Odds & Ends: Glenn Close, Billy Porter, Nathan Lane, Bette Midler & More Set for amFAR Virtual Gala

Here's a quick roundup of stories you might have missed recently.

Glenn Close & Dr. Anthony Fauci to Receive amfAR’s Award of Courage
March 4 will mark amfAR’s first virtual gala, A Gala for Our Time. The event, which honors three-time Tony winner Glenn Close and Dr. Anthony Fauci, will be available to view here. Fauci and Close will be presented with amfAR’s Award of Courage. Julia Roberts will present the award to Dr. Fauci, and Bette Midler will present to Close. Billy Porter, a newly elected amfAR Trustee, will also participate, along with Nathan Lane, Magic Johnson, Chelsea Handler, Boy George, Kelly Clarkson, Rita Ora and more. Close participated in the Broadway.com livestream of The Great Work Begins: Scenes from Angels in America, which benefited amfAR's Fund to Fight COVID-19.

Kelsey Grammer Set for Frasier Reboot
Kelsey Grammer, who was last seen on Broadway in Finding Neverland, is confirmed to return to his TV role in Frasier, 17 years after the show ended. CNN reports that ViacomCBS confirmed the news that he will once again play radio psychiatrist Frasier Crane on the new streaming service Paramount+, set to launch on March 4. No word yet on a premiere date or whether fellow Tony winner David Hyde Pierce will return to the show. A spinoff of Cheers, the hit sitcom followed the title character to his hometown of Seattle.

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, The Prom Earn Art Directors Guild Noms
Both stage-to-screen adaptations of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and The Prom have earned nominations for the 25th annual Art Directors Guild Awards, which will be held April 10 in a virtual ceremony. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom earned a nom for Period Feature Film while The Prom received a nod for Contemporary Feature Film. The Prom film director Ryan Murphy is also set to receive the esteemed Cinematic Imagery Award. Check out the full list of nominees here.

Helen Mirren Joins White Bird: A Wonder Story
Oscar and Tony winner Helen Mirren is set to star in Lionsgate's White Bird: A Wonder Story. Deadline reports that the project is a companion film to the 2017 movie Wonder. Finding Neverland and Christopher Robin director Marc Forster is helming the film adaptation based on the book by R.J. Palacio. Written by Mark Bomback, the film follows Julian Albans (Bryce Gheisar), a bully who left Beecher Prep, who is visited by his Grandmère (Mirren) from Paris and is transformed by her remarkable story of compassion and courage in Nazi-occupied France. Production has already begun in Eastern Europe.