HOLLYWOOD SCENE
Celine Dion to Receive 13th Annual ELLA Award
By Oliver Carnay

International singing sensation Celine Dion (shown here when she was given the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Hollywood Blvd. last January 6, 2004) will receive the
13th Annual Ella Award to be held in Las Vegas' Caesar's Palace this weekend (October 10).

Five-time Grammy Award recipient Céline Dion, who has sold a combined total of over 165 million albums, has been selected to receive the Society of Singers 13th Annual ELLA Award this Saturday, October 10, 2004 at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas. The event has been moved from the previously announced June date in Beverly Hills to the newly announced date in Las Vegas.

The ELLA Award, named after its first recipient Ella Fitzgerald, is given to singers whose contribution to the music world is equaled by his/her dedication to humanitarian causes and community support.
The non-profit organization, Society of Singers (SOS), offers comprehensive services to meet the emergency financial needs of professional singers worldwide and works within the entertainment community to advance the vocal arts through scholarships.

SOS was co-founded in 1984 by Chairman Emeritus Ginny (Mrs. Henry) Mancini and Gilda Maiken Anderson. Previous ELLA Award recipients include Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Tony Martin, Peggy Lee, Steve Lawrence & Eydie Gorme, Lena Horne, Rosemary Clooney, Joe Williams, Tony Bennett, Dame Julie Andrews, Placido Domingo and Barry Manilow.

Jerry F. Sharell, SOS, President/CEO said, "The Board of Directors of SOS gave unanimous approval to award the ELLA to Ms. Dion. I consider her a most dynamic performer and passionate human being. Her musical performances are legendary and her contributions to mankind are mega-generous. Above all, she is a marvelous person with a heart as big as Canada! And I am one of her biggest fans."

Ms. Céline Dion stated, "I'm honored to be the recipient of this year's ELLA Award in my adopted town of Las Vegas! The combination of my show and then receiving the award afterwards will make this a truly special evening for my family, my close friends and for all the SOS members and guests from across the country who will be coming to share this occasion with me."

During her spectacular career, Céline Dion has sold a combined total of over 165 million albums. She is a five-time Grammy Award winner, including Album of the Year and Best Pop Album for "Falling Into You" (1996); and Record of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "My Heart Will Go On" (1998). Her Epic recordings have won two Academy Awards: Best Original Song From A Film in 1992, for the title song of "Beauty and the Beast" (with Peabo Bryson), and Best Original Song from A Film in 1998, for "My Heart Will Go On" (From "Titanic").

She has earned seven American Music Awards and, in her native Canada, she has won 20 Juno Awards and an astonishing 39 Felix Awards (Quebec). Her hugely successful show, "A New Day," an unparalleled combination of performance, passion, and theatrical innovation, has been the hottest ticket in Las Vegas, playing to sold-out audiences since its opening on March 25, 2003 at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. (Photo courtesy of www.celinedion.com)

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