Comedy legend Robert Klein will present a special performance to celebrate The Great Neck Arts Center's 11th Annual Gala, on Sunday evening, Dec. 4, at the Tilles Center.

At the Gala, Raine Silverstein will be named "Woman of the Year," Great Neck resident Frank Lalezarian will receive the "Inspiration Award," publicist Marc Katz will receive the "Founders Award," designer Oleg Cassini will be presented with the "Lifetime Achievement Award" and artist Lissy Dennett will be named the "Artist of Distinction."

The Gala begins with a cocktail reception and benefit dinner at 6 p.m. at the newly expanded and remodeled Tilles Center, located on the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University, Brookville. The performance by Robert Klein begins at 8 p.m.

The community is invited to salute the honorees at the Gala and in a commemorative journal, to be published in conjunction with the event. A wide variety of event packages are available, including combinations of tickets to the Robert Klein performance, dinner, journal ads and raffle tickets. In addition, sponsorships of the Gala are available in many price ranges. For details on the ticket packages and sponsorships, call The Arts Center at 829-2570.

Robert Klein has entertained audiences for more than 40 years. He has had an acclaimed career in comedy, on Broadway, on television and in film. Born in The Bronx, he was a member of the famed Second City theatrical troupe in Chicago in the 1960s. Twice he was nominated for the Grammy Award for "Best Comedy Album of the Year" Child of the Fifties and Mind Over Matter. He received a Tony Award nomination for best actor and won a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for his performance in the hit Neil Simon musical They're Playing Our Song in 1979.

In 1993, he won an Obie and The Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in Wendy Wasserstein's The Sisters Rosensweig. In 1975, Klein was the first comedian to appear in a live concert on Home Box Office. He has done seven one-man shows for HBO. He was a star of the hit NBC series Sisters and has made more than 100 appearances on The Tonight Show and The Late Show with David Letterman. He recently completed his first book for Simon and Schuster, The Amorous Busboy of Decatur Avenue, an affectionate coming-of-age memoir about growing up in the '50s and '60s before embarking on a show business career.

Mrs. Silverstein was born in Havana, Cuba, to European immigrants Yankel and Chana Tilles. There began her love of the arts and there she met the man who would become her husband, Stanley Silverstein. Her parents emigrated to the United States, where she eventually married her childhood ping-pong partner, Mr. Silverstein. They moved to Great Neck in 1960 with their four young daughters, Nina, Renee, Flori and Ami, and began making a serious commitment to their new community.

The love and nurturing, which she bestows on her family, have also flowered into a clan that includes children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. With all of her many activities, she always finds the time to actively support many worthwhile endeavors.

Information about other honorees will be featured in next week's newspaper.