Key points
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Ann-Margret appeared at a USO event in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Wednesday.
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The actress received the organization’s USO Challenge Coin at the event.
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Ann-Margret’s appearance came just weeks after she broke her arm in a fall.
Ann-Margret is out and about after an unfortunate injury.
The Bye Bye Birdie actress, 85, appeared at an event at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Wednesday to receive an honor from the USO.
Ann-Margret, born Ann-Margret Olsson, was the second person to receive the USO Challenge Coin from the organization, which has brought live entertainment to United States Armed Forces officers since 1941. Bob Hope was the first to receive the coin in 1990 — and his daughter, Linda Hope, joined Ann-Margret at this week’s event.
The actress was honored for her long history of supporting the USO. In 1966, she embarked on a tour in Vietnam alongside musicians Chuck Day and Mickey Jones. The three entertainers later reunited for an encore in 2005 at the Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. She also performed in Vietnam alongside Hope, as well as musician Johnny Rivers, on other occasions.
Ann-Margret in Beverly Hills, Calif., on April 29, 2026
Credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty
“I have always had such a great time doing these tours, and then to see my guys since then come up to me and say, ‘I saw you in Vietnam and Da Nang!'” she told Deadline’s Pete Hammond in a conversation after receiving the award. “Those tours and all my guys mean the world to me, I remember all of them, all of them.”
“In a milestone year marking the 85th birthdays of both Ann-Margret and the USO, we celebrated a shared legacy of lifting spirits and bringing a touch of home to those serving far from it. Ann-Margret’s impact is both profound and lasting,” the USO said in a statement on Instagram. “A truly unforgettable event honoring a timeless legacy.”
The event came weeks after the actress injured her elbow. “I fell the other day and so now my right elbow is broken,” Ann-Margret told Parade last month. ” I have fallen so many times. I don’t intend to, but I do! What can I say?”
Ann-Margret said that she intends to be more cautious in the future. “I’m going to try and be really, really careful and not flop down, not fall again,” she told the outlet. “But one never knows!”
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The actress previously canceled an appearance at the Lexington Comic & Toy Convention in Kentucky in March.
“I just wanted to explain, I won’t be able to see you in Lexington at this time because I have a broken elbow,” she explained in a video, which showed her wearing a cast on her right arm. “I won’t be able to sign anything, really. But when I will, I will see you, okay?”
Ann-Margret is set to attend the 2026 Chita Rivera Awards on May 16 in New York City, where she will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
