George Clooney Makes Broadway History as His Play Good Night, and Good Luck Is Broadcast Live on CNN

George Clooney’s play Good Night, and Good Luck just made Broadway history.

The Tony-nominated play starring Clooney, 64, as journalist Edward R. Murrow had its penultimate performance from the Winter Garden Theatre broadcast live on CNN and CNN.com on Saturday, June 7. This marks the first time a live Broadway performance has ever been simultaneously televised, according to the network.

“I can’t tell you how exciting it is to do something that’s never been done,” Clooney previously said in a statement about the televised event. “CNN is the perfect place to bring this story of courage to so many more people than we could have ever hoped. Live TV. No net. Buckle up, everyone.”

“Good Night, and Good Luck is not just a celebration of a golden age in TV journalism,” added Chairman and CEO of CNN Mark Thompson. “It’s also about the importance of the free press and the need for strong news organizations to report the facts in a fair-minded way. That’s something we still care deeply about.”

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Nominated for five Tony Awards and directed by David Cromer, Good Night, and Good Luck has become the highest-grossing play in Broadway history, and the first play to surpass a gross of $4 million in a single week.

The production marks Clooney’s Broadway debut, and comes 15 years since the hit 2005 movie about CBS journalist Murrow’s 1954 exposé on Sen. Joseph McCarthy. Clooney directed the film version, in which he played Fred W. Friendly.

Clooney stars as Murrow onstage and co-wrote the stage adaptation with Grant Heslov.

The two previously collaborated on the film’s screenplay, nabbing a Best Original Screenplay Oscar nomination in the process. Clooney was also nominated that year for directing Good Night, and Good Luck, as well as for his supporting acting work in Syriana. The latter won Clooney his only acting Oscar.

During an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers  on June 2, Clooney joked that one of the first things he’ll do after his final performance is fix his “bad” hair.

Clooney appeared on the show wearing a hat to cover his head, and the first thing he mentioned after greeting host Seth Meyers was that the hat was necessary to “hide” his hair as it grew out.

“It’s bad. It’s still dark on top, but it’s gray at the bottom,” he explained, telling Meyers, 51, that he hadn’t dyed it for about two months. “So you get that really nice-looking grow-out of gray.”

Among the play’s Tony nominations is Clooney’s nod for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play. The actor made it clear that he isn’t necessarily prepared to take home an award during the ceremony this Sunday: “I’m not thinking very positively about winning a Tony.”

The production is up for Best Sound Design of a Play, Best Scenic Design of a Play, Best Costume Design of a Play and Best Lighting Design of a Play.

Tickets for Good Night, and Good Luck are now on sale. The play wraps up its limited run on Sunday, June 8.

Source People.com