Fan Fare
Entertainment behind the scenes
Barbra Streisand to sing for Obama
Singer-actress Barbra Streisand, who originally endorsed Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential primary race, has jumped on Barack Obama’s bandwagon with both feet to sing for the newly anointed Democratic nominee at a Beverly Hills fund-raiser next week. Organizers say the hurriedly planned Sept. 16 event will probably mark Obama’s final stop on the Hollywood political money trail before the November election.
According to political consultant Andy Spahn, a co-host of the fund-raiser, the evening will begin with a dinner for the Illinois senator and about 250 guests at the landmark Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills. Dinner will be followed by a reception in Obama’s honor at the main ballroom of the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, featuring a performance by Streisand and others. The ballroom holds a crowd of up to 800 people.
Seats for the dinner and reception together go for a whopping $28,500 per person, but supporters who just want to hear Babs sing for Obama can get in for as little as $2,500 per ticket, Spahn said. At those prices, the two-part event could bring in nearly $9 million, making it the biggest single Democratic fund-raiser for the current election cycle. The money would be divided between Obama’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee.
Other members of the hosting committee include DreamWorks studio co-founders Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. Spahn said the rest of the evening’s entertainment lineup has yet to be confirmed.
Does Madonna fuel controversy for her fans or for herself?
Sex, religion, now politics. Madonna, true to style, has kicked off her world concert tour “Sticky & Sweet” with controversy by juxtaposing images of Adolf Hitler with John McCain, the Republican senator running for president alongside Democratic Senator Barack Obama and with Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe. Obama was named in a sequence with Mahatma Gandhi, John Lennon and Al Gore. ”Outrageous, unacceptable and crudely divisive,” said McCain’s camp.
Madonna, who turned 50 this month, is listed as one of the world’s most successful female recording artists of all time, having sold over 200 million records in a career spanning 25 years. Do you think she fuels controversy to keep fans coming back for more or is it a personal mission for The Material Girl?
McCain and Obama battle it out as comic superheroes
Comic fans attending this week’s Comic-Con Convention in San Diego have come face-to-face with two new superheroes battling for the good of the planet — Barack Obama and John McCain. The two U.S. presidential contenders feature like superheroes on the front covers of two graphic novel biographies published by IDW Publishing.
“Presidential Material: Barack Obama” is written by Jeff Mariotte with artwork by Tom Morgan and “Presidential Material: John McCain” is written by Andy Helfer with artwork by Stephen Thompson. The cover art was created by fan favourite J. Scott Campbell. Both books are due to go on sale on Oct 8 but copies can be ordered in advance at www.presidentialcomics.com.
Bob Dylan for Obama running mate?
Fan Fare humbly suggests that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama considers a rank outsider to be his running mate in forthcoming elections — Bob Dylan.
As the world’s media ponders who Obama will pick as his vice presidential candidate, we’d like to throw the 67-year-old singer/songwriter/poet into the ring. He has a name that travels across borders, is a cultural icon (surely that overused word is justified in this case) and he could come up with a mean campaign song to rally the followers.
Christina Aguilera rocks the U.S. vote
She can sing. She can Dance. And new mom Christina Aguilera can also rock the U.S. presidential election — or, at least try.
Rock the Vote, which aims to engage young voters in the U.S. political process, said pop star Aguilera would help launch the group’s 2008 U.S. public service campaign starting on Wednesday. She will urge people to register and cast their votes in the upcoming election that will send a new president to the White House and senators and congressmen to Capitol Hill.
