Key to the city for Robert De Niro

Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival

The mayor presented Tribeca Festival founder Robert De Niro with a key to the city last night at Tribeca Grill, honoring him for his service to the city in both the arts and activism.

Also there: Martin Scorsese, Matt Damon, Zazie Beetz, Mark Ruffalo, Brendan Fraser, Dianna Agron, Billy Porter, Julian Schnabel, Debra Messing, Noah Centineo, Piper Perabo, and of course De Niro’s producing partner and Tribeca Film Festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal, in photo below.

Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival

The Tribeca Festival also announced a three-day event called “De Niro Con” in celebration of De Niro’s 80th birthday, scheduled for Sept. 29 to Oct. 1 at Spring Studios on Varick and Laight. There will be recreations of iconic film sets, immersive installations, classic film screenings, musical performances and panel conversations. The full programming lineup will be announced this summer.

“It’s hard to know what to get Bob for his 80th birthday,” said Rosenthal, who is now CEO of Tribeca Enterprises, “so we decided to celebrate him and his enduring legacy with a fun filled fan event as well as pay tribute to his unwavering dedication to his films, art, and the city he loves.”

Mayor Adams in his speech noted that De Niro has “starred in, directed, or produced over 140 movies, received two Academy Awards, and delivered art that will stand the test of time.” He also has a Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, a Kennedy Center Honor and a Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama.

And of course his investments include the Tribeca Grill, Nobu, Locanda Verde, The Greenwich Hotel and the Tribeca Film Center.

De Niro, Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff founded the Tribeca Film Festival in 2001 to spur the economic revitalization of Lower Manhattan following the attacks on the World Trade Center, and he opened the first hotel in the neighborhood in the wake of September 11 — The Greenwich Hotel in 2008.

And ICYMI, the festival is running now through June 18.

 

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