Award Is Offered — And Rescinded — For ‘American Pie’ Singer
May 6, 2019, 5:14 PM | Updated: Jun 8, 2022, 5:09 pm
INDIO, CA - APRIL 26: Musician Don McLean performs onstage during day 2 of 2014 Stagecoach: California's Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club on April 26, 2014 in Indio, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Stagecoach)
(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Stagecoach)
The 73-year-old announced Monday that he’s receiving the George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement, presented by the Student Alumni Association of University of California, Los Angeles. Past recipients included Julie Andrews, Ella Fitzgerald and Ray Charles.
But the Portland Press Herald reports that the award was rescinded after the association was told of a domestic disturbance involving Don and Patrisha McLean in 2016.
McLean pleaded guilty to domestic violence assault, which was dismissed after he met the terms of a plea agreement. The couple are now divorced.
His spokesman called it “disrespectful” for an award to be rescinded over failure to conduct due diligence on a widely reported incident.
