Pres. Hinckley party set

Mike Wallace, co-editor of the TV news show "60 minutes," and singers Gladys Knight and Donny Osmond are on the program for the 95th birthday celebration planned next month for LDS Church President Gordon B. Hinckley.

Ninety minutes of speeches and music, which will also feature the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square, will honor President Hinckley. His birthday is on June 23, but "A Celebration of Life!" is set for Friday, July 22, at 7:30 p.m. in the LDS Conference Center Auditorium.

The public is also invited. Complimentary tickets for those 8 and older will be available starting Saturday, June 18, at 10 a.m. They can be picked up in person at the Conference Center ticket office, on the Internet or by calling 866-LDS-TIKS (866-537-8457).

The last public birthday party, when President Hinckley turned 90 on June 23, 2000, more than 21,000 people from all over the world attended.

"At my age I wish for nothing other than good health and the friendship of good people," President Hinckley said at the time. "I desire no gifts, but rather I wish to give something to this community in which I have spent most of my life. To this end I am hosting a party."

Last year, President Hinckley spent his 94th birthday in Washington, D.C., where he received a Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian award, from President Bush.

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E-mail: astowell@desnews.com