STARS COME OUT FOR MDA TELETHON

TUCSON, Ariz., Aug. 14, 1998 -- Concerts by Celine Dion and Pam Tillis ... special VH-1 segments featuring Billy Joel, Gloria Estefan, Hanson, Sarah MacLachlan, the B-52's and more top musical names ... Broadway shows, including the television premiere of "Fosse" ... Louie Anderson, Bill Cosby, Drew Carey, Bill Maher, Kevin Meaney and many more.... That's just a small sample of the entertainment viewers of the Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Sept. 6-7, will enjoy.

The 21½-hour Telethon broadcast live by 200 television stations to some 75 million viewers in the United States and Canada offers a parade of performers from television, film, Broadway, comedy, sports, the circus, magic and dance. Musical offerings will range from rhythm and blues to Russian folk, from the Spice Girls to classical violin. The first worldwide telethon, the show also will be transmitted live on the Internet using streaming audio and video technologies contributed by RealNetworks, the international leader in streaming media for the World Wide Web.

"We've got a fantastic performance lineup, a terrific group of national show cohosts, and top television personalities in virtually every U.S. city helping me reach the hearts and pocketbooks of the world to help 'my kids,'" said Jerry Lewis, MDA's national chairman and star of the Telethon. "Assisted by nearly a million volunteers, we're going to make great things happen for families affected by deadly neuromuscular diseases."

Originating from CBS Television City in Hollywood, with live and taped segments from New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, Nashville, Louisiana and Puerto Rico, the nation's best-known television fund-raiser begins at 9 p.m. EDT on Sunday, Sept. 6. National and local Telethon segments will spotlight people affected by muscle-wasting disorders through taped profiles and live personal appeals.

Ed McMahon will assist Lewis as Telethon anchor for the 31st year. He and Jerry will be joined in Hollywood by five co-hosts: "Entertainment Tonight" correspondent Jann Carl, VH-1 and FOX personality Cynthia Garrett, comedians Max Alexander and Kevin Meaney, and Parade magazine editor Walter Anderson.

In Los Angeles, broadcasting legend Casey Kasem and his actress wife, Jean, will preside, along with singer Maureen McGovern, comedians Alexander and Meaney, and KCAL co-anchors Pat Harvey and David Gonzales.

The New York Telethon broadcast will be headlined by actor Ed Fry, broadcast journalist Denise Richardson and WWOR sports anchor Russ Salzberg. Husband-and-wife Olympic gold medalists Bart Conner and Nadia Comaneci will co-host the Chicago broadcast with comedian Tom Dreesen and WGN-TV news anchors Allison Payne and Steve Sanders.

Following Telethon tradition, an exciting dance number will open the show. This year, the Anita Mann Dancers will perform in swing style. The group's opening number for last year's Telethon recently earned an Emmy nomination.

Music

Giant names from every area of pop music will be seen in special segments from popular VH-1 programs such as "Story Tellers," "Behind the Music" and "Pop Up Videos." Fans can see the alternative rock band the B-52's in concert, R&B vocal group Boyz II Men, Latin and pop star Gloria Estefan, British rockers Culture Club, teen brother act Hanson, singer-songwriters Billy Joel and Sarah McLachlan, British pop group the Spice Girls, and drummer and ex-Beatle Ringo Starr. Actor David Alan Grier and "Baywatch" beauty Yasmine Bleeth will appear in a VH-1 segment of "Rock 'n' Roll Jeopardy."

Celine Dion will perform from Madison Square Garden in New York. Enrique Iglesias and Jose Feliciano will appear from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Country music fans can watch special Telethon concert material from the Pam Tillis and the Warren Brothers concert at the Cypress Bayou Casino in Charenton, La. Trace Adkins, the Academy of Country Music's 1997 Top New Male Vocalist, will perform live from the Telethon stage in Hollywood.

Legendary singers and musicians also slated for live performances in Hollywood include R&B master Ray Charles, Latin sensations Jose Jose and Charo, John Dankworth and Cleo Laine, Chuck Mangione and Patti Page. Violin virtuoso Rachel Barton will perform from Chicago, while banjo master Todd Taylor will heat things up in Los Angeles. The New Morty Show, Merv Griffin and dancers from the Coconut Club will headline swing band performances, and other top dance troupes will include Tap Dogs, Tap Girls and the Massenkoff Russian Folk Festival.

Comedy

The Telethon is guaranteed to deliver laughs. The "King of Comedy," Jerry Lewis, will be in top form. Bill Cosby will join in by live remote. Drew Carey, "Politically Incorrect" host Bill Maher, and Louie Anderson will lead a string of television comedy regulars, including Chuck Booms, impressionist Gordie Brown, Carrot Top, Jeff Foxworthy, David Allen Grier, Maryellen Hooper, Comedy Central's Ben Stein, and Bob Zany. Laughs will also be delivered by more than a dozen comedians from Yarmy's Army and the Improv Comedy Club.

Broadway Shows

The Great White Way and the New York supper club scene always make a big impact on the Telethon. This year is no exception. "Fosse: A Celebration in Song and Dance," celebrating the late choreographer and director Bob Fosse, will be seen live from New York -- its television premier. Patti Cohenour, now playing the Mother Abbess in the Broadway revival of "The Sound of Music," will perform numbers live from Hollywood, and other cast members will appear by remote from New York.

The Telethon audience will be treated to a performance by Jerry Herman, composer of the scores for "Mame," "Hello Dolly" and other stage hits, straight from his current one-man show on Broadway.

Maureen McGovern and Victor Talmadge, stars of the "The King and I" national tour, will do songs from that show, and the Los Angeles cast of "Phantom of the Opera" will perform live.

Singer-pianist Michael Feinstein will bring his inimitable smooth style to standard and show tunes. Cabaret stars Julie Wilson and Wesla Whitfield are also slated to sing.

And More ...

Television personalities Lucie Arnaz and Stephanie Zimbalist will sing. Television talk show personality Leeza Gibbons, David James Elliott of "JAG," Earl Hindman of "Home Improvement," Kevin Sorbo of "Hercules," Jeff Foxworthy and skater Scott Hamilton will deliver appeals to assist MDA.

Lance Burton will bring his brand of magic, as will performers from Barnum & Bailey Circus and the Universal Cheerleaders Association. Also scheduled are Expanded Sound, which delivers barbershop harmonies mixed with comedy and far-out costumes, and a larger barbershop chorus, the Valleyaires, will perform with Jerry Lewis.

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