Francis Ford Coppola, Grateful Dead and Apollo Theater among 2024 Kennedy Center honorees

By Liya Cui

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, rock band the Grateful Dead, blues rock singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt, jazz trumpeter, pianist and composer Arturo Sandoval, and The Apollo Theater will be honored at this year's John F. Kennedy Center awards, the center announced on Thursday.

The Apollo, a storied theater in New York City's Harlem neighborhood, is the first organization to be recognized by the center, which typically honors individual artists or groups in its awards for lifetime achievements in the arts.

The venue, known for debuting iconic Black artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday, is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year.

"The Apollo has guided us and the world forward by discovering and nurturing raw talent, molding a unique cultural identity that defines American culture still today," said Kennedy Center President Deborah F. Rutter in the center's announcement.

The 47th annual Kennedy Center Honors gala will be held on Dec. 8 at the center's opera house in Washington. The ceremony is typically attended by the U.S. president and first lady. A host for the event has not been announced.

The gala will be broadcast on CBS on Dec. 23 and will be available to stream on Paramount+ the next day, according to the center's press release.

(Reporting by Liya Cui; Editing by Frances Kerry)