Is there nothing George Clooney can’t do? Apparently, there isn’t! The actor’s “Hope for Haiti Now” telethon aired Friday night on 25 major networks, bringing in around $58 million for earthquake-ravaged Haiti. And that number has continued to grow in the days following the telethon, which took place in Los Angeles, New York and London.
And if ever there was a time to call on your famous friends for help, Friday night’s telethon was that moment. And George certainly exausted his Rolodex. The phones were manned by such A-listers and Hollywood legends as Jack Nicholson, Reese Witherspoon, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Leonardo DiCaprio, Colin Farrell, Robert DeNiro and Steven Spielberg. Could you imagine calling in to donate and Jack Nicholson being on the other end!? Performers included Jay-Z, Christina Aguilera, Chris Martin, Alicia Keys, Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna and Justin Timberlake.
The $58 million raised is a record-breaking total for any disaster relief telethon. Call it the power of George. Or, perhaps, we are all just a little more generous these days. After all, the preliminary total does not include corporate donations or large private donations. The money will go to the following aid organizations: the Red Cross, Oxfam America, Partners in Health, UNICEF, the U.N. World Food Programme, the Clinton Bush Haiti Foundation and Wyclef Jean’s Yele Haiti Foundation.
Haitian-born Jean also performed on Friday’s telethon, first singing the somber “Rivers of Babylon” and then lifting the weighty tone of the telethon to one of hope and joy with the song “Yele.”
YES!