Brooks & Dunn get Hollywood Walk of Fame star

Kix Brooks, left, and Ronnie Dunn, right, pose by their star, as Robin and Dr. Phil McGraw look on. (Photo provided by Charley Gallay / Getty Images)

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Country superduo Brooks & Dunn today received yet another honor: They got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the walk’s 2,367th.

The duo – which has won the Country Music Association vocal duo of the year award every year except one since 1992 – got their star during a ceremony that featured their friends Dr. Phil and Robin McGraw as guest speakers.

Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn currently have the No. 5 song on the Billboard Hot Country Song with “Put A Girl In It,” from their latest album Cowboy Town.

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Charles Durning gets Hollywood star

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) — From World War II hero to dancer and award-winning actor, Charles Durning has lived a storied life. The 85-year-old added to that resume Thursday with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame next to one for his idol, James Cagney.

“Cagney was my favorite actor and favorite person,” Durning told The Associated Press after the ceremony unveiling the Walk of Fame’s 2,366th star. “I met him once and he was very kind to me. I never got a chance to tell him what I thought, that he was my hero.”

Durning’s more than 100 movie credits include The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Tootsie, Dog Day Afternoon, To Be or Not To Be, The Sting and O Brother, Where Art Thou? (click on ‘Continue Reading’ for more)

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Faded stars to shine again on Hollywood Walk of Fame

 (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Officials are set to unveil details of what is expected to be a two-year project to fix plaques that have become damaged.

By Bob Pool
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

July 22, 2008

Throckmorton P. Gildersleeve is about to get another shot at Hollywood stardom.

That was the name of the lead character played by actor Willard Waterman in the hit 1950s radio comedy The Great Gildersleeve.

The show went off the air in 1957 and Waterman died in 1995. Since then, Waterman’s commemorative plaque with its bronze depiction of a microphone has slowly faded from the Hollywood Walk of Fame too.

Chunks of the pink terrazzo inside the outline of the bronze star have come out. One of the star’s five points has disappeared. An asphalt patch fills the hole.

Today, though, Waterman’s battered and broken sidewalk marker will be designated one of 778 bronze stars to be replaced as part of a wholesale Walk of Fame makeover. (click on ‘Continue Reading’ for more)

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Cost of repairs for Hollywood’s buckling Walk of Fame trips up officials

They’ve figured out what to do but not how to come up with the $4.1 million needed to do it.

By Bob Pool
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

July 17, 2008

It took a year’s study and installation of a “test strip” on Hollywood’s busiest corner to figure out how best to stabilize the buckling bronze stars and pink-and-black terrazzo that line Hollywood’s aging Walk of Fame.

Now, officials of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority are trying to determine just how to pay for the estimated $4.1-million repair job.

MTA officials said Wednesday that their agency will take the lead in lining up funding from Los Angeles, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, the Hollywood Historic Trust as well as other entities — including itself. (click on ‘Continue Reading’ for more)

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Los Angeles Dodgers

 HONORED WITH

AWARD OF EXCELLENCE

Hollywood & Highland

June 20, 2008

HOLLYWOOD — In celebration of the Dodgers’ 50th anniversary in Los Angeles, the team received an Award of Excellence today from the Hollywood Historic Trust and Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, and his wife, team President Jamie McCourt, accepted the award at a late-morning ceremony in front of the Hollywood & Highland complex. Former manager Tommy Lasorda, manager Joe Torre and broadcasters Vin Scully and Jaime Jarin also participated in the ceremony.

The Dodgers received the award in recognition of the team’s significant contributions to Los Angeles and world culture and entertainment, according to Ana Martinez-Holler, vice president of media relations for the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.

The ceremony came one day before the Dodgers’ 50th annual Hollywood Stars Game, a softball game matching teams of entertainment industry celebrities.

The Hollywood Historic Trust and Hollywood Chamber of Commerce began presenting Awards of Excellence in 2005 to various organizations and places. The Dodgers are the seventh recipient of the award.

The others were Daily Variety, Disneyland, The Hollywood Reporter, KTLA- TV Channel 5, the Los Angeles Times and the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, which presents the Grammy Awards. They differ from stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which honor individuals, performing groups and fictional characters.

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UPCOMING WALK OF FAME STAR CEREMONY

THE LATE BRIAN KEITH TO BE HONORED POSTHUMOUSLY WITH
STAR ON THE HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME
Star was sponsored by fans

WHO:             The Late Brian Keith
                      Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, President/CEO Leron Gubler
                      Guest speakers: Kathy Garver and Daniel Hugh Kelly
                      Accepting the award will be Victoria Y. Keith
WHAT:            2,365th Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
WHERE:         7021 Hollywood Boulevard near Sycamore.
WHEN:           Thursday, June 26, at 11:30 a.m.

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25 getting Hollywood Walk of Fame stars

The Associated Press

June 19, 2008

Other recipients of the sidewalk stars are the husband-and-wife Emmy-winning acting couple Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy, Cameron Diaz and Robert Downey Jr.

Tim Burton, Leslie Caron, Charles Durning and Ralph Fiennes join Jackman, Kingsley, Macy and Tinkerbell in the motion picture category.

Besides Huffman, television honorees include William Petersen, Kyra Sedgwick, John Stamos and producers Mark Burnett and Chuck Lorre.

The disco group The Village People are in the recording category with Kenny “Baby Face” Edmonds, Dave Koz, The Miracles, Doug Morris, Rush and Shakira.

The radio category includes KFI radio personality Bill Handel and KCRW host Harry Shearer, who also provides voices for characters on The Simpsons.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s Walk of Fame Committee chose recipients and they were ratified by the board of directors on Thursday.

Susan Saint James

 HONORED WITH
STAR ON THE HOLLYWOOD WALK OF FAME

1645 Vine Street 

 (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images North America)

Actress Susan Saint James was honored on Wednesday with the 2,364th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The actress starred on such shows as McMillan & Wife and Kate & Allie.

Guest speakers: First lady of California Maria Shriver and Ron Meyer, President and COO of Universal Studios

 Saint James and her family at Wednesday’s ceremonies (Xinhua / Reuters Photo)