Sponsors Gather to Support the Third Annual 'Night Before' Fundraiser for The Benefit of the Motion Picture & Television Fund

Sponsors Gather to Support the Third Annual 'Night Before' Fundraiser for The Benefit of the Motion Picture & Television Fund

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Once again, some of the entertainment industry's biggest stars came together with other leaders of industry for the third annual "Night Before" event to benefit the Motion Picture & Television Fund (MPTF). This year's "Night Before" benefit raised more than four million dollars, bringing the combined total raised from the three years to more than ten million dollars for the MPTF.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050227/NYSU004 )

As the name indicates, the party was held on the night before the Oscars(R) -- Saturday, February 26 -- and, as has become tradition, took place at the beautiful Beverly Hills Hotel, where the pool was again decked over for the benefit. The casual party, which has already become a coveted awards season invitation, also attracted a roster of important sponsors, whose generosity propelled the event to an even bigger and better success.

Perennial "Night Before" sponsors Variety, Hewlett-Packard and Ford once again lent their support to the event in a big way. The MPTF also welcomed first-time sponsors Target, JP Morgan Chase and America Online, who added to the fun and excitement for all the guests on hand, including celebrity attendees: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Aniston, Don Cheadle, Teri Hatcher, Halle Berry, Brad Pitt, Meg Ryan, Heather Locklear & Richie Sambora, Jessica Simpson & Nick Lachey, Matthew Fox, Eddie Murphy, Warren Beatty & Annette Bening, Steven Spielberg & Kate Capshaw, Ewan McGregor, Scarlett Johansson, Mike Myers, Brendan Fraser, Antonio Banderas & Melanie Griffith, Vince Vaughn, Dustin Hoffman, Debra Messing, Sean Hayes, Tim Robbins, Diane Keaton, Sophie Okonedo, Glenn Close, and many more.

For the first time, the "Night Before" also featured a celebrity DJ: Tony Okungbowa, who is best known for keeping Ellen DeGeneres and her audiences dancing as the DJ on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show."

Here is just a taste of what partygoers experienced at the "Night Before" benefit:

Variety:

Again taking a leading role in the night's festivities, Variety arranged for celebrity chef Jamie Oliver (aka "The Naked Chef") and his crew to have a demonstration kitchen in the midst of the party. The inimitable culinary wizard served up delectable dishes for the partygoers to sample and took the opportunity to pass on a few trade secrets during the course of the evening. Variety also arranged for departing guests to have something to commemorate the evening, while giving them a lasting reminder of the reason for the benefit. Getting into their cars, attendees found a copy of the book Behind the Silver Screen: Stories From Residents of the Motion Picture & Television Fund Retirement Community, which features photographs of some of the residents-then and now-and chronicles their widely varied careers and contributions to the entertainment industry.

Charlie Koones, President and Publisher of Variety said, "Everyone at Variety considers it an honor to be so closely associated with the 'Night Before' event. We are especially proud that, long after the event is over, the large sum of money raised for the MPTF will continue to help so many in our industry."

Hewlett-Packard:

For the third consecutive year, HP was a presenting sponsor of the "Night Before" party to help raise funds for the MPTF. This year, HP provided guests with its version of the Apple iPod. Additionally, guests were able to choose from one of several "tattoos" to personalize and dress up their iPods, which were designed for the occasion by such luminaries as Tom Hanks & Rita Wilson and Courteney Cox Arquette and David Arquette.

Mike Winkler, HP's Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, Customer Solutions Group, remarked, "Causes like the MPTF bring out the best in people. It's an opportunity for the industry's artistic community to give back to the folks who worked so hard to make this industry a success. We look forward to this event every year and doing our part to make the fundraising effort a winner."

