TONIGHT'S ULTIMATE CELEBRATION OF TELEVISION BRINGS HOLLYWOOD STARS TO THE 2015 "TV LAND AWARDS" HOSTED BY TERRY CREWS, INCLUDING CASTS OF "PARENTHOOD," "THE WONDER YEARS," "FREAKS AND GEEKS," AND "ALLY MCBEAL," ALONG WITH DONNY AND MARIE OSMOND, BETTY WHITE AND A MUSICAL PERFORMANCE BY JENNIFER HUDSON
NIGHT ALSO FEATURES A TRIBUTE TO THE LATE JOAN RIVERS
Los Angeles, CA - April 11, 2015 - Celebrities from television, film and music joined TV Land and host Terry Crews for a fun-filled evening at the 2015 "TV Land Awards," honoring the most creative, popular and loved stars and series. The black-tie gala event, which premieres on TV Land on Saturday, April 18th at 9pm ET/PT with simulcasts on Nickelodeon and NickMom, taped tonight at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills. The awards honored the casts and creative minds behind "Parenthood" (Fan Favorite Award), "The Wonder Years" (Impact Award), "Freaks and Geeks" (15th Anniversary Award), and "Ally McBeal" (Groundbreaking Award"), as well as Betty White (Legend Award) and Donny and Marie Osmond (Pop Culture Award). The ceremony also featured a tribute to the late trailblazing comedian Joan Rivers and a jaw-dropping performance from Grammy(R) and Oscar(R)-winning best-selling recording artist Jennifer Hudson.
Memorable moments from the night included:
· Terry Crews opening the night with a lip sync medley that was an ode to the best of TV theme songs, including those from "Friends," "Gilligan's Island," "The Brady Bunch," "The Love Boat," "The Facts of Life," "The Addams Family," "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," "Three's Company," "The Jeffersons," "Maude," "The Golden Girls" (with an audience cameo from Betty White!), "Laverne and Shirley" and more - finishing off with "Good Times" and a gospel choir.
· While presenting for "Freaks and Geeks," comedy legend Carl Reiner jokingly chastised Terry Crews for "schmoozing up" Betty White in his opening act.
· Accepting the 15th Anniversary Award for "Freaks and Geeks," Judd Apatow credited series creator Paul Feig, saying "the reason it meant so much to people is because it meant so much to Paul." Jason Segel, who went on to A-list stardom, commented how the show "changed [his] entire life."
· R&B artist Charlie Wilson taking the stage for a surprise performance of "With A Little Help From My Friends," the theme song from "The Wonder Years," while a montage of heartwarming clips from the series played for the audience.
· Fred Savage commenting on how amazing the night was and how "The Wonder Years" was "who we were, what we were going through," and Danica McKellar adding that the cast was her TV family (Fred Savage and Josh Saviano were like "brothers" and even taught her what "Pull my finger!" meant). Josh Saviano was in awe over the fact that Paula Abdul was presenting their award, saying "She was my first concert!"
· Presenter Wendie Malick on her "Hot in Cleveland" co-star Betty White: "When we grow up, we all want to be like you, Betty White."
· Betty White receiving a standing ovation when walking to the stage to the song "You Sexy Thing." She ended her acceptance of this year's Legend Award by saying, "To each and every one of you - and your mothers and fathers - thank you from the bottom of my heart," to which audience members responded by screaming, "We love you Betty!"
· Calista Flockhart, when accepting the Groundbreaking Award for "Ally McBeal," said she was blown away by the clip montage, and said of the show, "What I remember the most are the friendships, truly." Executive producer Bill D'Elia followed with a joke, praising creator David E. Kelley by saying "If we broke some ground, we broke it because David gave us an amazing shovel." Kelly closed it up by saying "To be receiving this award with this class tonight... it's such an esteemed club. Thank you much for welcoming us."
· Donny and Marie Osmond gave in to the audience shouting "Sing it!" ending their speech accepting the Pop Culture Award with Marie singing "I'm a little bit country," and Donny finishing with "I'm a little bit rock 'n' roll."
