Anyone who doubts that green is still Hollywood's favorite color just needs to take a look at the sponsors and guest list for the upcoming gala celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Natural Resources Defense Council's Southern California office.
The event is set for April 25 at the Beverly Wilshire and longtime superstar environmental activists Robert Redford and Leonardo DiCaprio will be among the guests. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, whose beachfront home is widely admired by advocates for "green architecture," will host. Co-chairs include a who's who of the industry's environmentally conscious types, including Colleen and Bradley Bell, Dayna and Steven Bochco, Kelly and Ron Meyer, Cindy and Alan Horn, Peter Morton and Heather Thomas.
The evening's theme, which will be incorporated in musical and film presentations, is "David vs. Goliath," a tribute to the local NRDC group's many court victories on behalf of clean air, public health and open spaces. (Pioneering environmental attorney Mary Nichols, who now chairs California's Air Resources Board, helped open the group's local office back in 1989, when B-Hills thought green was what came on the salad plates at the Bistro.)
Music will be provided by Maroon 5, and Rosanna Arquette will DJ the after-party.
"You can be tough doing bad things, and tough doing good things. NRDC, in my opinion, is tough doing good things," Redford said in a statement. DiCaprio, also a trustee, called NRDC "probably the most effective environmental organization in the world. It is willing to take on major corporations and the government itself to hold them accountable for the environmental policy that's out there," he said in a statement.
Now if Rosanna can pick cuts that get those two guys to linger on the dance floor, she's the one who deserves a gala.
Fundraising gets personal
Political professionals like to say that all politics are local, but for those involved in the fight to reverse Prop. 8's ban on same-sex unions, it's become deeply personal, as well. This week, Rick Jacobs, who chairs the Courage Campaign -- the focal point of the reversal efforts -- began circulating an e-mail by author Tom Dolby that indicates how these new politics may play out in the months ahead.
