CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER HOSTS; VINCE MENDOZA CONDUCTS JAZZ ORCHESTRA

Concert generously sponsored by Fidelity Investments; Media sponsors KJAZZ and Gelson's

Whether it's the gasp of suspense, the thrill of adventure, or the hearty laugh of comedy, cool jazz scores and timeless jazz standards enhance our most favorite movie memories. Crowd-pleaser Cedric "The Entertainer" hosts Jazz at the Movies at the Hollywood Bowl on Wednesday, .July 25, at 8 p.m., featuring classic movie clips on the Bowl's big screens, synchronized to music performed live by a jazz orchestra, led by esteemed arranger and composer, Vince Mendoza. Bass player Christian McBride, the Creative Chair for Jazz at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, performs and serves as music director for the evening.

Jazz and the Movies, the third of eight performances that comprise the 2007 Jazz at the Bowl series, features movie clips and music from Anatomy of a Murder, The Pink Panther, Blazing Saddles, The Blues Brothers, Catch Me If You Can, Mo Better Blues, Elevator to the Gallows, Death Wish, Ocean's Eleven, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, a James Bond montage, and many more.

Trumpeter, composer, and Grammy Award winner Wallace Roney performs on Elevator To the Gallows and Death Wish, and British singer, songwriter and pianist Jamie Cullum sings "Trouble Man" from the 1972 film of the same name.

Other upcoming Jazz at the Bowl performances this summer also include:

• Benny Carter's 100 Years of Music celebration is held on what would have been his 100th birthday, August 8. The Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, James Moody, Roy Hargrove, Russell Malone, Marlena Shaw, Eldar, Roberta Gambarini, and special guests pay homage to the jazz great performing music by and for Benny, along with musical tributes and rare film clips.

• Guitars reign supreme for an evening with Lee Ritenour & Friends, on August 15. Ritenour invites Patrice Rushen and Richard Bona to join him in an infectious jam, while John Scofield explores the bluesy side of jazz. African jazz guitarist Lionel Loueke and his trio Gilfema open.

• The Bruce Hornsby Trio featuring bassist Christian McBride and drummer Jack DeJohnette perform on August 22. Dave Brubeck performs his jazz hits and swinging standards. French-American songstress Madeleine Peyroux opens.

• Legendary jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis opens Nancy Wilson's 70th Birthday Celebration, with many friends and colleagues from her esteemed career including Ernie Andrews, Regina Carter, Kurt Elling, Nnenna Freelon, Tom Scott. Terrence Blanchard and special guest host Arsenio Hall, on August 29.

• B.B. King returns to the Hollywood Bowl on September 5 for the B.B. King Blues Festival featuring Robert Randolph & The Family Band, led by searing pedal-steel player Robert Randolph and soul-bluesman James Hunter.

Over the course of three albums as a leader and over a hundred as a sideman, Grammy winner CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE has arguably become the most acclaimed acoustic and electric bassist to emerge from the jazz world in the 1990's. His passion for musical diversity has led him to work with everyone from Chick Corea to Pat Metheny, from Kathleen Battle to D'Angelo, from Diane Krall to Bruce Hornsby, from Quincy Jones to Sting. Given that the bass is the heart and soul of any music, this makes McBride's versatility all the more impressive. McBride's most recent recording, on Ropeadope, resists pigeonholes. His first release for the label, Live at Tonic, captures his capacious quartet joined by an array of guest artists, including eight-string guitar ace Charlie Hunter, Logic, pianist Jason Moran, violinist Jenny Scheinman, beat boxer Scratch, and Soulive guitarist Eric Krasno. McBride holds Artistic Director posts at the Jazz Aspen Snowmass summer program and the Dave Brubeck Institute at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. In January 2005, he was named co-director of The Jazz Museum in Harlem. While working for the museum in Harlem, McBride is racking up frequent flyer miles as the second Creative Chair for Jazz for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association. He works with the organization year-round, building on the Philharmonic's presence in the musical community as a leading presenter of jazz. Among his various gigs, McBride spoke at former President Clinton's town hall meeting on "Racism in the Performing Arts," and participated in a Stanford University panel on "Black Performing Arts in Mainstream America." He has also hosted thoughtful one-on-one "jazz chats" in cyberspace on sonicnet.com and scribed the forward for pianist Jonny King's book, "What Jazz Is (Walker & Co., New York).