· George Lopez presenting a heartfelt, uplifting and celebratory tribute to the late groundbreaking comedian Joan Rivers. "Joan was ahead of her time," he remarked. "Everybody loved her."
· Tia Mowry-Hardrict welcoming performer Jennifer Hudson to sing "Whatever Makes You Happy," from the soundtrack to the hit series "Empire."
· Minka Kelly and Martin Sheen presenting the final award of the night in two parts. Sheen said, "I know a little bit about parenthood and drama," which left the audience laughing.
· "Parenthood" star Craig T. Nelson lauded the making of the series as "an extraordinary journey with an extraordinary group of people," while fellow star Bonnie Bedelia looked at the TV Land Award and wondered, "Do we each get one of these? I want one!"
· Lauren Graham thanking the fans for keeping "Parenthood" going for six seasons, and then ending by asking what was up Miles Heizer's (her TV son) new nose ring.
· Host Terry Crews closing out the night by saying "Now I'm off to party like I'm Betty White - let's do it!"
THE FAN FAVORITE AWARD
"Parenthood" received the Fan Favorite Award, which salutes a series that is considered an All-American classic and much-loved by its fans. The drama series - based on the movie of the same name - just wrapped its sixth and final season on NBC. Accepting the award from presenters Martin Sheen and Minka Kelly were stars Lauren Graham, Craig T. Nelson, Peter Krause, Bonnie Bedelia, Erika Christensen, Miles Heizer, Sam Jaeger, Savannah Paige Rae, Max Burkholder, Tyree Brown, Sarah Ramos, Xolo Maridue�a and executive producer Jason Katims.
THE IMPACT AWARD
Presented by Paula Abdul, "The Wonder Years" received the Impact Award this year, which honors a show that has made a significant impression on American entertainment and culture. Stars Fred Savage, Danica McKellar, Josh Saviano, Olivia d'Abo and Alley Mills accepted the award for the series. R&B artist Charlie Wilson also sang the series' poignant theme song, "With A Little Help From My Friends."
THE 15TH ANNIVERSARY AWARD
"Freaks and Geeks" received the 15th Anniversary Award, presented by comedic legend Carl Reiner. The cult comedy series lasted only one season from 1999-2000 on NBC, but continues to find new fans every year. Actors and producers who have gone on to A-list stardom were on hand to accept the award, including series creator Paul Feig, executive producer Judd Apatow, and stars Linda Cardellini, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Busy Philipps, Samm Levine, Martin Starr, David Gruber Allen and Steve Bannos.
THE GROUNDBREAKING AWARD
The Groundbreaking Award, given to a series that sparked conversation about cultural issues, was presented to the cast and creators of "Ally McBeal" by Lauren Graham. Accepting on behalf of the show was creator David E. Kelley and executive producer Bill D'Elia, along with stars Calista Flockhart, Peter MacNicol, Greg Germann, Lisa Nicole Carson, Gil Bellows and Courtney Thorne-Smith.
THE LEGEND AWARD
Betty White was the recipient of this year's Legend Award, honoring her 70+ years in show business. White is widely regarded as a national treasure and one of America's sweethearts, with beloved roles in "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "The Golden Girls" and TV Land's "Hot in Cleveland." Her "Hot" co-stars - Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick - presented her with the award.
THE POP CULTURE AWARD
The Pop Culture Award was given to Donny Osmond and Marie Osmond, for their staying power in the cultural zeitgeist. The triple-threat brother and sister duo were presented with their award by stars of TV Land's new series "Younger," Sutton Foster and Nico Tortorella.
Michael Levitt ("The Daytime Emmy Awards," "Billboard Music Awards") and Casey Patterson ("Lip Sync Battle," "Guys Choice Awards") are executive producers, and Ryan Polito ("Guys Choice Awards 2014," "The Price is Right") is director. Greg Sills ("The Teen Choice Awards," "Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards") serves as supervising producer and Gary Tellalian ("American Comedy Awards") is producer.
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