Night of 100 Stars was an all-star variety television special celebrating the centennial of the Actors' Fund of America, originally airing in 1982. It won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Program at the 34th Primetime Emmy Awards.
Night of 100 Stars II aired around 1985 and was another milestone for the American Entertainment Industry and the historic Radio City Music Hall.
In 1945, actor Conrad Cantzen bequeathed his estate worth over 266,000 to The Actors Fund (now the Entertainment Community Fund) with the stipulation that it should be used to help actors purchase shoes so they did not appear “down at the heels” when auditioning.
Mr. Cantzen believed that a good pair of shoes made a great first impression on casting directors.
This epic “Red Shoes” number was a tribute to Conrad who donated tap shoes to performers over the years and features Dick van Dyke, Gregory Hines, Hinton Battle, Lee Roy Reams, Victor Griffin, Georgia Engel, Elaine Joyce, Beth Howland, Bonnie Franklin, Marge Champion, Nanette Fabray, Cynthia Gregory, Alexander Godunov, Jane Powell, Gwen Verdon, Sandy Duncan, Don Correia, Van Johnson, Alfonso Ribeiro, Charles ‘Honi’ Coles, Juliet Prowse, Maurice Hines, Ginger Rogers, Chita Rivera, Debbie Allen, Donnie Osmond, Christopher Walken, Donald O'Connor and of course the Radio City Rockettes!
