Entertainment

Quincy Jones, Bond Producers honored

November 19, 2024 3:34 pm

[Source: Reuters]

Just weeks after his death at the age of 91, renowned music producer and composer Quincy Jones was bestowed with an honorary Oscar by Hollywood’s film academy at a gala on Sunday.

Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, siblings and producers of the James Bond movie franchise, received the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award at the annual Governors Awards ceremony, attended by stars including Tom Hanks, Jude Law and Kate Winslet.

Jones, who died on Nov. 3, worked with musicians ranging from Count Basie to Frank Sinatra and reshaped pop music with his collaborations with Michael Jackson over a 70-year career. In 1971, he served as musical director and conductor of the 43rd Academy Awards. He composed scores for “The Wiz” and “The Color Purple.”

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A group of singers led by Jennifer Hudson paid homage to Jones with a musical performance as images of the producer at work were shown on screens.

Jones’ honorary Oscar was accepted by his children, including actor Rashida Jones, who read the speech he had prepared for Sunday’s honors.

Broccoli and Wilson were introduced by Daniel Craig, the actor who was the most recent Bond.

British romantic comedy screenwriter and director Richard Curtis, who wrote and directed “Love Actually” and “Four Weddings and a Funeral”, was awarded the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his philanthropy. Curtis co-founded the British charity Comic Relief, which has raised more than 1 billion pounds ($1.26 billion) to help children around the world, including during its annual Red Nose Day fundraising event.

Juliet Taylor, a casting director who worked on “Mississippi Burning” and “Hannah and Her Sisters”, also received an honorary Oscar.

Nicole Kidman said that Taylor was to be lauded for “the way she opened doors for other women.” Taylor gave Meryl Streep her first role