John Oliver, Phoebe Robinson, Denée Benton, and Alex Edelman to Take Part in Comic Relief US Gala Honoring Henry R. Muñoz III

Comic Relief US will present their inaugural U.S. gala on Monday, December 4, 2023, at Cipriani 25 Broadway. Being honored with their first-ever Visionary Award is  architect, activist, and philanthropist Owner and Chairman of premier comedy studio Funny Or Die Henry R. Muñoz III. Special guests will include Comic Relief US Founder Richard Curtis, Emmy Award-winning comedian, writer and television host John Oliver, comedian, writer, publisher, creator and star of Freeform’s "Everything’s Trash" Phoebe Robinson, stand-up comedian Alex Edelman, and Tony-nominated singer and actress Denée Benton, and Chairman and CEO of Medialink and Gala Chair Michael Kassan.

 

The inaugural gala will support Comic Relief US’ long-standing mission to leverage the power of entertainment to raise funds and awareness to address their social impact goal: breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty. The evening will support Comic Relief US’ investments in programs that address both the root causes and consequences of poverty – including food insecurity, gaps in the education system, and access to housing and healthcare – to enable a world where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. 

 

“Comic Relief US believes in the transformative power of entertainment to drive true social change,” said Alison Moore, CEO of Comic Relief US. “We’ve seen it unite communities, create understanding, and empower action to break the insidious cycle of poverty. Our inaugural gala is an opportunity for us to celebrate the reach and impact of Comic Relief US, which has raised over $421 million for children and families around the world.”

 

“I want to thank Comic Relief US for their many years of using the power of entertainment to create change in the lives of families and children around the world,” said Henry Muñoz III, Owner and Chairman of Funny Or Die. “I’m humbled by this honor; to me, being a visionary is simply being able to see what is overlooked, from underrepresented voices in the media to the needs of the underserved. I join my colleagues at Funny Or Die in applauding Comic Relief US for spreading their vision of comedy as a healing and helpful social force, and we pledge our continued support of their work.”

 

"Laughter is not just the best medicine, it also heals and comforts and brings people together.  It’s when people come together that extraordinary things happen,” said Richard Curtis, Co-Founder & Vice-Chair of Comic Relief. “As we get ready to host our inaugural gala, I'm enormously proud of what Comic Relief US has accomplished and continually astonished by the generosity of our supporters and the American public. Comic Relief has been my life's greatest joy - I'm excited to share that joy with our community, and with some of the greatest champions working to address child poverty." 

 

The gala will begin at 6:30PM ET with red carpet arrivals and a cocktail reception, followed by dinner, and an entertaining program featuring performances from John Oliver, Phoebe Robinson, Denée Benton, Alex Edelman, and the Brooklyn United Marching Band.

 

For ticket information and pricing, or for information about sponsorship opportunities, please visit: https://comicrelief.org/2023-gala. 

 

ABOUT COMIC RELIEF US

Comic Relief US is a nonprofit committed to breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty. It harnesses the power of entertainment to drive positive social change. To date the nonprofit has raised over $421 million by mobilizing donors of all ages to engage with causes through powerful content-driven campaigns and new digital platforms.

 

Since 2015, Red Nose Day, Comic Relief US' signature campaign to end child poverty, has raised over $365 million and positively impacted over 32 million children in the US and around the world. Donations are invested in grantee partners and social impact programs that ensure children are safe, healthy, educated and empowered and that address the root causes of poverty in communities most impacted. Comic Relief US, also known as Comic Relief US, Inc., is a registered U.S. 501(c)(3) public charity. 

 

For more information about Comic Relief US and its impact, visit https://www.comicrelief.com/. Follow @ComicReliefUS on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and Facebook.

 

ABOUT HENRY R. MUÑOZ

Henry R. Muñoz III is an American activist, business leader, designer & philanthropist. He has launched national movements including Momento Latino, TheDream.US and Latino Victory to support the Latino community through awareness, educational funding, and electoral empowerment.

 

Henry is one of the few – if not, the only – Latino and openly gay studio owners in Hollywood and is pushing for more minority representation at major distributors, and through this, FOD is shifting its focus toward film and television projects that are “Funny Original & Diverse”. Henry was also recently nominated for Tony Awards as a producer for Some Like It Hot and New York, New York. Muñoz is also a producer of the Broadway revival of Funny Girl. 

 

Henry is also the co-founder of SOMOS US, a healthcare network in NYC that treated largely immigrant communities that have been at the forefront of battling the COVID-19 pandemic. He is the former Chairman of the Board & CEO of Muñoz & Company, one of the largest and oldest minority-owned design practices in the country. Under his leadership, Muñoz & Company pioneered an inclusive approach to architecture, urban planning, and design that acknowledges the imprint of the Latino community upon the built environment of the United States, winning over 150 juried design awards in the process.

 

Additionally, he helped found the effort to create a Latino Museum on the Mall in Washington D.C., as Chairman of the bipartisan Commission to study the creation of the National Museum of the American Latino. After legislation passed in 2021 for the establishment of the Smithsonian American Latino Museum, Muñoz was elected as Founding Chairman of the Board.

 

Muñoz was appointed as Finance Chair of The Democratic National Committee by President Barack Obama in January 2013.  He was the longest serving Finance Chair in DNC History. He is now Finance Chair Emeritus of the Democratic National Committee, the first Latino and openly gay person to ever hold those positions.

 

ABOUT FUNNY OR DIE

Funny Or Die is a minority-owned business focused on creating funny, original and diverse content with today’s biggest stars and tomorrow’s exciting voices. Funny Or Die reaches a global audience of more than 40 million people across all of its social platforms. The company has produced the critically acclaimed “Brockmire” for IFC, Emmy nominated “Billy on the Street,” the Peabody award-winning “American Vandal” for Netflix, the Emmy nominated Sarah Silverman series “I Love You, America” for Hulu, and the feature films “Between Two Ferns: The Movie” for Netflix, “Impractical Jokers: The Movie” for Warner Media, and “WEIRD: The ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Story” for Roku.

 

Funny Or Die was founded in 2007 with Will Farrell, Adam McKay and Chris Henchy’s infamous “The Landlord” video and has since become a comedy juggernaut. In May 2021, it was announced that Funny Or Die had been acquired by Henry R. Muñoz III, a nationally respected business leader, philanthropist and activist, known for creating movements that inspire massive change in American institutions, where he works at the intersection of design, politics and cultural empowerment.