The Daily Star - Stay Tuned
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The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, December 23, 2011 2 coverstory Streep, Diamond and Ma among 2011 winners Arts awards By Dee Wright TV Media A s 2011 comes to a close, everyone starts reflect- ing on the events of the previous year. News headlines have been filled with natural disasters, the capture of Osa- ma bin Laden and the wedding of Prince William and Cathe- rine Middleton. NASA finished its space shuttle program, the global population reached sev- en billion, and the world paid tribute to the 10-year anniver- sary of the Sept. 11 terrorist at- tacks. In the entertainment world, Oprah Winfrey started her own network, Larry King and Regis Philbin retired, socialite Kim Kardashian got married (and divorced), and daytime main- stay "All My Children" ended after 41 years on the air -- all with millions of viewers watch- ing their every move. Every year, members of the board of trustees of the Kenne- dy Center -- consisting of 36 presidentially-appointed mem- bers -- select five members of the art community to receive the prestigious award. The Kennedy Center Honors were created in 1978 to honor those who dedicate their lives to American culture. This year's recipients are Meryl Streep, Yo- Yo Ma, Neil Diamond, Barbara Cook and Sonny Rollins. Though the two-day gala Meryl Streep, one of this year's recipients, was a presenter at last year's ceremony took place on Dec. 4 and 5, CBS will air the festivities on Tues- day, Dec. 27. Actress Streep has made quite a mark on the entertain- ment industry during her 35- year career, and she is one of the most decorated actresses for her work. She has starred in several iconic films, including "Sophie's Choice" (1982), "Kramer vs. Kramer" (1979) and "The Bridges of Madison County" (1995), but her Acad- emy Award for "Sophie's Choice" was her last Oscar win -- despite having 12 other nominations since then. Streep won an Emmy in 2004 for her lead in "Angels in America" and a Golden Globe for 2009's "Julie and Julia," in which she co-starred with Amy Adams. She has been nominat- ed for 25 Golden Globes -- win- ning five of them -- and 10 People's Choice Awards. In 2004, she won the Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute. In the past five years, Streep has appeared in nine films, in- cluding the stage-to-screen ad- aptation of the award-winning musical, "Mamma Mia!" Streep played the mother, Don- na, who is stuck between a rock and a hard place when her daughter invites three men, those she believes to be her father, to her wedding. Streep sang 12 songs for the soundtrack. A/Auto Boutique B/The Green Giraffe 2 x 2 Internationally recognized cellist Yo-Yo Ma is this year's youngest recipient of the Ken- nedy Center Honors. Fifty-six- year-old Ma can play the violin, the viola, the double bass and the cello, but he is known around the world for his cello pieces. He first learned to play the cello when he was four, and he was playing for presi- dents John F. Kennedy and Dwight Eisenhower by age seven. He studied at Juilliard and Harvard before joining the Malboro Festival Orchestra and traveling the world as a performer. Ma has performed with many of the most famous or- chestras in the world, but he has also made several appear- ances in pop-culture media. He had a small role on an episode of "The West Wing" in 2000 and also voiced an animated counterpart in "The Simp- sons," wherein he berates Homer for not following up on a donation to PBS. Aside from his performanc- es, Ma has contributed to the preservation of the musical arts. He guest starred on multi- ple children's shows, such as "Mister Roger's Neighbor- hood," "Sesame Street" and "Arthur" -- all of which dis- cussed the importance of clas- sical music in society. Ma was also named a peace ambassa- dor for the United Nations by Kofi Annan. Most recently, Ma per- formed at Steve Jobs' memori- al in Stanford, Calif. Rock 'n' roll legend Dia- mond has been a music icon since his first album was re- corded in 1966. Diamond has been honored by many differ- ent groups and causes because of his influence on the music industry. Even if you don't rec- ognize his name, it's almost guaranteed that you know the words -- or at least the tune -- to "Sweet Caroline." Chirstopher's Coins 2 x 2 hollywoodQ&A By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: Is it true that "The Hunt for Red October" was based on a true story? A: Technically, it's based on a couple. Mainly, author Tom Clancy based his book (turned into a hit film in 1990) on the real-life mutiny of Valery Sablin, the politi- cal officer aboard the highly-advanced Russian warship Storo- zhevoy (which translates to English as Sentry) in 1975. Initial intelligence in the West, based on what little informa- tion made it through the Iron Curtain, suggested Sablin in- tended to defect, like Capt. Marko Ramius (played by Sean Connery) in "The Hunt for Red October." But in fact, he intend- ed instead to sail for Leningrad and launch a revolution against what he considered a corrupt Soviet regime that had strayed from true Communism. Some have also said that Clancy based other parts of his story -- specifically the covert, cloak-and-dagger style search- and-rescue operation -- on the story of the nuclear-armed Rus- sian submarine K-129, which sank in the Pacific near Hawaii in 1968. The Russians were reportedly unable to find it, but the Americans did in 1974. The CIA launched Project Azorean, a top-secret operation to retrieve the wrecked sub that rested 3.1 miles down. A/Crazy Tom's B/Allstar Auto Wash 2 x 3 Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town.