"TV Land Awards" 10th Anniversary to be Hosted by Kelly Ripa; Aretha Franklin to Receive Music Icon Award

NEW YORK, March 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The "TV Land Awards 2012," honoring classic television, film and music icons, will return to New York City and be hosted by Kelly Ripa (nationally syndicated talk show "LIVE! With Kelly"), it was announced today by Larry W. Jones, president, TV Land. Ripa previously hosted the show in 2007.  Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the awards show will honor powerhouse songstress Aretha Franklin with the Music Icon Award and will be held at the Lexington Avenue Armory at Gramercy Park on Saturday, April 14th. The "TV Land Awards 2012" will air on Sunday, April 29th at 9:00pm ET/PT. More honorees will be announced in coming weeks.

"We are ecstatic to welcome back Kelly as she reprises her role as host of the 'TV Land Awards' this year for our 10th annual celebration," said Jones.  "Her energy, enthusiasm and love of television make her the perfect person to lead the evening on the occasion of our 10th Anniversary."

The successful "TV Land Awards" has scored a decade of success including the record-breaking numbers from the "TV Land Awards 2011," which attracted over 2 million viewers for its premiere telecast. The star-studded special, which was held last year in New York City for the very first time, was the highest rated "TV Land Awards" show since 2004 across all key demos and posted double-digit gains in rating and delivery over preceding shows.

The "TV Land Awards" pays tribute to classic and contemporary luminaries of television, music and movies. The 90-minute telecast will feature exhilarating musical performances and will reunite some of the most iconic celebrity TV casts.

Previous honorees include Regis Philbin, Michael J. Fox, John Travolta, Bill Cosby, Mike Myers, Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Garry Marshall, the cast of "Glee," "Desperate Housewives" and the hilarious sitcoms "Cheers," "The Cosby Show," "Family Ties," "The Facts of Life," "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Bosom Buddies," "Welcome Back, Kotter," "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and "M*A*S*H*." Past presenters include Academy Award©-winner Halle Berry, Barbara Walters, Justin Timberlake, Ray Romano, Steve Carell, Billy Crystal, Sharon Stone, Robin Williams and Academy Award©-nominee Robert Downey, Jr., to name a few. Past musical performers include Liza Minnelli, Stevie Wonder, Blondie, Diana Ross, Willie Nelson and Lionel Richie.

Michael Levitt ("Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List," "Billboard Music Awards," "Scream Awards") is executive producer; Five-time Emmy Award©-winning Glenn Weiss is director ("Primetime Emmy Awards," "BET Awards," "The Tony Awards"); Greg Sills serves as supervising producer ("VH1 Rock Honors," "The Teen Choice Awards," "Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards") and TV Land's Larry W. Jones and Casey Patterson are executive producers. Tim Bruno is executive in charge of production for TV Land.

TV Land and all related logos and titles are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

About TV Land

TV Land is the programming destination featuring the best in entertainment on all platforms for consumers in their 40s and 50s. Consisting of original programming, classic and contemporary television series acquisitions, hit movies and a full-service Web site, TV Land is now seen in over 98 million U.S. homes.

About Viacom

Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB) is home to the world's premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms in more than 160 countries and territories.  With approximately 170 media networks reaching more than 600 million global subscribers, Viacom's leading brands include MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, BET, CENTRIC, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr., TeenNick, Nicktoons, Nick at Nite, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV Land, Spike TV and Tr3s.  Paramount Pictures, America's oldest film studio and creator of many of the most beloved motion pictures, continues today as a major global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment.  Viacom operates a large portfolio of branded digital media experiences, including many of the world's most popular properties for entertainment, community and casual online gaming. 

For more information about Viacom and its businesses, visit www.viacom.com

SOURCE TV Land