Look To The Stars News: Creative Coalition

Stars Lend Their Voices To Speakaboos

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 11:30:00 -0000

Speakaboos, a publisher of exceptional digital content for children, has announced its spring releases of online titles performed by celebrities – with some proceeds destined for charity.

“Law & Order: SVU” star Christopher Meloni, “The Office” star John Krasinski and Jason Ritter are among the stars to lend their voices to the stories, and at least fifteen percent of Speakaboos’ revenue is contributed directly to charities supporting children’s causes, such as the National Education Association – the leading organization in the US committed to advancing the cause of public education – and the Creative Coalition, formed for the charitable and educational purposes of bringing together artists and entertainers to learn about pressing issues so they can better inform and influence the community and nation.

Spring titles include:

The Golden Goose, read by Mark Thompson.
Caperucita Roja (Spanish version of The Little Red Riding Hood) read by Lisa DeSimone.
The Little Half-Chick read by Christopher Meloni.
Aladdin read by John Krasinski – April 20th
Man, Boy, Donkey read by Jason Ritter – April 27th
Three Little Pigs read by Judy Tenuta – May 4th
The Gingerbread Man read by John Krasinski – May 11th
Nickity Nick read by Veronica Webb – May 18th
Rip Van Winkle read by John Paul DeJoria – June 1st

Speakaboos is an online publisher that celebrates classic literary properties for children through the voices of today’s biggest stars, including Kevin Bacon, Nick Cannon, and Kelly Ripa. All the stories come with story guides, lesson plans based on national standards, worksheets and other resources for parents and teachers to reinforce educational lessons at home and in the classroom.

The entire Speakaboos library is available for viewing online for free on Speakaboos.com and available for download on the website at $0.99. Select titles that are combined into albums are available for the price of $8.99 per album. All Speakaboos audio tracks are also available on iTunes.com and Rhapsody.com.

Charitable Stars Shine For Obama

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 13:00:00 -0000

Celebrities were out and about in droves on Tuesday to celebrate Barack Obama's inauguration by attending several charity balls.

One of the largest was the Creative Coalition Ball at the Harman Center for the Arts in Washington DC. The sold-out event cost between $10,000 and $100,000 to attend, and attracted appearances by Ashley Judd, Anne Hathaway, Susan Sarandon, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, Rachel Leigh Cook, Ron Howard, Heather Graham, Forest Whitaker, Magic Johnson and many more. Entertainment was provided by Elvis Costello, Sam Moore and Sting.

The Creative Coalition is a nonprofit public charity organized by the creative community to learn about pressing issues so they can better inform and influence the community and nation.

Also taking place on the other side of town – at Club Ibiza – was a ball organized by the Recording Industry Association of America to benefit Feeding America.

Hosted by Courteney Cox and David Arquette, the evening attracted big names such as Rihanna, Shakira, Jay-Z, Russell Simmons, Cher, T.I:, Kanye West, Josh Groban, and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Rihanna To Play Inauguration Show For The Hungry

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 15:00:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Pop star Rihanna is set to perform at Barack Obama's inauguration to benefit hunger relief.

The 20-year-old has been confirmed to sing at the Recording Industry Association of America’s Presidential Inauguration Charity Ball in aid of Feeding America.

“We could not be happier that Rihanna will be performing at the Inauguration charity ball to benefit Feeding America,” Vicki Escarra, president and CEO of Feeding America (formerly America’s Second Harvest), told people.com. “Rihanna’s involvement will help raise awareness about the prevalence of hunger in America and help bring more aid to the 36 million Americans who do not always know where they will find their next meal.”

The concert will take place in Washington DC, and will also feature Aretha Franklin. Look To The Stars will give you more info about tickets when it comes to hand.

Also taking place on inauguration night – January 20 – is a charity concert benefiting the Creative Coalition, a nonprofit public charity organized by the creative community to learn about pressing issues so they can better inform and influence the community and nation. Performing at the sold-out event are Elvis Costello and Sting, with appearances from Seal, Ashley Judd, Anne Hathaway, Susan Sarandon, Marcia Cross, and film director Spike Lee.

