
- Petula Clark
- Gary Coleman
- Charles "Honi" Coles
- Joan Collins
- Angel Cordero
- Don Correia
- Howard Cosell
- Candy Costie
- Bob Cousy
- Cathy Lee Crosby
- Glenn Cunningham
- Tim Daggett
- Tyne Daly
- William Daniels
- Tony Danza
- Olivia DeHavilland
- Robert DeNiro
- Jacqueline de Ribes
- Colleen Dewhurst
- Joe DiMaggio
- Angie Dickinson
- Placido Domingo
- Billie Dove
- Sandy Duncan
- Nancy Dussault
- Bob Elliott
- David Emanuel
- Elizabeth Emanuel
- Georgia Engel
- RenŽ Enriquez
- Linda Evans
- Nanette Fabray
- Fabrice
- Morgan Fairchild
- Cristina Ferrare
- Peggy Fleming
- John Forsythe
- Bob Fosse
- Michael J. Fox
- Bonnie Franklin
- Tony Franciosa
- Soleil Moon Frye
- Teri Garr
- Roby Gasser
- Mark Gastineau
- Larry Gatlin
- The Gatlin Brothers
- Mitch Gaylord
- Marla Gibbs
- Lillian Gish
- Alexander Godunov
- Ray Goulding
- Linda Gray
- Cynthia Gregory
- Victor Griffin
- Deidre Hall
- Halston (Roy Halston Frowick)
- Scott Hamilton
- Julie Harris
- Gregory Harrison
- Lisa Hartman
- Jim Hartung
- David Hasselhoff
- Florence Henderson
- Doug Henning
- Jim Henson
- Carolina Herrera
- Gregory Hines
- Maurice Hines
- Dustin Hoffman
- Jennifer Holliday
- Lee Horsley
- Beth Howland
- Daniel Hugh-Kelly
- Michael Ives
- Kate Jackson
- Van Johnson
- Leatrice Joy
- Elaine Joyce
- Danny Kaye
- Conrad Kenson
- Bernard King
- Perry King
- Robert Klein
- Edward I. Koch
- Laura LaPlante
- Lorenzo Lamas
- Michele Lee
- Janet Leigh
- Carl Lewis
- Emmanuel Lewis
- Hal Linden
- Carole Little
- Heather Locklear
- Nancy Lopez
- Gloria Loring
- Ronn Lucas
- Susan Lucci
- Ali MacGraw
- Gavin MacLeod
- Bob Mackie
- The Manhattan Transfer
- Dan Marino
- Mary McFadden
- The McGuire Sisters
- Rod McKuen
- Julianne McNarmara
- Donna Mills
- Tracy Mills
- Melba Moore
- Anita Morris
- The Muppets
- Stan Musial
- Joe Namath
- Bob Newhart
- James Noble
- Donald O'Connor
- Jennifer O'Neill
- Laurence Olivier
- Jerry Orbach
- Donny Osmond
- Jack Palance
- Jameson Parker
- Walter Payton
- Bernadette Peters
- The Pointer Sisters
- Sidney Poitier
- Jane Powell
- Priscella Presley
- Robert Preston
- Juliet Prowse
- Keshia Knight Pulliam
- Charlotte Rae
- Deborah Raffin
- Lee Roy Reams
- Christopher Reeve
- Alfonso Ribeiro
- Chita Rivera
- Pernell Roberts
- Tony Roberts
- The Rockettes
- Ginger Rogers
- Kenny Rogers
- Wilma Rudolph
- Tracy Ruiz
- Jane Seymour
- William Shatner
- Brooke Shields
- Dinah Shore
- Cynthia Sikes
- Jaclyn Smith
- Rex Smith
- Joe Spano
- Jill St. John
- Maureen Stapleton
- Danny Sullivan
- Lynn Swann
- Inga Swenson
- Betty Thomas
- Heather Thomas
- Y.A. Tittle
- Lana Turner
- Leslie Uggams
- Al Unser
- Van Ark, Joan
- Dick Van Dyke
- Gwen Verdon
- Peter Vidmar
- Michaele Vollbracht
- Christopher Walken
- Malcolm-Jamal Warner
- Bruce Weitz
- Esther Williams
- Treat Williams
- Henny Youngman
- Stephanie Zimbalist
- Edward Asner
- Christian Barnard
- Charles Bronson
- Yul Brynner
- Carol Burnett
- Michael Caine
- Helen Caldicott
- Zoe Caldwell
- Cab Calloway
- Cesar E. Chavez
- Kenneth B. Clark
- Dabney Coleman
- Walter Cronkite
- Billy Crystal
- Vic Damone
- Matt Dillon
- Richard Dreyfuss
- Charles Durning
- David Frost
- Vincent Gardenia
- Ben Gazzara
- Theodore Geisel (see also: Dr. Seuss)
- Whoopi Goldberg
- Martha Graham
- Mark Hamill
- Marvin Hamlisch
- Woody Herman
- Geoffrey Holder
- Lena Horne
- Rock Hudson
- Jeremy Irons
- Al Jarreau
- Scott Johnson
- James Earl Jones
- Patti LaBelle
- Linda Lavin
- Wynton Marsalis
- Burgess Meredith
- Dick Moore
- Mary Tyler Moore
- Anne Murray
- Jim Nabors
- Bert Parks
- Rosa L. Parks
- Linus C. Pauling
- Vincent Price
- Tony Randall
- Fernando Sanchez
- Gloria Steinem
- James Stewart
- Richard Thomas
- Mel Tormé
- John Updike
- Robert Urich
- Sarah Vaughan
- Robert Wagner
- Barbara Walters
- Billy Dee Williams
- Joe Williams