...he did not (thank goodness). But there was no absence of gushing about amazing role models last night at a star-studded event called
CNN Heroes, broadcast from the
American Museum of Natural History and hosted by Cooper and
Christiane Amanpour. The live telecast put the spotlight on an array of men and women from around the world. Most of them are not household names, but each is a star in his or her own right.
Among the finalists and honorees:
Army Sergeant Major James McDowell, who launched a highly successful program to encourage Afghani farmers to grow saffron rather than the poppy that is used for opium production.
Steve Peifer, an educator in Kenya who realized that the key to getting children to attend local schools is to provide them with food in addition to classroom instruction.
Kayla Cornale, a teen who devised a way to communicate with an autistic cousin through music, paving the way for a whole new approach to teaching individuals stricken with the disorder.
Florence Cassassuce, a Mexican inventor who created a bucket that can purify water....four minutes will create safe drinking water for several days' worth.
Throughout the broadcast, Amanpour wandered the perimiter of the museum (in sub-freezing temps) and later, the interior, as well, quoting Teddy Roosevelt and doing live shots with dinosaur models in the background. Cooper handily took center stage, emceeing the program and introducing the celebrity presenters, who included
Tyra Banks, Mira Sorvino, Glenn Close, Jimmy Smits, Harry Connick, Jr. and
Rosario Dawson. In a particularly awkward moment, the one notable who was left to introduce herself was Sarah Ferguson, the Dutchess of York. Fergie went on to flout the now-verbotten convention of opening an envelope with the prouncement "and the WINNER is....!" as she announced the name of
Pat Pedraja, a twelve-year-old boy with leukemia who started a nationwide campaign to encourage bone-marrow donor registries. Pedraja had garnered the most votes in a viewers' choice poll. A special award was also presented posthumously to the late actor
Christopher Reeve and his wife,
Dana, for their advocacy of paraylsis research.
Alexandra and
Matthew Reeve, daughter and son of Reeve, accepted on their father's behalf.
Lively musical performances were provided by
Norah Jones and
Wyclef Jean,
Mary J. Blige and
Sheryl Crowe. After the presentation, which wrapped at 11:30, audience members mingled with honorees, including subway hero,
Wesley Autrey. Most of the celebs seemed to have hightailed it home rather than stick around in the house that Teddy Roosevelt built, but the one notable exception—to his credit—was
Showbiz Tonight's
A.J. Hammer. His entertainment-industry credentials aside, Hammer did not pick up Cooper's idea and channel
Bette Midler.
The program will be rebroadcast this Saturday and Sunday evenings at 8:00 EST. For more, visit the
CNN Heroes site.
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Tuesday, December 2, 2008 at 5:00PM 
New York gets all "spruced" up this week, as the famed tree at Rockefeller Center is lit for the holiday season and the switch is flicked on the lesser known tree at Bryant Park. The Bryant Park festivities take place tonight, with New York Insider alum and Broadway star Cheyenne Jackson headlining, along with the Barenaked Ladies. The chaos at 30 Rock happens tomorrow evening, with Beyoncé Knowles, the Jonas Brothers, Harry Connick Jr., David Cook, Faith Hill, Rascal Flatts, Solange Knowles, Jamie Foxx and Rosie O'Donnell all making appearances. Suddenly credible Britney Spears has been rumored as a potential celebrity guest as well. One thing's for sure...the Today Show’s Al Roker will host the event with all the requisite joviality. This year marks the 76th time a tree has been illuminated at Rock Center (the 2006 lighting is pictured at left) and the 57th time the ceremonies have been telecast. View it on NBC tomorrow evening from 8:00 p.m. till 9:00.