Affleck Tops Charity Stars in Denver

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:30:00 -0000

Written by Myrlia Purcell

Denver saw an outpouring of celebrity love during last week’s DNC, with Ben Affleck leading the philanthropic pack.

On the Tuesday night, Affleck took part in a poker tournament, along with Richard Dreyfuss and Montel Williams, which ultimately raised over $60,000 for the Paralyzed Veterans of America.

“A lot of important organizations use this environment and the people who are here, celebrities, members of Congress, to try and raise money. This is not a Democratic or Republican group, this is a group serving our veterans,” Affleck said of the charity.

Wednesday morning, the Pearl Harbor star was down at a local food bank, the Food Bank of the Rockies, to participate in a repack event for America's Second Harvest. Also on hand for the event were members of the Senate Hunger Caucus and members of the House – all there to see who could pack the most boxes of food in five minutes. Affleck, incidentally, won both the poker and the packing events.

He was joined by wife Jennifer Garner for a book reading at the Starz Green Room. Also set to attend were Charlize Theron, Daryl Hannah, Rosario Dawson, Kerry Washington, Josh Brolin, Kal Penn, Stuart Townsend and Hill Harper.

Jennifer Lopez spoke at a reception sponsored by the Jennifer Lopez Foundation in honor of Marian Wright Edelman, founder of the Children's Defense Fund. Fran Drescher, Ashley Judd and Joy Bryant joined Lopez in honoring Edelman.

The Black Eyed Peas performed at the Fillmore Auditorium for the Creative Coalition, and Kanye West performed at a party benefitting the ONE Campaign. Forest Whitaker, Kal Penn and Jamie Foxx were in attendance at the latter.

Moby performed at a private party for DoSomething.org, and Willie Nelson sang out for the people of Darfur at Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

Stars Take A Gamble At Charity Poker Tournament

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 13:01:58 -0000

Written by Delinda Lombardo

Look To The Stars reporter Delinda Lombardo recently attended the star-studded World Poker Tour Invitational in Los Angeles and caught up with some of the celebrities involved.

On March 1-3, celebrities and poker professionals hit the felt for the 6th Annual World Poker Tour Invitational at Commerce Casino in Los Angeles. More than 100 celebrities were invited to compete for a seat in the WPT Championships while raising money for charity, including a side pot worth nearly $30,000 that went entirely to charity in the names of the final 13 celebrities in the field. The three title charities of the event, guaranteed to receive at least $2,500 each, were Soles United, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and Harbor Private Funds.

Poker professionals, including Phil Laak, Shawn Sheikhan, Allen Kessler, Kathy Liebert, Jennifer Tilly, Billy Baxter, David Pham, Kenny Tran, and Antonio Esfandiari (who was just named the official spokesperson for the WPT) flocked to the highly successful event, which is now in its sixth year.

Actor James Woods has already established himself as one of the ‘best celebrity’ poker players out there. After losing his brother to a stroke in 2006, it came as no surprise that he plays for the American Stroke Association Charity.

“I’m playing for my brother,” he told me.

Lakers owner Jerry Buss was also playing cards, but it was Lakers forward Ronnie Turiaf who came out a winner. Turiaf has been coping with a heart aliment that didn’t seem to stop him from making the best of it.

“I’m feeling good,” he said. “You know, things happen for a reason, and I just try to make the best of it. God tests us all in different ways.”

And part of this ‘test’ includes corroboration with NBA player/poet/humanitarian Etan Thomas. Thomas recently underwent open-heart surgery. When I asked Turiaf what charity he was playing for, he dropped the bomb on me:

“Right now, I’m working on putting together something with Etan Thomas so we can help others going through the same thing,” he said. “Etan and I talked about it when I went to Washington, my part is going to be here and his part will probably be in Washington. We’re hoping to have it established later this year.”

The name of his foundation – Heart to Heart.

“You know, heart to heart,” he said with his hand over his heart. “As in my heart and his heart, and our hearts reaching out to others.”

Another celebrity taking the time to discuss his charitable efforts was actor Nicholas Gonzalez (Undressed). Gonzalez plays poker on a regular basis, but was much more interested in promoting his charity than his poker skills. Gonzalez was playing for Friends of El Faro, an organization that helps needy kids and families in Tijuana, with celebrities making routine visits across the border into Mexico. When asked about his role, he was quick to take the attention off himself.

“You know, it’s a great cause that I’ve been working with for a while,” he said. "One of the biggest proponents of El Faro is Molly Sims, who has a contract with Cover Girl. They even supported her work, went down there and talked to the younger girls, made up their faces and took pictures. Also Shannon Elizabeth, Adam Rodriguez, and especially Sharon Lawrence, who has been a really huge supporter – there’s a lot of celebrity friends. We used to have big gala every year in Hollywood that’s very well attended, but really, like I said it’s about getting down there, it’s not about who anybody is, it’s about spending time with the kids. We do everything from build playgrounds, to rebuilding kitchens, to knocking down walls – that kind of thing. "

Also on the red carpet was actor Justin Henry (The Junior Defenders), sitting in for actor Heath Ledger, who recently passed away. When asked about his charity, Henry simply stated “I’m playing for Heath.”

Numb3rs actor Will Wheaton walked the Red Carpet while commenting on his Curious George doll, “My son gave it to me for good luck.”

Actor John Hawkes (American Gangster, Deadwood) was knocked out of the poker tournament early on, so I spent some time chatting with him about his charity efforts. Had he not been eliminated, his winnings were earmarked to help save a few animals.

“I love animals,” he said. “So I would have given it all to support Friends of Animals in Utah, they do really great work and are a worthwhile cause that really I believe in.”

Hawkes in also involved with the 1-Second Film Project, a non-profit collaborative film that anyone can be part of. Hawkes is listed as one of the celebrity producers, along with Brett Ratner, Spike Jonez, and Kiefer Sutherland, who are raising money while creating the Worlds Biggest Short Film. All profits raised by the finished film will be donated to the Global Fund for Women.

Tom Everett Scott (Cashmere Mafia, Saved) was playing for a cause close to his heart.

“I’m playing for autism” he said prior to the tournament. “It runs in my family so it’s really important for me to personally get involved.”

Brian Baumgartner (The Office) was there to help raise money for those writers who were affected by the writers strike.

“I’m playing for the Motion Picture and Television Fund for the below the line workers that were affected by the writers strike,” he commented. “Its really an important organization that does a great deal of good work.”

Other celebrities in attendance included Mimi Rogers, who was playing for the Dream Foundation, actor Dwayne Adway (Into the Blue_), who was very proud to support the Creative Coalition, and James Kyson Lee (_Heroes) who has been inspired to start his own foundation.

“I’m just getting it established” Lee happily stated. “Im really excited about being able to help others and give back, I’d like to help the children in some way.”

Other celebrities in attendance included actor Don Cheadle, Meat Loaf, Ryan Stiles (Drew Carey Show_), Donnie Wahlberg (Kill Point_), Mekhi Phifer (E.R_.), Eric Paladino (E.R.), Jonathon Schaech (Prom Night_), Joshua LeBar (Entourage_), Joshua Morrow (Young and the Restless_), Lukas Haas (Death in Love_), comedian Doug Benson, Camryn Manheim (Ghost Whisperer_), Louis Lombardi (Sopranos, 24_), Jeremy Sisto (_Law & Order, Six Feet Under), Andy Milner (Weeds), Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad), Michael Vartan (Big Shots, Never Been Kissed), Ron Livingston (The Time Traveler’s Wife), Tia Carrere, and Andy Hirsh (Big Love).

Congratulations to the winner of the event, Van Nguyen, who became the first female in history to win a mixed WPT tournament. She is married to poker pro Men ’The Master" Nguyen.

Look To The Stars News: Creative Coalition

Stars Lend Their Voices To Speakaboos

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