Stevie Wonder Honored in France

Almost 30 years after he was first named to receive the Commander of Arts and Letters award, Stevie Wonder, above, accepted it from the French Culture Minister Frédéric Mitterrand on Saturday, Agence France-Presse reported. Mr. Wonder was first named a Commander in 1981, but his formal decoration had been delayed because of scheduling conflicts. Mr. Wonder dedicated the award, one of France’s highest cultural honors, to his mother, who died in 2006; he said he first came to Paris in 1964 with her. Mr. Wonder was also in Paris to receive a lifetime achievement prize at a musical awards show on Saturday. Mr. Mitterand praised Mr. Wonder as “music’s familiar genius,” Agence-France Presse reported, and Mr. Mitterrand added, “as citizen, administrator and culture minister I just called to say we love you.”