Tom Hanks will help theater raise money

Tom Hanks will help theater raise money

CLEVELAND — Tom Hanks still feels a responsibility to the Ohio theater troupe that gave him an early break and will help with a major fundraising campaign. Maybe that’s only fitting, since Hanks says the Great Lakes Theater Festival taught him an important lesson in responsibility as an actor. The 52-year-old Oscar winner says he learned that you have to show up prepared, knowing your lines and what the scene is about.

Hanks has signed on as the public face of an effort to raise the last $3.6 million needed to provide the Great Lakes with a new home. The historic Hanna Theatre at Cleveland’s Playhouse Square is being renovated into a state-of-the-art facility.

It will be a long way from Lakewood High School, where Hanks performed with the theater company in 1977.

Voters to decide TV’s most memorable moments

LOS ANGELES — The most memorable moments in television history will be revealed during the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards next month, and it’s up to voters to decide which bits should take top honors. Forty “moments” — 20 dramatic and 20 comedic — are in the running. Comedy contenders include “M-A-S-H,” “Mork Mindy,” “Sex and the City” and “The Cosby Show,” while “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Miami Vice,” “Moonlighting” and “The Sopranos” are among the drama candidates.

The television academy and Emmy show producers came up with the competition and the contenders in honor of the 60th annual presentation of the Emmy Awards.

“It’s a perfect opportunity both to celebrate the history of television and at the same time introduce new generations to some of the medium’s most important events,” Emmys executive producer Ken Ehrlich said in a statement Monday. Fans can watch clips and vote for their favorite moments online until Sept. 15. The top five vote-getters in each category will be presented during the Emmy show on Sept. 21, and the two winning moments will be revealed just before the year’s outstanding drama and comedy series are named.

Fishburne to join ‘CSI’

LOS ANGELES — CBS says “Matrix” star Laurence Fishburne is joining the cast of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” stepping into the gap left by departing cast member William Petersen.

CBS tells The Associated Press that Fishburne will be introduced in the ninth episode of the upcoming season. He plays a college lecturer and former pathologist who is focused on why people commit acts of violence.

Petersen, who has been with the series since it debuted in fall 2000, will leave the show early next year. CBS says the air date for Petersen’s final episode hasn’t been determined.

Today’s birthdays

Singer Johnny Nash is 68. Actress Jill St. John is 68. Actor-turned-US Senator Fred Thompson is 66. Singer Ian Gillan of Deep Purple is 63. Actor Gerald McRaney is 60. Actor Jonathan Frakes (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”) is 56. Actor Adam Arkin is 52. Actor John Stamos is 45. Actress Kyra Sedgwick is 43. Country singer Lee Ann Womack is 42. Former MTV reporter Tabitha Soren is 41. Actor Matthew Perry (“Friends”) is 39. Singer Karli Osborn of SHeDaisy is 24.