Nancy Cartwright was bestowed back-to-back honors by the Valley Economic Alliance and Columbia College Hollywood. On Saturday night, June 26, she received the Star of the Valley Award in “New York” at CBS Studios. Greeted on a red carpet, guests entered the fantastic setting and were treated to cocktails and hors d’oeuvres. Nancy joined Wink Martindale and some of the illustrious members of the board of the Alliance for “photo ops” before entering the ceremony. Nancy was surrounded by her family and friends for this auspicious commendation.
There was a wonderful video tribute to Nancy illustrating not only her professional success, also her contributions to the community at large via her philanthropy and civic dedication. She also received recognition from the cities of San Fernando, Los Angeles, Burbank, Calabasas, as well as the County of Los Angeles, State Assembly, US Congress and California Senate.
Michael and Jane Eisner and their foundation were also honored, as were numerous local educational institutions. A surprise honoree was the head of the Valley Economic Alliance, the incredibly humble and deserving Bruce Ackerman.
On the following day, Nancy got her Doctorate – that’s right, she received the honorary degree of Doctorate of Humane Letters from Columbia College Hollywood, an accredited film and television production college in Tarzana, CA. Graduation took place at the Sheraton Universal where Nancy, as the honored guest, joined Dean Alan L. Gansberg, the president of the school and the board in full regalia, gown and all. They marched in, followed by the graduating class. The students and audience were thrilled with Nancy’s presence and, after being praised for all of her good work in and out of show business, she gave inspirational words (punctuated with Bart’s humor) to the members of the Class of 2010. Most importantly, she advised the new entries to Hollywood to maintain their integrity and follow their hearts and guts. And, much like the lesson she hopes will be learned by the “Movies With A Message” program from Good Choices (in conjunction with Freshi Film) she emphasized the ability and responsibility in communicating through the media.
