The Help collects three prizes at the NAACP Image Awards

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Help collected three prizes at the NAACP Image Awards, including top actress honors for Viola Davis, the supporting actress prize for Octavia Spencer and outstanding motion picture, The Associated Press reported.

Davis and Spencer have collected armloads of accolades for their work in the film about black maids who speak out against their white employers during the civil rights movement. Both are up for Academy Awards next week.

Davis said the film has "just been the joy of my life." "I found my voice," she said. "I just emerged through The Help."

Other winners announced during the two-hour telecast hosted by Sanaa Lathan and Anthony Mackie included Regina King, named outstanding actress for her work in the drama "SouthLAnd," and Tracee Ellis Ross and Malcolm-Jamal Warner for their lead roles in the comedy "Reed Between the Lines."

Radio pioneer Cathy Hughes accepted the Chairman's Award at a separate ceremony in New Jersey that was included in the broadcast on NBC.

Gospel singer Kirk Franklin closed the program with a version of Houston's "The Greatest Love of All" before launching into his uplifting song, "Today."