The Night of 206 Stars

The Rockettes kicked off a celebrity line-up including Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minelli, Jimmy Stewart, Al Pacino and Miss Piggy at ‘The Night of 100 Stars’, a benefit for the Actors Fund of America recorded on 14th February, 1982 at Radio City Music Hall, New York.  A night of sheer glitz and excess, the true tally of stars on-stage totalled 206 - but perhaps that’s what you’d expect for $1000 per ticket and a bum-numbing running time of five-and-a-half hours. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly question the star-counting mechanic for the New York Yankees; explain how the assasination of Abraham Lincoln inspired the foundation of the Actor’s Fund in 1882; and marvel at the long-windedness of this televised tribute to the charity’s centenary… Further Reading: • ‘Bask in the Bewildering '80s Glamour of 'Night of 100 Stars'’ (Jezebel, 2016): https://jezebel.com/bask-in-the-bewildering-80s-glamour-of-night-of-100-sta-1759236215/amp • ‘Glamor Glut’ (The Washington Post, 1982): https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1982/02/16/glamor-glut/7ff21880-5540-4c20-acb4-fa5832781184/ • ‘VIDEO: The Night of 100 Stars’ (ABC, 1982): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkgaJobbIPg Love the show? Support us!  Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY…  … Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 100 bits of extra content.  Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ Go to proton.me/todayinhistory to receive a 38% discount on Proton Mail The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2025. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices