“ABBOTT & COSTELLO” exhibit opening at the Hollywood Museum.

 “ABBOTT & COSTELLO” exhibit celebration at the Hollywood Museum.

(WestHollywoodToday.blogspot.com Hollywood, CA July 21 2023) By Karen Ostlund

                                                                         

Kat and Karen Kramer, Marki Costelli, Donelle Dadigan,Micheal Costello, (GettyImages)

                                                                                

Abbott and Costello comedy duo.

The Hollywood Museum was thrilled to announce the opening celebration of its newest exhibit, “ABBOTT& COSTELLO”, on July 21, 2023.   
Donelle Dadigan, founder & president of the Hollywood Museum announced that the museum would be paying tribute to and celebrating one of the greatest comedy duos in cinematic history, Budd Abbott and Lou Costello “ABBOTT & COSTELLO”.
                                                                                   

Abbott and Costello costumes.

Abbott and Costello started making movies together in 1940 in the comedy feature film “One Night in The Tropics”, in total they made 38 movies together, and hosted a television variety series and appeared on radio in their career as one of the most iconic comedy duos in film history. They were the highest paid entertainers in the world during the Second World War.  In 1942 they were voted the top box office stars in the U.S.
 
 During the War Bond efforts ABBOTT & COSTELLO were responsible for bringing in an amazing $85 million dollars in sales of War Bonds for the United States.
                                                                             

Abbott and Costello photographs from their lives.

 The exhibit features original costumes, scripts, merchandise from Abbott & Costello films, photos from the collection of Chris Costello, daughter of Lou Costello.These include scripts, Budd & Lou’s costumes from Abbott & Costello in Lost in Alaska, Naughty Nineties, The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap, Abbott & Costello go to Mars, many original photographs, 1948 radio broadcast scripts, continuity scripts from the films It Ain’t Hay and Little Giant and original collectibles.
 
"This is an exhibit that movie enthusiasts will certainly enjoy, and will evoke fond memories of when we first saw “ABBOTT & COSTELLO” on film, and television and heard them on radio. 

 "ABBOTT & COSTELLO are a part of the fabric of film culture from 1940 thru today, entertaining generations of kids and adults of all ages more than 83 years,” said Donelle Dadigan.

                                                                                 

Abbott an Costello vinyl records.

Abbott and Costello were an American comedy duo composed of comedians Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, whose work in radio, film, and television made them the most popular comedy team of the 1940s and 1950s, and the highest-paid entertainers in the world during the Second World War.        Their patter routine "Who's on First?" is considered one of the greatest comedy routines of all time, a version of which appears in their 1945 film "The Naughty Nineties". TheHollywoodMuseum.com

Recap of Concern Foundation's 48th Annual Block Party 2023 Fundraiser.

 Recap of Concern Foundation's 48th Annual Block Party 2023 Fundraiser.

(WestHollywoodToday.blogspot.com Hollywood, CA July 12 2023) Photos by Karen Ostlund

#concernfoundation #teamconcern #concernblockparty

The theme for Concern Foundation's 48th annual block party fundraiser 2023 was THE LAND BEFORE TIME: THE EXTINCTION OF CANCER, which took place at Paramount Studios Backlot,  July 8 2023 in Hollywood, CA.
                                                                            

The Concern Foundation 2023 honored the Kallick Family with the Lifetime of Giving Award.

                                                                                    

A special check of $50.000.was presented by The Concern Foundation to Cedars Sinai Cancer, U-Grow Program  for their groundbreaking work focused on conquering cancer.

                                                                                 

Concern Foundation Block party 2023.

"Concern Foundation is proud to honor these exceptional people for their passion, commitment to philanthropy and involvement in the community,” said Derek Alpert, president of Concern Foundation. “They truly exemplify what Concern Foundation represents to the cancer community, locally and around the world. We recognize the most inspiring people in our community at our Block Party and we provide funding to only the best cancer research scientists that are making a difference in conquering cancer”.
                                                                                

The Paramount studios back-lot streets offered plenty of musical and interactive entertainment, all on multiple stages. The Tom Nolan Band (photo above) took the main stage, as well as D’ City Sound & Events on the Yabba Dabba DJ Stage. These performances were presented by the Hirsch Family Foundation and the Vibrato “Grotto” Grill Jazz stage.
In addition, guests enjoyed photo studios, lounges, casino style gaming, DJ dancing, and beauty services provided by the Beauty Bus Foundation.

