'In Remembrance and Healing'
Sunday, May 27, 2007; Page Y02
For actor Joe Mantegna, co-hosting the annual National Memorial Day Concert on the West Lawn of the Capitol "has changed my perspective of this whole holiday."
"It's a part of the process of what the day should be about, a coming together in remembrance and healing," said Mantegna, who has been involved with the concert since 2002.
He and co-host Gary Sinise will be on stage Sunday to introduce singers Natalie Cole and CeCe Winans; actors Charles Durning, Bonnie Hunt and Dianne Wiest; and others.
Singer Josh Turner will perform the national anthem, and Erich Kunzel will conduct the National Symphony Orchestra. Also participating will be former secretary of state Colin Powell, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and an armed forces color guard.
This year's 90-minute program will emphasize Iraq, spotlighting soldiers who are serving or have served in the war, said executive producer Jerry Colbert.
"Now the war is contemporary, so we're filling in the pieces of what you see every night on TV," Colbert said. "We'll have a sequence on those who have been wounded. A lot of guys are coming [to see the show] from Walter Reed."
Actor Jimmy Smits will narrate a segment on Arlington National Cemetery in remembrance of those who have died in current and past wars.
For those serving overseas, the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service will broadcast the program.
-- Kathy Blumenstock
National Memorial Day Concert
Sunday at 8 p.m. on PBS
Marking Memorial Day
Related programming includes:
Memorials -- The WETA Guide (Sunday, 9:30 p.m., PBS 26): Many of the area's military, presidential and war memorials and monuments are featured. Also airs Monday at 9:30 p.m.
Airgroup 16 (Sunday at 10 p.m. on PBS 26, 11:30 p.m. on PBS 22): Radio operators, pilots and gunners who served on the USS Lexington in the Pacific during World War II reunite in the District.
War Wounds: Women Fighting On (Wednesday, 7 p.m., TLC): This documentary follows three female soldiers who have returned from Iraq with serious injuries. Part 2 airs June 6 at 7 p.m.
Marathons: AMC and TCM air war movies at various times Sunday and Monday. See listings for titles and times.

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