Ford Motor Company:

This year, Ford Motor Company featured Jaguar. Jaguar, the manufacturer of some of the world's most stylish cars had a unique and exciting gift for one lucky person attending the "Night Before" who held the winning raffle ticket for the grand prize of a stunning Jaguar Advanced Lightweight Coupe, which will not even be available to the public until April 2006 at the earliest. The car, a version of which was also on display at the event, is the British company's latest concept car. Showcasing the bold new look of Jaguar, the new coupe strongly hints at the next generation XK sports car. As soon as it becomes available, Jaguar will gift one of its first new coupes to the winner, who was announced at the party. Ford also got all of the "Night Before" guests geared up with a pair of specially designed leather driving gloves.

Robert Witter, Global Brand Entertainment Manager for Ford Motor Company, speaking for the entire Global Brand Entertainment team, stated: "Ford Motor Company is thrilled to support the Motion Picture & Television Fund for a second year by sponsoring the 'Night Before.' We at Ford value the impact that individual people can have on an industry and we are pleased to have this opportunity to help the MPTF make such a tremendous difference in the lives of those people."

Target:

After a night of partying for a good cause, guests were no doubt ready for a good night's sleep, and first-time sponsor Target and renowned designer Isaac Mizrahi teamed up to get them there in style. The Target cabana was transformed into a bedroom fit for royalty, featuring the new Isaac Mizrahi home collection, from bedding to decorative accents. In addition, Mizrahi himself designed three sets of pajamas exclusively for the "Night Before." Guests chose their favorite design, which were then presented to them in an overnight gift bag, replete with comfy slippers and a sleep mask.

"Target is proud to be part of the 'Night Before' and supporting the Motion Picture & Television Fund," says John Remington, Target Vice President of Communications. "On the eve of such an exciting-and sure to be sleepless- night, we hope everyone will enjoy our custom-made pajamas by Isaac Mizrahi."

JP Morgan:

One of the evening's new sponsors, JP Morgan Chase hosted a sweepstakes for an extraordinary prize. One very fortunate guest held the winning ticket for a courtside box for six people at the Women's Final of the U.S. Open Tennis Championships, scheduled for September 2005 at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing, New York.

America Online:

AOL, which has a longstanding relationship with the Motion Picture & Television Fund, came to its first "Night Before" party bearing 25 deluxe giveaway packages that included a fully loaded laptop, a laptop bag and a one- year subscription to AOL. The packages were presented to the winners of an interactive game that literally lit up the party. Twenty-five times over the course of the evening a spotlight emerged somewhere in the room engaging four guests in a "race" with the Running Man. The winner of each round took home a grand prize package. In addition, every guest was given a set of premium noise-canceling headphones for the best quality digital audio experience available, courtesy of AOL.

Jon Miller, Chairman & CEO of America Online, remarked, "When Jeffrey Katzenberg asked if we would be interested in supporting the MPTF this year, we couldn't say no. AOL is delighted to participate for the first time in this fantastic evening for such a good cause. For AOL, after all, it's all about building community, and that's really what being part of this night means."

Ken Scherer, CEO of the MPTF Foundation, stated, "MPTF was able to serve nearly 100,000 industry members last year, thanks in large part to the incredible success of the 'Night Before.' The heart of Hollywood really shines at the 'Night Before' the Oscars(R), and our corporate sponsors deserve all our thanks and gratitude for endorsing the cause and embracing the spirit of this celebration."

MPTF Chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg added, "This year's 'Night Before' benefit has been another huge success, again raising millions of dollars for the vital work of the MPTF. We know we could not have achieved this mark without the generous participation of our sponsors and our heartfelt thanks goes out to those who rejoined our efforts, as well as those who shared in the evening for the first time."

For 82 years, The Motion Picture & Television Fund has served the entertainment industry as its foremost provider of health and human services. The mission of the organization is to enrich the lives of people in the industry through health care, children's day care, social and charitable services, and, retirement and residential services offered with compassion and respect for the dignity of each person.

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050227/NYSU004
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Motion Picture & Television Fund

CONTACT: Jennifer Fagen of Motion Picture & Television Fund,
+1-818-876-1544

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