                                                                                

H & H Brazilian Steakhouse.

One of the highlights of the evening was the online silent and live auctions sponsored by ZACUTO GROUP. The auction featured items and packages including one-of-a-kind opportunities, as concert and event tickets, restaurants, stay-cations and golf packages.
                                                                                 

NIKU NASHI vegan sushi.

                                                                  
Concern Foundation 2023 fundraiser  honored to celebrate The Best of LA 2023® on Los Angeles magazine’s street for the 17th year. Los Angeles magazine once again made a financial contribution to Concern to help their mission.
                                                                                

The Highlight Room plant-based chicken tostada.

                                                                                   

Emporium Thai, veggies and tofu.

Food vendors included: Vibrato Grill Jazz, The Grill on the Alley, Factor’s Famous Deli, A.O.C., Fogo de Chao, SITK- Someone’s In The Kitchen, Dulan’s Soul Food, Nobu Malibu, STK, Porta Via, Maria’s Italian Kitchen, H & H, Brazilian Steakhouse, Milagro Tequila, EMPRESS 1908 Gin, Deutsch Family, The Highlight Room, Emporium Thai, NIKU NASHI vegan sushi and Pink’s Famous Hot Dogs, just to name a few. Newcomers, who joined Concern for the first time were: Calajo Catering, Brique LA, The Breakfast Club, The Hideaway, Leona’s Sushi House, The Village and Firefly.
                                                                              

EMPRESS 1908 Gin.

Concern Foundation’s mission is to conquer cancer by providing essential funds to support the early critical stages of discovery. Since its inception in 1968, Concern has raised funds and awarded  over 750 cancer scientists around the world.                      

STK burgers.

Concern has pioneered the advancement of cancer immunology—the study of the relationship between the immune system and  cancer—a field that is now widely acknowledged to hold the most potential for discovering treatments and prevention for cancer.
With 90-95% of net proceeds going directly to research, Concern Foundation has made significant strides toward bridging a major gap in research funding by focusing its grants on young, innovative researchers with breakthrough ideas.
 http://concernfoundation.org

Jose`Iturbi Foundation celebrated a new 16 CD Set of 20th Century Classics at the Hollywood Bowl.

 (WestHollywoodToday.blogspot.com, July 8 2023) Photos by Karen Ostlund

#JoseIturbiFoundation #HollywoodBowl #LAPhilharmonic #TheHollywoodMuseum

The José Iturbi Foundation (JIF)  sponsored the "Jose Iturbi Night” with the LA Philharmonic Orchestra at the Hollywood Bowl, July 6th 2023. Gustavo Dudamel conducted a special concert featuring FALLA “Nights in the Gardens of Spain” which was performed by Jose Iturbi at the Hollywood Bowl in the 1960’s.
                                                                                 

Donelle Dadigan, president and founder of Jose`Iturbi Foundation (JIF) said “It is a great honor for the Jose`Iturbi Foundation to sponsor this 20th Century International Classics concert at the Hollywood Bowl”.
Among the classic pieces that was performed were Ravel’s “Mother Goose Suite” and “FALLA “Nights in the Gardens of Spain” that was performed by Jose` Iturbi, to a sold-out crowd at the Hollywood Bowl more than 63 years ago.

“The Jose` Iturbi Foundation’s mission is to popularize classical music to all generations, especially young people - one note at a time.   The Foundation enjoys presenting blockbuster concerts with international superstars of classical music, and forums for young artists in the making to audiences around the world including children at-risk and under-served communities,” said Donelle Dadigan.
                                                                               

Among supporters of The José Iturbi Foundation who attended as special guests  included: Ruta Lee (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers/Funny Face), Ann Jillian (Its A Living/Recording Artist), Charles Fox (Grammy and multi Emmy winning Composer), George Chakiris (Academy Award winner/West Side Story), Anson Williams (Happy Days), Rex Smith (TV and Broadway star/Recording Artist), Lee Purcell (2x Emmy nominated Actress), Dee Dee Sorvino (The Ride, Emmy winner), Roslyn Kind (Recording Artist), Michael Feinstein (Grammy Nominated Ambassador of the Songbook of the 20TH Century), Alison Arngrim (Little House on the Prairie), Melissa Manchester (Award winning Songwriter & Singer),Leonard Maltin (Film Historian),Kevin Spirtas (Days of our Lives,After Forever), Ilene Graff (Grammy Nominee, Mr. Belvedere), Ben Lanzarone (Award winning Composer, Producer),Alan Rich (Award Winning Composer), Fiona Ma (California State Treasurer), Maria Elena Durazo (California State Senator) and Eva Bitar.

