Bill Clinton to Present Barbra Streisand with Chaplin Award on 4/22

The Film Society of Lincoln Center announced today that President Bill Clinton will present the 40th Chaplin Award to Academy Award-winner Barbra Streisand, the first American woman artist to receive credit as writer, director, producer and star of a major feature film (YENTL), during a Gala Ceremony held at Lincoln Center on the evening of Monday, April 22, 2013.

The event will be attended by a host of notable guests and celebrities honoring the international film legend's groundbreaking career and will feature film and interview clips culminating in the presentation of The Chaplin Award.

The Gala is the Film Society of Lincoln Center's most significant fundraiser of the year. Tickets to the Gala Tribute and champagne reception will be available for purchase by the general public. For ticketing and additional information, go to filmlinc.com/gala.

The Film Society's Annual Gala began in 1972 and honored Charlie Chaplin - who returned to the US from exile to accept the commendation. Other honorees include many of the film industry's most notable talents, including Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Laurence Olivier, Federico Fellini, Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Davis, James Stewart, Robert Altman, Martin Scorsese, Diane Keaton, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Michael Douglas, Sidney Poitier, and most recently Catherine Deneuve.

Founded in 1969 to celebrate American and international cinema, the Film Society of Lincoln Center works to recognize and support new directors, and to enhance the awareness, accessibility and understanding of film. Among its yearly programming of film festivals, film series and special events, the Film Society presents two film festivals in particular that annually attract global attention: the New York Film Festival which just celebrated its 50th edition, and New Directors/New Films which, since its founding in 1972, has been produced in collaboration with MoMA. The Film Society also publishes the award-winning Film Comment Magazine, and for almost four decades has given an annual award-"The Chaplin Award"-to a major figure in world cinema. Past recipients of this award include Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, and Sidney Poitier. The Film Society presents its year-round calendar of programming, panels, lectures, educational and transmedia programs and specialty film releases at the famous Walter Reade Theater and the new state-of-the-art Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center.

The Film Society receives generous, year-round support from Royal Bank of Canada, American Airlines, The New York Times, Stonehenge Partners, Stella Artois, the National Endowment for the Arts and New York State Council on the Arts. For more information, visit www.filmlinc.com and follow #filmlinc on Twitter.