WASHINGTON, DC -- Oscar-winning actor Jeff Bridges, whose successful career in film and television spans decades, will receive the 2011 Service to America Leadership Award from the NAB Education Foundation. Bridges' acting credits include six Academy Award nominations and an Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his part as Bad Blake in the 2009 film "Crazy Heart." Bridges is also dedicated to ending childhood hunger in America through his leadership roles as founder of the End Hunger Network and national spokesman for Share our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign.
Considered NABEF's highest honor, the Service to America Leadership Award recognizes individuals and organizations responsible for improving the lives of others through extraordinary public service. The award will be presented during the Celebration of Service to America gala held Monday, June 6, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.
"Mr. Bridges' enduring popularity and critical acclaim are a testament to his tremendous talent as an actor," said NABEF President Marcellus Alexander. "He is also a remarkable humanitarian, and it is for his extraordinary efforts in ending childhood hunger in America that we proudly honor him with this prestigious award."
Bridges' film credits include his role as Rooster Cogburn in the 2010 remake of "True Grit," for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Other better known movie roles include Bridges' stint as a video game programmer in the 1982 sci-fi classic "TRON," a struggling musician in "The Fabulous Baker Boys" (1989), the blank-faced alien in "Starman" (1984), and the ever-optimistic inventor Preston Tucker in "Tucker: The Man and His Dream" (1988). Other film credits include "The Fisher King" (1991), "American Heart" (1992), "Fearless" (1993), "The Big Lebowski" (1998) and "The Contender" (2000). Bridges also played the villain opposite Robert Downey Jr. in "Iron Man" (2008).
While leading an extremely successful acting career, Bridges has also managed to devote his time and attention to the cause of ending childhood hunger. In 1983, he founded the End Hunger Network, a nonprofit organization that works with the entertainment industry and other partners to create and support media projects, programs, and events to spread awareness and generate action to end U.S. childhood hunger. The End Hunger Network has built the reputation of creating unique and impactful initiatives aimed at encouraging and supporting action to end childhood hunger. Some of these initiatives include Los Angeles World Hunger Event, Live Aid, U.S. Presidential End Hunger Awards, Primetime to End Hunger, Fast Forward to End Hunger, and Hunger in American film.
In 2010 Jeff Bridges became the national spokesman for Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry campaign to end childhood hunger in America by 2015.
About The Celebration of Service to America Awards
The Celebration of Service to America Awards are sponsored and produced by NABEF with major support from Bonneville International Corporation and the National Association of Broadcasters. In recent years, Starkey Hearing Foundation founders Bill and Tani Austin, ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," entertainment industry icon Quincy Jones, legendary rock star Sir Elton John, former President Bill Clinton, First Lady Laura Bush, Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, boxing legend Muhammad Ali, former President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalyn Carter, and former First Lady Nancy Reagan have been presented with the Celebration of Service to America Leadership Award at the event. Details about the Celebration of Service to America Awards are available here.
About NABEF
The NAB Education Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to reinforcing the future of broadcasting through a commitment to education and to advancing excellence in the diversity and community service efforts of our industry. Learn more at www.nabef.org.
About Share Our Strength
Share Our Strength®, a national nonprofit, is ending childhood hunger in America by connecting children with the nutritious food they need to lead healthy, active lives. Through its No Kid Hungry® Campaign—a national effort to end childhood hunger in America by 2015—Share Our Strength ensures children in need are enrolled in federal nutrition programs, invests in community organizations fighting hunger, teaches families how to cook healthy, affordable meals, and builds public-private partnerships to end childhood hunger, at the state and city level. Visit Strength.org to get involved.
