Reese Witherspoon honored at Gene Siskel Film Center gala

Alexander Payne wasn’t the obvious choice to host the Gene Siskel Film Center’s “An Evening With Reese Witherspoon” on Saturday at the Ritz-Carlton hotel, but the director and screenwriter best known for “Sideways” and “The Descendants” — neither of which starred Witherspoon — can say one thing about the Oscar-winning actress that few in Hollywood can: He knew her before she was famous. Well, A-list famous.

Luis Gomez

June 25, 2012