Tuesday Newsday

Merle Haggard, Jerry Herman, Bill T. Jones, Paul McCartney, and Oprah Winfrey were all honored at the 33rd Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday night in Washington, D.C. A-list celebrities such as Julia Roberts, John Travolta, Barbara Walters, and President Barack Obama were all in attendance to support the honorees. Merle had a strong support system from country music as well, as Miranda Lambert, Kris Kristofferson, Vince Gill, Brad Paisley, Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, Kid Rock and Jamey Johnson all took the stage to pay tribute to the Okie from Muskogee. The gala will broadcast on CBS on December 28th.

In other TV Notes, Garth Brooks will be spending some time with Larry King this Friday as part of his final week of shows on CNN. For one hour, Garth will sit down with Larry to talk about his upcoming string of benefit concerts for Nashville flood relief, family, his Vegas show, and why he’s not in iTunes. And if you missed the CMA Country Christmas show the first time, it will re-air on December 22nd on ABC. Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles hosts the special that features country artists sharing Christmas stories and family traditions. Guests include Sheryl Crow, Little Big Town, Martina McBride, Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler, Rascal Flatts, Reba, LeAnn Rimes, Darius Rucker, and Sugarland.

And finally, if you’ve got fifty-grand lying around, you could have been the owner of the blue denim jumpsuit worn by Johnny Cash during a rehearsal at the San Quentin prison. It was sold by an entertainment auction house last Sunday for $50,000. The infamous outfit is featured in the Jim Marshall photograph with Johnny wagging his middle finger into the camera lens. The expected sales estimate was only $5,000. Bidders made offers over the phone and at the gallery on not only the outfit but, a Martin acoustic guitar which Johnny signed and used to write the first four lines of his hit "I Walk the Line." It also went for $50,000, topping its estimates of $20,000.