                                                                                       

Eva Bitar and Rita Lee.

This year, 2023, the Jose` Iturbi Foundation is celebrating a brand-new book and 16 CD Set: "From Hollywood To The World The Rediscovered Recordings by Pianist & Conductor Jose`Iturbi". The CD Set was produced by Donelle Dadigan and Michael Feinstein.
This special project is being submitted for Grammy Nominations in the following Categories: Best Historical Album, Best Album Notes, Recording Package, Box/Special/Limited Edition Package.

Donelle Dadigan, said about of the project “José Iturbi was one of the greatest concert pianists and conductors of the 20th century.
The proof is contained in this special collection of the complete RCA Victor recordings made by José himself and by his sister, the concert pianist Amparo Iturbi. It is an important contribution toward the preservation and restoration of their original masters, bringing them to listeners worldwide, both now and for generations to come. The set captures José Iturbi’s historic and compelling performances in state-of-the-art remastering, and includes a one-of-a-kind picture book packed with information, nostalgic photographs and helpful captions highlighting José and Amparo Iturbi’s lives and careers, including their sold-out concerts, the MGM musicals. – and in some cases never-before-heard recordings”

                                                                                

Maestro Gustavo Dudamel conducted the LA Philharmonic Orchestra in MUSSORGSKY (Arr.Rimsky-Korsakov) “Night on Bald Mountain”, FALLA “Nights in the Gardens of Spain”, RAVEL “Mother Goose Suite”, DUKAS “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.”

LA magazine and Concern Foundation present 48th Annual Block Party Fundraiser “Land Before Time – The Extinction of Cancer”

 (WestHollywoodToday.blogspot.com CA June 18 2023 By Karen Ostlund)

Los Angeles magazine and Concern Foundation present 48th Annual Block Party Fundraiser “Land Before Time – The Extinction of Cancer”, July 8 at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, CA. The evening will honor The Kallick Family with the Lifetime of Giving Award and a special salute to Cedars Sinai Cancer.                                            

Cancer is still the enemy and the challenges of continuing to raise funds to support cancer research are more pressing than ever.

Concern Foundation for Cancer Research is currently supporting over 35 cancer researchers who are investigating new approaches in all types of cancer.  This independent volunteer driven non-profit organization has raised and granted over $72 million to cancer research projects across our community, country and worldwide since inception in 1968.  
                                                                                

Restaurants featured, Concern Foundation Block Party July 8

The July 8th event will feature 70 of LA city’s best restaurants and caterers, great live entertainment, interactive activities, and a silent and live auction. Last year's event attracted close to 4,000 guests.  

As a result of ticket sales, sponsorships, general donations, and in-kind donations from national and local businesses, last year's able to raise over $2 million to support cancer research scientists around the world.

Concern continues to  give almost $.95 of every dollar raised directly to cancer researchers around the world. 2023 media partner for the event will be Los Angeles Magazine.
                                                                             

Tom Nolan Band at Concern Foundation's block party.

Activities:
The Best of LA® 2023 on Los Angeles magazine’s street will feature food & wine tastings, creative cocktails, luxury lounges and unique experiences.
Musical entertainment by the Tom Nolan Band on the Main Stage, D’ City Sound & Events on the Yabba Dabba DJ Stage presented by the Hirsch Family Foundation, and the Vibrato ‘Grotto’ Grill Jazz Stage featuring Leah Zeger and friends.

Digital photo studios, lounges, casino style gaming, prehistoric artifacts from the Natural History Museum and a Beauty Bus spa.

