Tom Cruise humbled by Friars honor.

  • 12 years ago
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SHOWS: The Friars Club has awarded actor Tom Cruise with its entertainment icon award, making him only the fourth person in the club's 108 year history to receive the honor.

"It kind of hasn't hit me yet, when they told me I just felt really, really honored, really privileged. You don't expected anything like that and I'm just, you know, I feel so lucky and privileged to be able to do something that I love," Cruise told Reuters.

Cruise is in the middle of promoting his new film "Rock of Ages" in which he plays the lead singer of a fictional rock band called Arsenal. The normally clean cut Cruise had to transform into a stereotypical 80's rocker, sporting long hair, makeup and nail polish.

A slew of Tom's friends were on hand to help him celebrate his honor. Actor Alec Baldwin, who co-stars in "Rock of Ages," was the night's emcee.

The evening turned into a mini reunion for two of the actors from "Jerry Mcguire" as Cuba Gooding Jr. and Johnathan Lipnicki caught up on the red carpet.

The Friars Foundation is the charitable arm of the Friars Club, which helps nurture undeveloped talent through scholarship programs, in addition to wounded soldiers via its Gift of Laughter Program. The Club was founded in 1904 as a meeting place for entertainers.