“Portlandia” co-star and co-creator Fred Armisen will host the first-ever Peabody Awards evening gala, the Peabody Board announced Thursday.
For the first time in its 73-year history, the Peabody Awards will be held as an evening gala event, complete with red carpet, rather than a workday luncheon.
The event will take place at New York’s Cipriani Wall Street. In June, Pivot will air a 90-minute prime-time special that combines the best of the ceremony, with interviews and clips of winning programs.
In addition to his Peabody- and Emmy-winning turn on “Portlandia,” Armisen was also part of the 2008 “SNL” cast that won a Peabody for its satirical presidential election coverage.
Armisen and Dr. Jeffrey P. Jones, director of the Peabody Awards Program, will welcome 1,000 industry professionals, including the 2014 Peabody winners, to celebrate excellence in electronic media.
The Peabody Award recipients for the calendar year 2014 will be announced over a two-week period beginning Tuesday, April 14, with the Individual/Institutional winners. Entertainment winners will be announced live on ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Thursday, April 16.
Winners in the categories of News and Radio will be announced on April 20, while winners for Documentary, Web/Interactive, Public Service, Education, and Children’s programming will be announced on April 23.
“Announcing our entertainment winners on ‘GMA’ is an important milestone for the Peabodys,” Dr. Jones said. “Our goal is to invigorate and inspire citizens through the transformative power of television and electronic media to tell stories that transform and inspire us in our everyday lives. Reaching the large, diverse ‘GMA’ audience helps us accomplish that goal.”