By Stone Martindale Sep 27, 2007, 15:47 GMT
Hillary Clnton is loved in Hollywood, and has earned the support of Rob Reiner, one of the entertainment community's biggest activists.
Rob Reiner - with pal Jamie Lee Curtis, 12th Annual Dream Halloween Fundraising Event Benefiting The Children Affected by AIDS Foundation - Barker Hanger - Santa Monica, CA © Glenn Harris / Photorazzi
The Los Angeles Times reports that the announcement will be made Thursday. Reiner is hosting a fundraiser for Clinton at his Brentwood home. The event is planned for Oct. 21st, on the candidate's 60th birthday.
Hillary's biggest Democratic competition is Barack Obama, who has the endorsement of Oprah Winfrey. She helped raise more than $3 million for him at a recent fund-raiser, but it's not yet clear how or whether that will translate into votes.
Variety reports that because of Reiner's ongoing political involvement, his endorsement may have resonance within the industry, particularly among those who are undecided.
In addition to fighting for improved childhood health care and education, Reiner has stumped in the past for John Kerry, Howard Dean and Al Gore. He tells Variety that he has no plans as yet to go out on the trail for Clinton, but "I am going to do whatever the campaign asks me to do."
The Clinton fund-raiser that he and his wife, Michele, will host on Oct. 21 will double as a 60th birthday celebration for the New York senator.
The director admitted Variety he had, at one point, held out hope that Al Gore would get into the race.
"A long, long time ago, I thought he might get in, but he made it very clear he wasn't going to be a candidate, so I took him at his word and then went through the process of saying, 'Who is the most qualified?' The answer was Hillary."
His endorsement comes as the pace of fund-raising begins to slow, with many donors already having made their maximum contributions and candidates spending more time actually courting votes. The Clinton and Obama camps each have signaled that contributions for the third quarter, which ends on Sunday, will be lower than in the previous period.
Variety reports that candidate John Edwards will attend a fund-raiser on Oct. 19 at the home of Brett Ratner, his second this year at the director's home.
Obama will attend a series of fund-raisers on Oct. 19-20, including separate events hosted by Irena Medavoy, Ron Meyer and Jon Vein.
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