Rita Moreno, Harvey Fierstein, Producer John Gore & IATSE President Matthew Loeb Named 2019 Actors Fund Honorees

The Actors Fund has named playwright Harvey Fierstein, actress Rita Moreno, Broadway producer John Gore and IATSE president Matthew D. Loeb as its 2019 Medal of Honor recipients. The awards will be handed out at the Fund’s annual gala on Monday, April 29.

“Harvey, John, Matthew and Rita are legends in our community,” said Brian Stokes Mitchell, Chairman of The Actors Fund. “They are rightfully due this highest honor from The Actors Fund, both for their dedication to performing arts and entertainment and for the leadership they provide in guiding the way for the next generation of artists and arts workers.”

The gala at the New York Marriott Marquis will include special tribute performances by guests to be announced.

The Actors Fund is a national human services organization that fosters stability and resiliency and provides a safety net for performing arts and entertainment professionals over their lifespan. Through offices in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, The Fund serves everyone in film, theater, television, music, opera, radio and dance with programs including social services and emergency financial assistance, health care and insurance counseling, housing, and secondary employment and training services.

Fierstein is best known for his play Torch Song Trilogy, presented recently on Broadway as Torch Song. Moreno currently stars in Netflix’s One Day at a Time and recently signed on as exec producer and co-star of Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story remake.

Gore, the Chairman, C.E.O. and sole owner of the John Gore Organization, has won 13 Tonys, an Olivier and an Emmy Award, and his extensive philanthropic endeavors include 2017’s one-night-only, all-star benefit reading of Our Town for the Hurricane Maria Community Relief & Recovery Fund.

Loeb has served as IATSE’s International President since July 31, 2008, when he was unanimously elected by the General Executive Board. He serves on the World Executive Board of UNI Global Union and in 2018 was unanimously elected President of UNI’s Media and Entertainment Industry sector.