Beloved daytime alum Judith Light (ex-Karen Wolek, One Life to Live) is set to be honored at the upcoming Annual GLAAD Media Awards as the recipient of this year's Excellence in Media Award.
The ceremony, set to take place at the Hilton Midtown in New York on Thursday, March 19, will be hosted by Lilly Singh, executive producer and host of NBC's A Little Late with Lilly Singh. Singh will also be the one to give Light her Excellence in Media award, reports Deadline.
The Excellence in Media Award is presented to media professionals who have made a significant difference in promoting acceptance of LGBTQ+ people. Previous honorees include Julianne Moore (ex-Frannie Hughes, As the World Turns), Ava DuVernay, Robert De Niro, Patti LaBelle, Debra Messing, Tyra Banks, Glenn Close, Barbara Walters, and Diane Sawyer, among others.
"Judith Light stood up for and with LGBTQ people when others in media and entertainment refused to speak up, and she has never left our side," said GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. "When the GLAAD Media Awards first started and was a small event with little visibility, she was one of the few entertainers who would join us in calling for LGBTQ representation, so it is only fitting to now honor her advocacy on what has become the largest LGBTQ stage in the world. From standing alongside LGBTQ people during the AIDS crisis, to fighting for marriage equality, to now uplifting transgender people and issues, Judith advocates with a unique passion and an unending dedication that uplifts."
Light got her start in the entertainment world as OLTL's Karen back in 1977 and earned two consecutive Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her work on the soap. She went on to find mainstream success in the 1980s sitcom Who's the Boss. Most recently, Light appeared in Ryan Murphy's Netflix series The Politician. She also starred in the Golden Globe-winning Amazon series Transparent and the Emmy-winning The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story. The trio of projects garnered critical acclaim and have received GLAAD Media Award nominations. Light was also honored with the 2019 Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award for her extensive philanthropy work, especially in fighting to end AIDS and championing LGBTQ and human rights.
As Soap Central previously reported, Light's The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story co-star, Ricky Martin (ex-Miguel Morez, General Hospital), was also recently honored for his work protecting and expanding rights for LGBTQ individuals. He was named the 2019 recipient of the HRC National Visibility Award, which you can read more about here.
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