Honor for Poitier

Honor for Poitier
PHILADELPHIA -- Sidney Poitier will be the 2006 recipient of the Marian Anderson Award, which honors artists whose leadership benefits humanity.
Poitier, 79, was chosen because of his work as an actor, humanitarian and diplomat, Mayor John F. Street said Wednesday.
"He lived through the perils of racism, defied stereotypes and became one of the country's most respected and popular actors," Street said. "His achievements and his leadership over five decades set the standard for the subsequent generations of talented African-Americans who have followed in his footsteps in theater and in the film industry."
Poitier is to accept the award, and its accompanying $100,000 honorarium, at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts on Nov. 14.
The award "honors me beyond measure. ... It will surely compel me to reach beyond my grasp for the remainder of my life," he said in a statement.
Poitier was the first black performer in a leading role to win an Academy Award, for 1963's "Lilies of the Field."
The award is named for Anderson, a Philadelphia native and the first black soloist to perform at New York's Metropolitan Opera. Previous recipients include Harry Belafonte, Gregory Peck, Elizabeth Taylor, Quincy Jones, Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey, Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee.
Another sighting of celebrity baby
NEW YORK -- TomKat's daughter, Suri, hasn't been seen in public since her April 18 birth. But a second sighting has been reported, this time by Jada Pinkett Smith.
"She's one of the sweetest babies I've ever met in my life," Pinkett Smith tells People magazine. "She's an absolute beauty and she's Daddy's little girl."
Pinkett Smith and her husband, Will Smith, have visited Suri twice, both times at Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' mansion in Beverly Hills, Calif., People reported on its Web site.
"She's the cutest little baby. She's got a head full of black, beautiful hair," the 34-year-old actress tells the magazine. "She's beautiful and they're very happy and they need to be left alone."
Earlier this month, Leah Remini, another Cruise actress/pal, said she had held Suri during a visit to the couple's home.
"She's a beaming baby. She looks like Tom and Katie; she's just beautiful," the 36-year-old actress, star of the CBS sitcom "The King of Queens," told the magazine. "There wasn't a second she was out of their arms except when I held her."
Arnold Robinson, a spokesman for Cruise, has said that if and when Cruise, 44, and Holmes, 27, decide to introduce their daughter to the world, "it will be at their discretion and not anybody else's."
Today's birthdays
Former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum-Baker, R-Kansas, is 74. Sen. Elizabeth H. Dole, R-N.C., is 70. Marilyn Tucker Quayle, wife of former Vice President Dan Quayle, is 57. Documentary maker Ken Burns is 53. Rock singer-musician Geddy Lee (Rush) is 53. Rock singer Patti Scialfa (Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band) is 53. Country singer Martina McBride is 40. Actor Rodney Allen Rippy is 38. Rhythm-and-blues singer Wanya Morris (Boyz II Men) is 33. Actress Allison Mack ("Smallville") is 24.