Archive for the ‘Rumours & Headlines’ Category

Californians dramatically lead the pack among big donors underwriting President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration, with a roster of Golden State movie stars, film executives and businesses – including Google – putting up $6.4 million so far toward next week’s events, a new report shows.

The Center for Responsive Politics in Washington on Thursday released an analysis that showed that Californians’ donations far surpass checks from the next most-generous state of New York, whose residents have given $3.9 million to the events, which are expected to cost upward of $42 million.

Among the California residents who gave the $50,000 limit imposed by the Obama campaign: directors Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, producers Jeffrey Katzenberg and Robert Zemeckis, actors Halle Berry, Sharon Stone and Jamie Foxx, and record producer Berry Gordy. San Franciscans include Levi Strauss executive Robert Haas, Steven Swig and theater impresario Carole Shorenstein Hays.

Read the rest of this entry »