Actress and comedian, Melissa McCarthy, received The Gilda Radner Award for Innovation Comedy in the presence of 280 guests at Gildafest’16 on July 12th at Carolines on Broadway.
Actress Sarah Baker, who has been featured in several films with McCarthy, hosted the event. Special guests included Actress Kristen Wiig and former SNL writer, Alan Zweibel who gave a touching tribute to Gilda Radner.
Producer Paul Feig, who could not attend in person, sent a video clip sending accolades to McCarthy and of his personal connection to Gilda Radner. The award was presented to Melissa by Sarah Baker and Red Door Community CEO, Lily Safani.
The event showcased some of today’s top comics with performances by SNL star Michael Che, Marina Franklin, Lynne Koplitz, Matteo Lane, Carmen Lynch, Emma Willmann, and Michelle Wolf.
The event featured a live auction with items including a signed poster by the Ghostbusters cast, (Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon), and a ride home that evening in the famed Ghostbusters mobile, Ecto1.
Thank you also to our sponsors Ghostbusters, Svedka Vodka, and Starbright Florals, and all of our volunteers who helped make the event run smoothly and to everyone who attended the evening.
Gildafest’16 raised more than $145,000 for our program!
