George Clooney knows he's a lucky man. The handsome Hollywood star made a solo appearance at a charity gala in New York on Monday – but his wife of five months Amal Clooney was most definitely on his mind. As he took to the stage at the star-studded event, George gave his bride a sweet shout-out after accidentally fluffing his lines. George was attending the SeriousFun Children's Network's New York Gala, honouring the late Paul Newman. While trying to recall how many countries the charity has helped during his charming speech, he accidentally overestimated the number.
George Clooney on stage at the New York gala
"Since 1988, these camps have (helped) over a half million sick kids and their families from over five hun… - over 50 countries – five hundred countries would be too many," he said. "There aren't actually that many." As the audience chucked, George added, "My wife's the smart one!" Earlier in the evening, as he arrived for the event, George couldn't help but gush about brilliant human rights lawyer Amal, who was unable to attend because of work commitments. "I'm very happy. It's exciting," he told Extra of married life.
George Clooney described wife Amal as 'the smart one' during his speech
"I really love my wife, I'm having a great time and I'm very proud of her. I couldn't be more proud of the things she does." The gala brought out a number of stars, including Danny DeVito, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks and David Letterman. People reported that once inside, Tom choked-up as he introduced some of the children, who performed throughout the evening, and spent time on the stage with an 11-year-old girl and her mum. As he came close to losing it, the star paused for a moment then told the Lincoln Centre crowd: "I'm such a sap!"
Meryl Streep, George Clooney and Tom Hanks on stage with some of the children
SeriousFun highlights Paul Newman's belief that fun can make a real difference in the lives of children who need it most. George closed his speech by describing the late Hollywood star, who passed away in 2008, as "the best version of us. And I don't mean actors, I mean humans." Danny also paid a touching tribute to Paul's legacy. "Somebody's riding a zip line battling a heavy-duty disease," he said. "Somebody's laughing when they're going through something that would make anybody cry. Knowing that there's a kid acting like a kid when everybody looks at him like a patient."