Red Nose Day began in 1988 as a way for Comic Relief to raise money for charities.The UK Red Nose Day in March increased the total amount of Comic Relief's fundraising to more than £1 billion over 30 years, an incredible level of support for worthy causes such as reducing poverty and eliminating social injustices.
Red Nose Day has spread to Finland, Germany and now it will debut in the US, where singer Christina Aguilera and actress Sienna Miller will headline the promotions, along with Mad Man star Jon Hamm.
One of the largest US chemist chains, Walgreens, is the exclusive retailer of official red noses.
M&Ms, a Mars brand, will cosponsor in the US, as Mars has been involved with the UK Red Nose Day for some time. M&M's USA Facebook page has more than 10 million likes, which gives the brand some social media leverage for promoting Red Nose Day.
NBC will broadcast the live three-hour telethon on the evening of 21 May.
