Celebrating 'a Living Holiday'

A salute to the sacrifices of wartimes past, combined with a tribute to soldiers of the present, will headline PBS's annual National Memorial Day Concert on the Mall.

Jerry Colbert, the event's executive producer, said he wanted to help viewers remember the veterans of the Korean and Vietnam wars, as well as those from World War II.

"The guys from the 'greatest generation,' we're losing more of them all the time," Colbert said. "They all need some acknowledgement."

The program, hosted by actors Joe Mantegna and Gary Sinise, includes dramatic readings and musical performances.

Among those scheduled to appear: Gladys Knight, Sarah Brightman, Idina Menzel, Rodney Atkins, Caitlin Wachs, Denis Leary, Gail O'Grady and John Schneider, as well as former secretary of state Colin L. Powell. The National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Erich Kunzel, returns for its annual rendition of patriotic songs.

A special tribute to actor Charles Durning includes film segments on his military service. Durning, who returns for the 15th time as a participant in the concert, "was in the first wave at Normandy, in the Battle of the Bulge, and he liberated a death camp," Colbert said.

After the film segment, the program will "contrast World War II with today's servicemen and women in Iraq and Afghanistan." The contemporary segments will focus on the stories of "battle buddies," whose friendship extends beyond the war front, Colbert said.

Mantegna is appearing at the concert for the seventh time and hosting the event for the third year.

Being onstage, "seeing the Capitol, the flag flying and something like 300,000 people there for the concert, it can feel overwhelming," Mantegna said. "The first time I did it, I thought my face would explode, you're just bombarded with so much emotionally. That magnifies how important it all is."

He called the Memorial Day concert a dichotomy: "We're there to honor the dead, but it is a living holiday, and we go forward paying tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice."

NATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT

Sunday