VIDEO:Click here to watch John and the cast of Kotter receive their award at The TV Land Awards 2011

From TV Land-New York, NY, April 10, 2011- Celebrity icons from television, film and music joined TV Land tonight for the “TV Land Awards 2011,” which, for the first time in the award show’s nine-year history, was held in New York.

Emmy Award-winner Jane Lynch, whose own hit show “Glee” takes place at a high school, presented the cast of “Welcome Back, Kotter” with the 35th Anniversary Award. Two-time Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe-winner John Travolta reunited with co-stars Gabe Kaplan, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Robert Hegyes, Ellen Travolta and Marcia Strassman to accept the award for the popular edgy sitcom which ran from 1975-1979.

The awards show, which premieres on TV Land on Sunday, April 17 at 9pm ET/PT, kicked off with a surprise performance by legendary entertainer Liza Minnelli, who performed her rendition of the classic tune “New York, New York.” Barbara Walters, Stevie Wonder, Ben Stiller, Jane Lynch, Paul Reiser, Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick and the cast of “The Real Housewives of New York” joined in on the extravaganza at the Jacob Javits Center to honor: entertainment icon Regis Philbin (Legend Award), platinum recording artists Daryl Hall and John Oates (Music Icon Award), and the beloved casts of “The Cosby Show” (Impact Award), “Family Ties” (Fan Favorite Award), “The Facts of Life” (Pop Culture Award) and “Welcome Back, Kotter” (35th Anniversary Award).

About TV Land-

TV Land is the programming destination featuring the best in entertainment on all platforms for consumers in their 40s and 50s. Consisting of original programming, classic and contemporary television series acquisitions, hit movies and a full-service Web site, TV Land is now seen in over 98 million U.S. homes.