An auction is sponsored by ZACUTO GROUP with one-of-a-kind opportunities, restaurants, staycations, golf packages, event tickets, and more. Tickets and more information: concernfoundation.org

The Hollywood Museum Celebrated "National Pet Day" with photo-exhibit and booksigning.

 

(WestHollywoodToday blogspot, CA April 11 2023) Photos by Karen Ostlund

                                                                              

Cats, dogs, birds, and even tigers and all our furry friends are celebrating National Pet Day today on April 11 2023.
The Hollywood Museum hosted National Pet Day by hosting a tribute exhibit to Acting Animals. 

Many of these favorites animals are known by one name, including Lassie, Flipper, Cheeta, Trigger, Bengie, Pyewacket, Tramp, Rin Tin Tin, Spuds MacKenzie, Morris the cat and Gentle Ben.
The exhibit also features personalities and their personal pets in the book, “In Good Company” (Briton Publishers) by author/photographer, Johanna Siegman, who said "Each person provides me with personal details of their relationship with their pet in order for me to envision a concept, particular to them”.
The "In Good Company" coffee table book of fine art portraits, features notable people from a wide range of fields (arts, science, literature, performance, music), with their pets.
A portion of profits will go to support Apex Protection Project, a Los Angeles-based 501(c)3 non-profit organization, created to save the wolf species through education, rescue and advocacy. Unlike traditional pet portraits, these unique images depict the relationship between people and their beloved pets.                                                                             

                                                                                     

(right) Connor Dean.

Among attending were: Donelle Dadigan (Founder/President the Hollywood Museum), Ed Begley Jr. (Young Sheldon/St Elsewhere), Vernon Wells(Road Warrior/Commando), Stanley Livingston (My Three Sons/Dont Eat The Daisies), Barry Livingston (My Three Sons/Notorious Nick) and Johanna Siegmann (Photographer/Author of “In Good Company), Kathy Garver (Family Affair), Erin Murphy (Bewitched), Alison Arngrim (Little House on the Prairie), Kate Linder (Y&R), Darcy Donovan (Modern Family), Elaine Ballace (The Rich and the Ruthless), Tyrone DuBose (Unsung), Geoffrey Mark (Best Selling author), Diana Lansleen (Y&R / Days of Our Lives), Jax Malcolm (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Meredith Thomas (Keeping Up With the Joneses),Darby Hinton (Daniel Boone) Natasha Blasick (Paul T.  Goldman), Mandy Fason ( Love Simon), Kathy Kolla ( Plastic Dreams), Lauren Samuels( West End Star, Brit in LA) and Vanessa Angel (Super Genius Babies).

                                                                                      www.TheHollywoodMuseum.com

RESTORE Worldwide Celebrated 15 years of Free Reconstructive Surgeries at The Beverly Hilton.

RESTORE Worldwide Inc. Celebrated 15 years of Free Reconstructive Surgeries at The Beverly Hilton, March 25, 2023. RESTORE stands for "Restoring Emotional Stability Through Outstanding Reconstructive Efforts" that provides free reconstructive surgeries to children and adults with disfiguring deformities from birth.

The event was telecast and live-stream by KNEKT TV and can be viewed at
https://knekt.tv/knekttv/series/knekttvarchive/73538-restore-worldwide-awards-

(WestHollywoodToday.blogspot, Beverly Hills, CA, April 1 2023)
By Karen Ostlund                                                   
                                                                               

Dr. Michael K. Obeng greeting guests on the red carpet.

Hollywood elite and dignitaries from around the world came out to celebrate a good cause; the 15th Anniversary of  RESTORE Fundraiser Gala, March 25th at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills.

The event was presented by Avi Sivan Abraham Foundation (ASAF), a philanthropic organization based in Cameroon, and hosted by award-winning Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon and Humanitarian Dr. Michael K. Obeng. ASAF is the charity and social-work organization based in Cameroon, that specializes in supporting children with special needs and orphanages. Funds raised at the gala will help the RESTORE foundation to continue its great works by providing free reconstructive surgery locally and around the world.
                                                                                 

This year’s presenter was comedian, actor, and director, Chris Spencer and actress, supermodel, and entrepreneur, Eva Marcille. RESTORE volunteers and patrons who made a significant contribution over the years, were also honored. 

