Homer Noodleman
12-07-06, 06:27 PM
Raising Oxfam's profile in the U.S.
At a hilltop cocktail party Wednesday evening at one of Beverly Hills' most exclusive homes, actors Colin Firth, Minnie Driver, Kristin Davis, Mark Ruffalo and Kirsten Dunst mingled with about 250 guests — among them some of the entertainment industry's young elite — to raise awareness for the relief organization Oxfam.
"If you grew up in the U.K., Oxfam is ever present in your life," said the British actor Firth, who recently traveled to Africa with the group.
"But what was once a famine relief organization has actually become a diplomatic organization," he said. "They take on everything from arms trade to advocacy in dealing with corrupt governments to fair trade. It's a very broad organization."
The actors spent several hours at the Esquire house — a rambling estate owned by Esquire magazine on a Coldwater Canyon hilltop — chatting with guests, who included singer Liz Phair, "Blood Diamond" actor Djimon Hounsou, shoe designer Taryn Rose, Kiele Sanchez of "Lost," clothing designer Catherine Malandrino and "Stranger Than Fiction" writer Zach Helm.
Firth said he realizes that there may be some "celebrity aid work fatigue" on the part of the public.
But he is hopeful that people will still get involved.
"I'm not against the idea of celebrities using what they have to raise awareness, but you have to be very circumspect about how you employ it," he said. "You just get involved, and there's no way to go back from the things that you really care about."
source (http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/cl-et-cause1dec01,1,1785823.story?coll=la-headlines-entnews&track=crosspromo)
At a hilltop cocktail party Wednesday evening at one of Beverly Hills' most exclusive homes, actors Colin Firth, Minnie Driver, Kristin Davis, Mark Ruffalo and Kirsten Dunst mingled with about 250 guests — among them some of the entertainment industry's young elite — to raise awareness for the relief organization Oxfam.
"If you grew up in the U.K., Oxfam is ever present in your life," said the British actor Firth, who recently traveled to Africa with the group.
"But what was once a famine relief organization has actually become a diplomatic organization," he said. "They take on everything from arms trade to advocacy in dealing with corrupt governments to fair trade. It's a very broad organization."
The actors spent several hours at the Esquire house — a rambling estate owned by Esquire magazine on a Coldwater Canyon hilltop — chatting with guests, who included singer Liz Phair, "Blood Diamond" actor Djimon Hounsou, shoe designer Taryn Rose, Kiele Sanchez of "Lost," clothing designer Catherine Malandrino and "Stranger Than Fiction" writer Zach Helm.
Firth said he realizes that there may be some "celebrity aid work fatigue" on the part of the public.
But he is hopeful that people will still get involved.
"I'm not against the idea of celebrities using what they have to raise awareness, but you have to be very circumspect about how you employ it," he said. "You just get involved, and there's no way to go back from the things that you really care about."
source (http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/cl-et-cause1dec01,1,1785823.story?coll=la-headlines-entnews&track=crosspromo)