CEDRIC "THE ENTERTAINER" is best known roles in such hit films as Barbership, Be Cool, Madagascar, Intolerable Cruelty, and The Original Kings of Comedy. Additionally, Cedric was star and producer of the box office hit Johnson Family Vacation (ranked the #1 comedy in America for two consecutive weeks). Cedric has also been seen in Condename: The Cleaner, Charlotte's Web, The Honeymooners, Lemony Snicket, Man of the House, Barbershop 2, Big Momma's House, Kingdom Come, Serving Sara, as well as displaying his vocal talent in Dr. Dolittle 2 and Ice Age. He will next appear in Talk to Me starring Don Cheadle, The Better Man with Martin Lawrence, Night Watch opposite Keanu Reeves, Johnson Family Vacation 2, Madagascar 2, and Flash co-starring Nelly. Cedric has celebrated many career successes spanning television, live performances and film. Some notable accolades include nabbing The Aftra Award of Excellence in Television Programming for his Fox Television series Cedric the Entertainer Presents…; a record-breaking (4) consecutive NAACP Image Awards for "Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series" for his portrayal of the lovable "Coach Cedric Robinson" on the WB's #1-rated The Steve Harvey Show, which ran for six seasons. In 1994, Cedric received The Richard Pryor Comic of the Year award from Black Entertainment Television for his ground-breaking work as host of Def Comedy Jam and BET's Comic View (1994-95 season). Now helming his own production company, A Bird and a Bear Entertainment, Cedric will develop and produce feature films. As a philanthropist, Cedric founded The Cedric "The Entertainer" Charitable Foundation which provides scholarships and outreach programs to enhance the lives of inner-city youth and their families in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri.

VINCE MENDOZA has been at the forefront of the jazz scene as a composer and recording artist for the past two decades. He has written scores of compositions and arrangements for big band and extended compositions for chamber and symphonic settings, while his jazz composing credits read like a Who's Who of the best modern instrumentalists, singers and composers. His latest CD, Epiphany, features his compositions for the London Symphony Orchestra. He is the chief conductor of the Metropole Orchestra of the Netherlands, and his arranging has appeared on many critically acclaimed projects that include dozens of albums and projects with songwriting legends such as Joni Mitchell, Björk, and Elvis Costello. Mendoza has two Grammy awards and 13 nominations. He is the orchestral voice behind the score to Lars van Trier's Dancer in the Dark. Mendoza has also written commissioned compositions and arrangements for the Turtle Island String Quartet, the Debussy Trio, the L.A. Guitar Quartet, the Cologne Radio Big Band, the Berlin Philharmonic, and the BBC. His music has been featured at the Berlin Jazz Festival, and he has performed major works at the Montreux and North Sea Jazz Festivals. He actively conducts concerts of his music in Europe, Japan, Scandinavia, and the UK.

One of the largest natural amphitheaters in the world, with a seating capacity of nearly 18,000, the HOLLYWOOD BOWL has been the summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic since its official opening in 1922, and in 1991 gave its name to the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, a resident ensemble that has filled a special niche in the musical life of Southern California. The 2004 season introduced audiences to a revitalized Hollywood Bowl, featuring a newly-constructed shell and stage and the addition of four stadium screens enhancing stage views in the venue. To this day, $1 buys a seat at the top of the Bowl for many of the Los Angeles Philharmonic's concerts. While the Bowl is best known for its sizzling summer nights, during the day California's youngest patrons enjoy "SummerSounds: Music for Kids at the Hollywood Bowl," the Southland's most popular summer arts festival for children, now in its 39th season. Attendance figures over the past several decades have soared: in 1980 the Bowl first topped the half-million mark and close to one million admissions have been recorded. In February 2007, the Hollywood Bowl was named Best Major Outdoor Concert Venue for the third year in a row at the 18th Annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards; the Bowl's summer music festival has become as much a part of a Southern California summer as beaches and barbecues, the Dodgers, and Disneyland.

PLEASE NOTE:

WEDNESDAY, JULY 25 at 8 PM

HOLLYWOOD BOWL, 2301 N. Highland Ave. in Hollywood

Jazz at the Movies

CHRISTIAN McBRIDE, music director

VINCE MENDOZA, conductor

CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER, host

Concert generously sponsored by Fidelity Investments; Media sponsors KJAZZ and Gelson's

Tickets ($1 - 93) are on sale now at HollywoodBowl.com, at the Hollywood Bowl Box Office (Tuesday - Saturday, 12 p.m. - 6 p.m.), or by calling Ticketmaster at 213.480.3232, and at all Ticketmaster outlets. Groups of 10 or more may be eligible for a 20% discount, subject to availability; call 323.850.2050 for further details. For general information or to request a brochure, call 323.850.2000.

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