The musical performances included Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter, Meaku, Ukrainian native opera singer, Valerie Levinsky, Ghanaian Award-winning Highlife Artist, Bisa Kdei and Trace Austin.
                                                                                   

ACCA Art Gallery Directors.

ACCA Art Gallery from Beverly Hills partnered with RESTORE to auction off art pieces from; Billy Morrison, Trew Love, Gil Tepper, Chris Brown, and Brayden Bugazzi tand memorabilia from the late Kobe Bryant and Muhammed Ali, LeBron James, Adele, and Willie Gault.

ACCA has also published a special edition of, The Journal, to showcase RESTORE’s journey over the last 15 years. included in this link, https://indd.adobe.com/view/89d830bd-7b0e-4132-afbf-64f3ae5ad48a

                                                                             

Chairman Meng Ngy Khov and Dr. Michael K. Obeng.

About RESTORE Worldwide, Inc.:
RESTORE is an acronym that stands for Restoring Emotional Stability Through Outstanding
Reconstructive Efforts. It is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit medical service organization in the USA that provides free reconstructive surgeries and related medical services to children and adults with disfiguring deformities from birth, accidents, and diseases involving not only the head and neck region, but also the trunk, breasts, extremities and genitalia.
 It was founded in 2008 by Ghanaian American Harvard-trained plastic surgeon, humanitarian, and global health strategist, Dr. Michael K. Obeng. He is the Director of MiKO Plastic Surgery and MiKO Surgery Center in Beverly Hills, California.
As part of its mission, RESTORE also educates and trains local medical professionals on the
latest techniques and safety measures in plastic and reconstructive surgery, effecting change
long after the RESTORE team leaves these communities.
 In October 2022, the team performed an unprecedented 173 operations (surgeries) at the Ho Teaching Hospital in Ghana in five working days.  
 The last 15 years RESTORE has been to over 9 different countries on 3 continents and has performed over 1,600 FREE reconstructive surgeries. A monetary value in excess of 80 million USD.
In 2023 RESTORE will travel to visit Cameroon in May, Gabon in June, Ghana in October, and Senegal in December and plans to perform over 400 surgeries.   www.RESTOREWorldwide.org
                                                #RESTOREWORLDWIDE

THE LAUNCH OF STARDAWGS NFT LINE AT THE HOLLYWOOD MUSEUM.

ACTRESS, CRYPTO QUEEN, NFT & WEB3 EXPERT DARCY DONAVAN HOSTED THE LAUNCH OF HER STARDAWGS NFT LINE, MARCH 23, 2023, AT THE HOLLYWOOD MUSEUM.
 
Story and photos by Karen Ostlund

                                                                             

 (WestHollywoodToday.blogspot), CA- TV Actress, Crypto Queen,  NFT & WEB3 Expert, Darcy Donavan, founder of STARDAWGS hosted her first STARDAWGS launch party at The Hollywood Museum, March 23 2023.

Stars from television, film and music as well as Crypto, NFT, and WEB3’s biggest names and players attended the debut event to celebrate the launch of Donavan’s STARDAWGS NFT Line,  that is tied to Merlin Crypto and Unstoppable Domains.
                                                                               

STARDAWGS NFT Line Community on the dance floor.

The event talked about the benefits in Web3, once you buy a Web3 domain, it’s yours forever, no renewal fees.Web3 is seen as the future of the internet. The vision for this new, block-chain-based web includes cryptocurrencies, NFTs, DAOs and decentralized finance.
It offers a read/write/own version of the web, in which users have more control over the web communities they belong to. 

 An NFT is a digital asset that represents real-world objects like art, music, in-game items and videos which are bought and sold online, with cryptocurrency.They are generally encoded with the same underlying software as many cryptos.

Cryptocurrency is the digital, encrypted, type of exchange. Unlike the U.S. Dollar there is no central authority that manages and maintains the value of a cryptocurrency. Instead, these tasks are broadly distributed among the cryptocurrency’s users via the internet.
                          

The Mission of StarDawgs is to create a new method of film production, where the community takes center stage to support the films and talents and receive benefits of the projects they create together.
DarcyDonavan.com Stardawgs.com
MerlinCrypto.com UnstoppableDomains.com
TheHollywoodMuseum.com