http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0711/59184.html
Hollywood stars open wallets for Obama
President Barack Obamaâs latest fundraising report resembles an A-list of Hollywood stars, with donations from some of the top celebrities in the entertainment industry.
Among the more than 550,000 donors to the presidentâs 2012 reelection bid were big-name movie stars including actors George Clooney, Michael Douglas, Sharon Stone, Michael Keaton, Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson. Filmmaker Steven Spielberg and his wife, actress Kate Capshaw, also gave to the 2012 campaign, according to the latest Federal Election Commission report. Jennifer Garner and Gwyneth Paltrow both contributed under their married names âAffleck and Martin, respectively.
â30 Rockâ actor Alec Baldwin, who has often toyed with a potential political run, also shelled out cash for Obamaâs second-quarter fundraising haul. And several other TV actors â such as âMonkââs Tony Shalhoub, âGleeââs Jane Lynch, â24ââs president Dennis Haysbert and sci-fi stars Scott Bakula and Richard Dean Anderson â joined Baldwin in contributing to the presidentâs reelection bid.
Comedians Will Ferrell, Carl Reiner and âThe Simpsonsââs Yeardley Smith also doled out money for Obama, whose campaign attracted a record-breaking $86 million in donations.
According to the July quarterly report, the presidentâs reelection campaign raised $47 million, while the Democratic National Committee raised $38 million through Obamaâs joint committee.
About 40 percent of the presidentâs record-breaking take came from big-money bundlers, according to a POLITICO analysis of donors listed on Obamaâs campaign web site. Among those bundlers were top Hollywood insiders Andy Spahn, Ari Emanuel and Jeffrey Katzenberg.
Spahn â an entertainment consultant who was appointed in 2008 to the Presidentâs Commission on Arts and Humanities âbrought in over $500,000 in the last quarter. Katzenberg, a Hollywood mogul and DreamWorks Animation CEO, also appears in the group of bundlers whoâve raised over $500,000.
Emanuel, who served as the inspiration for âEntourageââs movie agent Ari Gold, raised between $50,000-$100,000 for his brother Rahmâs former boss.
Obamaâs campaign also pulled in a number of other actors and familiar faces, such as Vanessa Williams, Anthony Edwards of âERâ, âStar Trekââs John Cho, âHouseââs Jennifer Morrison, âCougar Townââs Christa Miller, Brenda Strong of âDesperate Housewivesâ and Wayne Wilderson, the actor who portrays the grapes in Fruit of the Loom commercials.
Hollywood stars open wallets for Obama
President Barack Obamaâs latest fundraising report resembles an A-list of Hollywood stars, with donations from some of the top celebrities in the entertainment industry.
Among the more than 550,000 donors to the presidentâs 2012 reelection bid were big-name movie stars including actors George Clooney, Michael Douglas, Sharon Stone, Michael Keaton, Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson. Filmmaker Steven Spielberg and his wife, actress Kate Capshaw, also gave to the 2012 campaign, according to the latest Federal Election Commission report. Jennifer Garner and Gwyneth Paltrow both contributed under their married names âAffleck and Martin, respectively.
â30 Rockâ actor Alec Baldwin, who has often toyed with a potential political run, also shelled out cash for Obamaâs second-quarter fundraising haul. And several other TV actors â such as âMonkââs Tony Shalhoub, âGleeââs Jane Lynch, â24ââs president Dennis Haysbert and sci-fi stars Scott Bakula and Richard Dean Anderson â joined Baldwin in contributing to the presidentâs reelection bid.
Comedians Will Ferrell, Carl Reiner and âThe Simpsonsââs Yeardley Smith also doled out money for Obama, whose campaign attracted a record-breaking $86 million in donations.
According to the July quarterly report, the presidentâs reelection campaign raised $47 million, while the Democratic National Committee raised $38 million through Obamaâs joint committee.
About 40 percent of the presidentâs record-breaking take came from big-money bundlers, according to a POLITICO analysis of donors listed on Obamaâs campaign web site. Among those bundlers were top Hollywood insiders Andy Spahn, Ari Emanuel and Jeffrey Katzenberg.
Spahn â an entertainment consultant who was appointed in 2008 to the Presidentâs Commission on Arts and Humanities âbrought in over $500,000 in the last quarter. Katzenberg, a Hollywood mogul and DreamWorks Animation CEO, also appears in the group of bundlers whoâve raised over $500,000.
Emanuel, who served as the inspiration for âEntourageââs movie agent Ari Gold, raised between $50,000-$100,000 for his brother Rahmâs former boss.
Obamaâs campaign also pulled in a number of other actors and familiar faces, such as Vanessa Williams, Anthony Edwards of âERâ, âStar Trekââs John Cho, âHouseââs Jennifer Morrison, âCougar Townââs Christa Miller, Brenda Strong of âDesperate Housewivesâ and Wayne Wilderson, the actor who portrays the grapes in Fruit of the Loom commercials.

