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 The list of top Illinois entertainers
also includes Oprah Winfrey and behind-the-scenes figures in sports,
music, movies and prime time television.
The Top 200 project lets Illinoisans vote every two weeks on the
state’s most inspiring leaders, greatest inventions, top businesses
and much more. By the state’s bicentennial on Dec. 3, voters will
have chosen 10 favorites in 20 different categories – the Illinois
Top 200.
Voting in the next category, top scientists, is underway at
www.IllinoisTop200.com. The nominees include physicist Enrico Fermi,
astronomer Clyde Tombaugh, geneticist James Watson and chemist
Allene Jeanes.
Here are the top 10 Illinois entertainers chosen in online voting:
Walt Disney – Disney was born in Chicago, drew cartoons at
McKinley High School and studied at what is now the School of the
Art Institute of Chicago. He helped create the American animation
industry and, later, the theme park business. As a film producer, he
holds the record for most Academy Awards, with 22 wins and 59
nominations.
Bob Newhart – Born in Oak Park, Newhart is a stand-up
comedian and actor. He came to prominence in 1960 with the comedy
album “The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart.” He later starred in the
hit TV shows “The Bob Newhart Show” and “Newhart.”
Jack Benny – Benny was a leading performer in vaudeville,
radio, television and film. He is best known for portraying himself
as vain miser who loved to play the violin – badly. He was born in
Chicago and grew up in nearby Waukegan.
Richard Pryor – Pryor was one of the most successful and
influential stand-up comedians in history. He was known for
uncompromising – and profane – examinations of racism and modern
life. Pryor, who grew up in Peoria, also had a successful film
career.
Oprah Winfrey – Winfrey’s Chicago-based talk show was the
highest-rated program of its kind in history. She received an Oscar
nomination for “The Color Purple.” Her production credits include
“Selma,” “Tuesdays with Morrie” and a Broadway version of “The Color
Purple.”
Quincy Jones – The Chicago native wrote music for dozens of
movies and television shows, from “In Cold Blood” to “Sanford and
Son” to “The Color Purple.” He produced albums for Michael Jackson,
Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan. He has won 27
Grammys.
John Hughes – Hughes grew up in the Chicago suburbs and set
many of his popular movies there. His hits include “The Breakfast
Club,” “Sixteen Candles,” “Weird Science” and, as scriptwriter,
“National Lampoon’s Vacation.”
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Hugh Hefner – Hefner, a Chicago
native, created Playboy magazine in 1953. He built on that success with clubs
and television shows, all of which influenced American attitudes about sex and
nudity.
Bill Veeck – Veeck was a baseball owner who used wit and imagination to
fill stadiums – by having a dwarf bat for one of his teams, for instance, and
installing an exploding scoreboard at Comiskey Park. He also integrated the
American League by hiring Larry Doby for the Indians.
Shonda Rhimes – Rhimes, who grew up in Chicago’s south suburbs, is one of
America’s most successful television producers and writers. Her biggest hits
include “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Private Practice” and “Scandal.”
The nominees who did not make the top 10 were Broncho Billy
Anderson, the Chess brothers, Del Close, Katherine Dunham, Bob Fosse, Chester
Gould, Oscar Micheaux, William Paley, Elzie Segar, Hal Wallis and Florenz
Ziegfeld.
The Illinois Top 200 is a joint initiative of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential
Library and Museum, The (Springfield) State Journal-Register and the Illinois
Bicentennial Commission.
Future categories include athletes, trailblazing women and unforgettable
moments. Everyone is invited to suggest possible nominees in each category by
using the hashtag #ILtop200 on social media.
The presidential library and museum uses a combination of rigorous scholarship
and high-tech showmanship to immerse visitors in Lincoln’s life and times.
Visitors can see ghosts come to life on stage, watch TV coverage of the 1860
Presidential election, roam through the Lincoln White House, experience booming
cannons in a Civil War battle and come face to face with priceless original
Lincoln artifacts.
The library holds an unparalleled collection of Lincoln books, documents,
photographs, artifacts and art, as well as some 12 million items pertaining to
all aspects of Illinois history.
For more information, visit www.PresidentLincoln.illinois.gov.
ABOUT ILLINOIS BICENTENNIAL
On Dec. 3, 1818, Illinois became the 21st state in the union. The Illinois
Bicentennial is a yearlong celebration of what has been BORN, BUILT & GROWN in
the state and a reminder of why we are #IllinoisProud. Citizens are encouraged
to participate in the celebration by visiting www.illinois200.com and using the
hashtag #IllinoisProud. Partners and event and project managers planning
activities in 2018 can apply to become an official part of Illinois Bicentennial
by visiting the PARTICIPATE page at www.illinois200.com.
[Christopher Wills] |
