Josh Groban and Stars Unite for PBS Telethon Celebration

Josh Groban, Martha Plimpton, Jamie Lee Curtis, Lily Tomlin, and many more will participate in WE ❤️ PUBLIC TELEVISION!, a three-hour program recorded LIVE from PBS SoCal’s Burbank Studios that honors 55 years of public television.

Other talent featured (subject to change) includes music director Rickey Minor and appearances by Ken Burns, Ziggy Marley, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Marlee Matlin, Noel Paul Stookey, Rick Steves, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Adam Arkin, Courtney Vance, Joe Bonamassa, Sheléa, Jesse Cook, Judy Blume, Celtic Woman, Sarah Silverman, Mychal the Librarian, Lindsey Stirling among others.

The telethon will also include three special performances from the Nashville PBS studios featuring Kathy Mattea, Sierra Hull, Molly Tuttle and Ketch Secor. This program celebrates the musical artists and personalities who have graced PBS stages and screens, showcasing the cultural richness that public media and local PBS stations offer all Americans. The three-hour LIVE telecast will take place on Sat., Nov. 8 from 4-7pm on PBS SoCal and will encore on Thurs., Nov. 27 (Thanksgiving night) from 7-10pm on PBS SoCal.

“This Telethon is going to be a giant lovefest celebrating Public Television. We will feature great music, some classic clips from viewers’ favorite PBS series and a few surprises,” commented PBS SoCal’s Executive Producer for the Telethon, Maura Daly Phinney. “Every contribution that viewers make will go to their local public television station and help them fill the gap created by the loss of our federal funding.”

WE ❤️ PUBLIC TELEVISION! will include a variety of live musical performances, celebrity appearances and viewer testimonials, plus archival material from iconic public television shows including MASTERPIECE, Austin City Limits, Great Performances and Sesame Street. The program will air on Thanksgiving night on PBS stations nationwide. Following the broadcast, WE ❤️ PUBLIC TELEVISION! will be available on the free PBS App from Nov. 27 – Dec. 24, 2025.

Los Angeles Awards - Live Stats

Best Musical - Top 3

1. JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (Hollywood Bowl)

5.9% of votes

2. HEATHERS (Backyard Playhouse: Treetop Production)

5.7% of votes

3. HAIR (Conundrum Theatre)

5.5% of votes

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