Academy Award Winner John Williams to Perform at the 31st Annual Dinner of Champions

Academy Award Winner John Williams to Perform at the 31st Annual Dinner of Champions

Event at the Kodak Theater Will Honor Tom and Madeleine Sherak

LOS ANGELES, June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Five-time Academy Award(C) winning composer John Williams ("Star Wars," "Schindler's List," "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial," "Jaws," "Fiddler on the Roof") will perform at the 31st Annual "Dinner of Champions," sponsored by and benefiting the Southern California Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

This year's event will take place on Friday, September 16th at the Kodak Theater and will honor long-time MS Society supporters Tom and Madeleine Sherak. In addition, Richard Cohen, author of "Blindsided," his memoir of his struggle with MS, will be honored with the Dorothy Corwin Spirit of Life Award. Cohen has been living with MS for the last 30 years.

Williams, who has more Oscar(C) nominations than any living person, will perform a variety of his memorable film compositions with a full orchestra.

Revolution Studios founder and previous honoree Joe Roth will serve as honorary chair of the dinner.

"This year we wanted to do something special for the entertainment industry, which has been an incredible champion of this event for the last 12 years," said Sherak, who is a partner at Revolution Studios and who served as dinner chair for 12 consecutive years. "We hope that the performance by John Williams, who is one of the most talented and celebrated composers in the film industry, will be a fitting thank you to all of our industry friends whose support have made such a difference in the fight against MS."

Previous honorees for their generous support of the National MS Society have included such distinguished individuals as Peter Chernin, Steven Hilton, Jim Gianopulos, Bill Mechanic, Amy Pascal, Joe Roth, Tom Rothman, Sir Howard Stringer and Bob and Harvey Weinstein. Previous recipients of the Corwin Award include Annette Funicello, Teri Garr, Michael Kamen, David Lander, Alan Osmond and Richard Pryor.

Last year's event raised $3.3 million.

The Dinner of Champions is one of the most highly visible fund raising events in Los Angeles, one that has been overwhelmingly embraced by the entertainment industry. Each year, the dinner honors a philanthropist who has made a significant contribution to the fight against multiple sclerosis. Because of fund raising events such as the Dinner of Champions, the National MS Society is able to spend more money on MS research than any other voluntary health organization in the world. This year the Society will invest over $35 million to support MS research, and more than $5 million is currently in place locally at UCLA and the Brentwood Biomedical Research Center. Proceeds from the Dinner also support vital programs for people who have MS and their families.

For additional information about the "Dinner of Champions," please call Pamela Thompson, The National MS Society, Southern California Chapter, at 310-479-4456. Donations can be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Southern California Chapter, 2440 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Suite 115, Los Angeles, CA 90064.

Source: Revolution Studios

CONTACT: press inquiries, Marni Deckter of The National MS Society, Southern California Chapter, +1-310-481-1112; or Sean Dudas, +1-310-255-7254, or Stuart Herriott, +1-310-255-7269, both of Revolution Studios

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