AwardsWatch

Wednesday, December 27----Sherry Lansing, the recently retired Chairperson of Paramount Pictures and one of the pioneering women producers in Hollywood, will receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the Academy Award ceremonies, to be held at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles on February 25, 2007.

Sherry Lansing's long career as a producer and studio executive is rivaled only by her philanthropic commitments and activities. Lansing helped Armand Hammer form the nonprofit organization Stop Cancer and serves on its board. She also is on the board of the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation, founded to honor excellence in basic and clinical science, and is a trustee of the American Association for Cancer Research.

In addition, she serves on the Citizens' Oversight Committee of the California Institute for Stem Cell Research and the American Red Cross Board of Governors Advisory Committee and is a trustee of the Carter Center, a human rights organization formed by President Carter and his wife, Rosalynn.

Sherry Lansing was born in Chicago and pursued an acting career after graduating from Northwestern University. After appearing in two films, LOVING and RIO LOBO, she decided to leave the acting field. In 1974, Lansing joined Talent Associates, as an executive in charge of development. Three years later, she was appointed vice president in charge of production at Columbia Pictures.

With the success that she achieved with a number of profitable movies, she was hired as President of 20th Century-Fox, the first woman to head a major studio. In 1984, she joined Stanley R. Jaffe to form the independent production company Jaffee-Lansing. When Jaffee was appointed president of Paramount Communications in 1990, Lansing became Chairman of Paramount Pictures' Motion Picture Group. She left the studio in 2005.

During her long tenure at Paramount, she supervised many box office hits, with the peak being her nomination as producer of the Adrian Lyne thriller FATAL ATTRACTION, with Michael Douglas and Glenn Close.

Previous winners of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award , which honors Hollywood producers and actors who have also distinguished themselves for their philanthropic work, include:

Charlton Heston
Samuel Goldwyn
Bob Hope
Danny Kaye
Gregory Peck
Audrey Hepburn
Elizabeth Taylor
Frank Sinatra
Paul Newman

Sandy Mandelberger
Awards Watch Editor