Posted: March 3, 2010, 3 a.m. EST
Tippi Hedren will receive the Humane Society's Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by her daughter, Melanie Griffith. Photo copyright Bill Dow. |
Actress and animal activist
Tippi Hedren will receive the Humane Society of the United States' highest honor, its Lifetime Achievement Award.
Hedren will receive the award March 20 in Beverly Hills. Her daughter, actress Melanie Griffith, will present the honor at the HSUS' 24th annual Genesis Awards.
Hedren, the star of Alfred Hitchcock's "The Birds" and "Marnie," is being honored for her many contributions to animal welfare, particularly to wild animals in captivity. Her achievements include the establishment of the Shambala Preserve in Acton, Calif., which is a safe haven for felines rescued from circuses, zoos and private residences, and for co-authoring the Captive Wildlife Safety Act.
"She started speaking out against the commercial breeding and private ownership of big cats years before it became a widely recognized problem," said Beverly Kaskey, a senior director from the Humane Society of the United States and executive producer of the awards gala.