Standing ovation as Clooney picks up humanitarian award

George Clooney got a standing ovation as he picked up a humanitarian award for his efforts in rallying Hollywood to help those in need.

The move star has a history of motivating his fellow Tinseltown celebrities to get involved in worthwhile causes and was recognised at Sunday night’s 2010 prime-time Emmy Awards show.

ER actress Julianna Margulies presented him with the Bob Hope Humanitarian Award.

The star of new flick The American looked sharp as he accepted the accolade, and told audiences: “Bob and Delores Hope were friends of my aunt and I spent many nights round at Aunt Rosemary’s house listening to them tell stories and sing. And if you look at everything they’ve accomplished throughout their lives, all the charitable work, they’re the best version of the term ‘celebrity’.”

He kidded: “There are a lot of you in the room who are like that. Some of you aren’t, don’t look around - you know who you are. It’s important to look at how much good can be done because we live in such strange times where bad behaviour sucks up all the attention and the press and people who really need the spotlight - the Haitians, the Sudanese, the people in the Gulf Coast, people in Pakistan - they can’t get any.”

Lightening the mood slightly, he quipped: “Now I’ve offered to go to south Sudan and have, like, a wardrobe malfunction but was pointed out to me that I’m 49 and the consensus was that it would just be upsetting and kind of sad."

Clooney founded a charity for the Darfur genocide along with Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle and Jerry Weintraub. He also founded and participated in projects aiming to raise funding for victims of 9/11, the Indian Ocean tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and the recent Haitian earthquake.