Robert Osborne's 20th Anniversary Tribute

"Try to say Robert Osborne without smiling" says actress Eva Marie Saint during a surprise tribute to our ever-genial host last April during the 2014 TCM Film Festival. At Hollywood's Montalban Theatre, a Q&A session called "Ask Robert" was interrupted when Jeopardy host Alex Trebek unexpectedly appeared onstage to oversee the Osborne tribute on the occasion of his 20th anniversary with TCM. A taped version of the tribute shows Trebek, in true "This Is Your Life" style, introducing various family members and friends who appear to honor and congratulate our much-loved host. In addition to Saint, guests include fellow TCM hosts Ben Mankiewicz and Alec Baldwin, along with such celebrities as Diane Baker, Robert Wagner and his wife, Jill St. John. Osborne's cousin Susan Wright served as spokesperson for the family members who appeared from backstage for another surprise. "I love my husband first, then Robert Osborne second," declares Saint, who was interviewed by Osborne during the 2013 festival. Baker, an old friend, says that Osborne has been there to guide her at every transition in her life, from starting out as an actress to becoming a professor. Tony Barbon, the first director of Osborne's TCM appearances, also offers reminiscences, and Michael Feinstein takes to the piano to sing a favorite Osborne tune, "The More I See You," originally performed by Dick Haymes in the 1945 film Diamond Horseshoe.

By Roger Fristoe