George Clooney, Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep were among the star-studded attendees at An Evening of SeriousFun on Monday (Mar. 2) – a New York City fundraising gala that toasts the career and life of the beloved late actor Paul Newman. As the three powerhouse actors gathered on stage, a group of kids performed pop hits like Katy Perry’s “Roar.”

CLICK ON PICTURES FOR GALLERYMeryl Streep, George Clooney, and Tom Hanks on stage at An Evening of SeriousFun

George, 65, opened the evening with a speech about Paul, the star of films such as The Sting and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

On the red carpet, George larked around with fellow actor Danny DeVito, with the two joking that they were planning a song and dance number for later in the evening.

George Clooney and Danny DeVito on the red carpet

Comedians David Letterman and Paul Shaffer got the biggest laughs of the night as they sang funny renditions of Paul Newman parody tunes, before George closed the show.

The event honours Paul’s philanthropy and aims to raise money for his SeriousFun Children’s Network, which sends kids with illnesses from more than 50 countries to camp. George later said of the children: "They get to be campers and not patients for a period of time and that’s really something kind of spectacular.

George Clooney and Meryl Streep watch from off-stage

“You get lost in all these things in the rush of our lives and you forget that they, on top of having to deal with very serious illnesses, they’re also kids. There was a kid here today saw snow for the first time, which is pretty great.”

Meryl added: “Paul’s great idea has grown and grown and grown to such a degree that I don’t think he would even believe it, if he had lived to 90 (years old).

“They’re opening three more camps this year… They have served a half a million kids and families. He’s really delivered joy, not just in his work but in this work, which is a great legacy.”