Scorsese feted at MoMA by friends De Niro, DiCaprio, Hill

Many young boys grow up with superheroes adorning their walls. Jonah Hill grew up with a picture of Martin Scorsese on his.

The actor related the poignant anecdote at a star-studded benefit Monday evening at the Museum of Modern Art, honoring the celebrated director both for his contributions to both cinema and to film restoration and preservation.

"You might not even understand how often just the image of you creates young people who want to be filmmakers every single day," said Hill, who worked with Scorsese on "The Wolf of Wall Street" and just released his directorial debut, "Mid90s," last month.

Honoree Martin Scorsese, center, poses with actors Robert De Niro, left, and Leonardo DiCaprio at the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Hill added: "As far as I'm concerned that's the coolest thing in the entire world. Thank you for just existing, because I am only up here because you did what you did."

Also among the speakers at MoMA's annual film benefit, which raises funds to bring great works of film to the museum's collection, were Hollywood heavyweights Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, two of the actors most closely associated with Scorsese.

DiCaprio, who's appeared in five Scorsese films including "Shutter Island," ''The Departed," and "The Wolf of Wall Street," also went back to his youth to describe the influence Scorsese, 76, had on him.

Honoree Martin Scorsese, left, poses with actor Leonardo DiCaprio at the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

He told the audience how when he was just 15, and starting his journey as an actor, his father took him to a movie theater for inspiration.

"He pointed at the screen, and as the reels of 'Goodfellas' began to spin, he said, 'This is the epitome of modern filmmaking,'" DiCaprio recounted. "'This is someone who you may be lucky enough one day to work with, and when it comes to directors, Martin Scorsese is where the bar is set.'"

The actor added that from that moment, "I made it a goal, I made it a relentless ambition to work alongside the master we're celebrating here tonight." The pair is about to start on its sixth collaboration, the crime thriller "Killers of the Flower Moon."

MoMA chief curator of film Rajendra Roy attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

DiCaprio also spoke of Scorsese as a lifelong teacher, from his constant on-set references to film history to his efforts to restore and preserve old films with The Film Foundation, which he founded in 1990.

"No one on earth has so relentlessly pioneered the salvation of movie history with such commitment the way Martin Scorsese has," DiCaprio said.

De Niro, who's made nine feature films with Scorsese, including classics like "Taxi Driver," ''Raging Bull" and "Goodfellas," spoke of the director's many years of friendship.

Actress Chloe Sevigny attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

"Marty's gift for friendship is directly related to his many gifts for filmmaking," the actor said. The director has, he said, "a giant heart that understands and embraces every character he helps us create, and every story he tells."

De Niro also quipped to the crowd that Scorsese's first career ambition was to be a priest. "My theory was that he changed when he realized that being a priest meant serving God, but being a director meant BEING God," he said.

Hill told the story of how Scorsese had instructed an actor in "The Wolf of Wall Street" to punch him for real, because the fake punches were looking, well, fake.

Actress Emily Mortimer attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Hill noted that he had adopted that technique for "Mid90s," but Scorsese, when he came to the podium, jokingly admonished him. "I wouldn't advise that for young filmmakers," he said.

Actress Drew Barrymore attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actress Chloe Grace Moretz attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Honoree Martin Scorsese, left, poses with his wife Helen Morris and daughter Francesca Scorsese at the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Musician Gary Clark Jr. and wife Nicole Trunfio attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actress Sutton Foster attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actress Cristin Milioti attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actors Emily Mortimer, left, and husband Alessandro Nivola attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Singer Tony Bennett and wife Susan Benedetto attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actors Natasha Lyonne, left, and Chloe Sevigny attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actress Drew Barrymore attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actress Ellen Burstyn, left, and director Darren Aronofsky attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actor Robert De Niro attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Musician Gary Clark Jr. and wife Nicole Trunfio attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Filmmaker Martin Scorsese attends the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute in his honor, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Filmmaker Spike Lee, right, and wife Tonya Lewis Lee attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Actor Harvey Keitel, left, and wife Daphna Kastner attend the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

Honoree Martin Scorsese, left, poses with his wife Helen Morris and daughter Francesca Scorsese at the Museum of Modern Art Film Benefit tribute to Martin Scorsese, presented by Chanel, on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Evan AgostiniInvisionAP)

JERUSALEM (AP) — Yemen's Houthi rebels on Saturday claimed shooting down another of the U.S. military's MQ-9 Reaper drones, airing footage of parts that corresponded to known pieces of the unmanned aircraft.

The Houthis said they shot down the Predator with a surface-to-air missile, part of a renewed series of assaults this week by the rebels after a relative lull in their pressure campaign over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Bryon J. McGarry, a Defense Department spokesperson, acknowledged to The Associated Press on Saturday that “a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 drone crashed in Yemen.” He said an investigation was underway, without elaborating.

The Houthis described the downing as happening Thursday over their stronghold in the country's Saada province.

Footage released by the Houthis included what they described as the missile launch targeting the drone, with a man off-camera reciting the Houthi's slogan after it was hit: “God is the greatest; death to America; death to Israel; curse the Jews; victory to Islam.”

The footage included several close-ups on parts of the drone that included the logo of General Atomics, which manufactures the drone, and serial numbers corresponding with known parts made by the company.

Since the Houthis seized the country’s north and its capital of Sanaa in 2014, the U.S. military has lost at least five drones to the rebels counting Thursday's shootdown — in 2017, 2019, 2023 and this year.

Reapers, which cost around $30 million apiece, can fly at altitudes up to 50,000 feet and have an endurance of up to 24 hours before needing to land.

The drone shootdown comes as the Houthis launch attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, demanding Israel ends the war in Gaza, which has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians there. The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 others hostage.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sank another since November, according to the U.S. Maritime Administration.

Houthi attacks have dropped in recent weeks as the rebels have been targeted by a U.S.-led airstrike campaign in Yemen. Shipping through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has declined because of the threat. American officials have speculated that the rebels may be running out of weapons as a result of the U.S.-led campaign against them and after firing drones and missiles steadily in the last months. However, the rebels have renewed their attacks in the last week.

A Houthi supporter raises a mock rocket during a rally against the U.S. and Israel and to support Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, April. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)