Leslie Jordan tribute planned in Nashville to feature dozens of celebrities

Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Leslie Jordan rides a Corvair around the Riverbend Festival to greet attendees on June 3, 2022.
Staff photo by Olivia Ross / Leslie Jordan rides a Corvair around the Riverbend Festival to greet attendees on June 3, 2022.

Celebrities such as Eddie Vedder, Maren Morris, Brittney Spencer, Jim Parsons and Mayim Bialik will gather to celebrate the life of hometown Chattanoogan Leslie Jordan, who died Oct. 24 in Los Angeles.

Jordan was raised in Chattanooga, where he attended Brainerd High School and later the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where he discovered the theater.

"Reportin' For Duty: A Tribute To Leslie Jordan," will take place Feb. 19 at The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. The evening will feature an intimate collection of performances and on-stage storytelling, with insights into some of Jordan's lasting lessons of a life well lived.

All proceeds from the event will benefit the EB Research Partnership, dedicated to funding research to treat and cure epidermolysis bullosa.

Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. CST Friday, with pre-sale at 10 a.m. CST Thursday.

Performers will include Vedder, Morris, Brothers Osborne, Spencer, Billy Strings, Lukas Nelson, Jake Wesley Rogers, Ashley McBryde, Fancy Hagood, Jelly Roll, Danny Myrick and Travis Howard, in addition to special appearances by Parsons, Anthony Mason, Bialik, Cheyenne Jackson, Max Greenfield, Margaret Cho, Robyn Schall, Leanne Morgan and more.

The house band will feature a group of players, including three ACM Instrumentalist of the Year winners, who all performed on Jordan's 2021 debut album "Company's Comin'".

Jordan's family and friends held a similar event in Chattanooga on Nov. 20 at Memorial Auditorium.

Jordan was an actor, comedian, writer and singer whose roles included the Emmy Award-winning portrayal of Beverley Leslie on "Will & Grace," as well as several characters in the American Horror Story franchise, and most recently in Fox's "Call Me Kat."

-- Compiled by Barry Courter

Upcoming Events