Affleck, Spielberg, Garner, J. Lo And More: DNC Soaked With Celebrities

DENVER — The Force is with Obama.

George Lucas was among the entertainers and Hollywood types who were spotted in the halls of Invesco Field on Thursday in the hours leading up to Barack Obama's historic acceptance speech. Forest Whitaker arrived with his wife Keisha and Star Jones, while will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas was spotted leaving the field level following Stevie Wonder's sound check.

Before singing the national anthem to a slowly filling stadium, Jennifer Hudson appeared lost in thought, wearing a casual grey dress and listening to iPod earphones as her handlers asked for directions to the podium. While waiting, she typed on a Sidekick.

Also spotted on the field in the hours leading up to the presentation: Daniel Dae Kim of "Lost," new mom Jessica Alba and her husband Cash Warren, Rosario Dawson, Wilmer Valderrama, and Fergie _ who waved to fans shouting her name.

"Fired up!" said an excited Spike Lee. "Bigger than the Super Bowl!"

The musical lineup for the evening included will.i.am performing with John Legend, Sheryl Crow (who Obama has said is among the artists on his iPod), Wonder and Michael McDonald.

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Earlier in the day, Steven Spielberg, who directed a short film on veterans that shown Wednesday at the convention, was spotted entering the Pepsi Center.

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Jennifer Lopez spoke at a reception honoring children's rights activist Marian Wright Edelman. Ben Affleck read excerpts from a Howard Zinn book and made an appearance at the city's food bank for America's Second Harvest.

Affleck was joined by his wife, Jennifer Garner, at the book reading at the Starz Green Room across the street from the Pepsi Center. Also participating: Rosario Dawson, Kerry Washington, Taye Diggs, Hill Harper and Josh Brolin.

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Other celebrity sightings around Denver:

_ The Black Eyed Peas performed a concert at the Fillmore Auditorium for the Creative Coalition. Fergie praised Hillary Rodham Clinton's Tuesday-night speech, saying Clinton "really spoke to me as a woman. And I think she spoke to a lot of people in that way."

_ Politicians including former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner attended a ONE Campaign party featuring a Kanye West performance. Also in attendance: Forest Whitaker, Kal Penn, Jamie Foxx and director Davis Guggenheim.

_ Muhammad Ali sat in the convention audience.

_ Fran Drescher, Ashley Judd and Joy Bryant joined Lopez at the reception honoring Edelman.

_ Hathaway and others gathered at a morning reception honoring Annette Bening for her work narrating the documentary "14 Women," about women in the U.S. Senate.

_ Big Boi of Outkast was at the airport on his way out of town after hosting a Radio One show where he interviewed John Legend, among others.

Comments

[groovius]

I was at the Creative Coalition benefit with the Black Eyed Peas last night. There were a ton of celebs there, mostly TV people. Matthew Modine, Richard Schiff, Tim Daly, Connie Britton, Jessica Alba, Giancarlo Esposito, Alan Cumming, Michael Ealy, Paul Mitchell and I'm sure many others. Most were mingling within the crowd in front of the stage. Everyone had a good time. will.i.am is quite a good spokesman for the Democrats.

[picard922]

Trolls can try as you might to diminish what's happening, but it ain't working. Melissa Etheridge. Sheryl Crow. Stevie Wonder. Who you got, huh? This convention reflects ONE GREAT PARTY!

[Ockham]

Let the knowledgeable ignore celebrities for the most part and the uninterested to be attracted to them. That's the entire purpose of a celebrity presence in politics, and they well know it. So pay attention before you point fingers.

[eladora]

the repubs hate the Hollywood types because they know they can call them out on the bs they put out there and have enough money to fight. They cant control them so they hate them.
Most all of them do charitable works and the Dems are the ones who care about the needy among us.

[sandiegoconservative]

That's a laugh. Most celebrities spend a few hours a year doing some charity to make their next picture a bigger success by showing how much they care. Repubs and conservatives for the most part hate no one. We just understand that celebrities are typically part of the "Do as I say, not as I do" crowd and for the most part, they are irrelevant.

[eladora]

that is the most ridiculous comment I have seen on here in a while. If they were irrelevant the repubs wouldnt try to use them as tools in anti ads. and you have no idea of the charitable work they do ---i am certain you would be surprised but from your vantage point , not impressed.

[Bitsko]

Is this the working class that we Dems are always talking about? Sounds more like a Scientology convention.

[Jabbadaslut]

No these are the egos the Huffpost has to stroke to get invited to the best parties...come to my parties...we have beer, weed, hip hop, metal, and pub food....we also have sick Rock Band competitions....late night consists of long winding discussions of a-hole rich people and what we would want our porn star names to be....my name is Rock Sharpie

[arnray]

Everybody is welcome to join our celebration of hope for a better future. Just put a little knowledge in your head (if you think the past 8 years have been good for the U.S. a little is probably all you can handle) and a little love in your heart (if it isn't two sizes too small).

[TeriMcCarthy]

Not to mention Chevy Chase, I saw him there last night.

[leduck]

since hollywood dems outnumber repubs. by maybe 10 to , i wonder who's going to the rnc?

chuck noris? thinks he's a real life action hero
tom selleck? shows up with his favorite firearm
ricky schroeder? also shows up with his favorite firearm
arnold schwarzenegger? should his wife attend both conventions?
jon voight? will attend with his foreign born grandkids
patricia heaton? will show up with a pro-life t-shirt showing image of partial birth abortion
Fred Grandy? how did this clown end up a republican?
charlton heston in spirit -- w/o the gun; he's gone now so we can pry it out of his hands

sir charles barkley switched parties

[BlueandGreen]

Well, that settles it, then... Democrats are waaaaay better looking than Republicans. By far.

[Bitsko]

Agree 100% but Tom Selleck? C'mon -- Magnum PI was a cool show!

[speakyourmind]

oh let's not forget the huge draw of Elizabeth Hasselbeck!

[way out left in san francisco]

Maybe an antique flintlock rifle can hung up high in honor of a star who couldn't bear to have it pried from his "cold, dead hands."

[jalapeno]

Gov Swartzenegger is working on a budget and cannot attend, most self respecting republicans are trying to distance themselves from the party. Juicy!!

[honeydiva]

yeah where's the video media page? you're out of touch huff.

[GeorgeP922]

Why does Huffington POst never show pictures?

Really I dont get it, the article about the "New Democrats" you would have a spread of pictures.

[hollyo]

Thanks for this post. Over and over I click on a story hoping to see photos of what the headline says is news... and get text. We want to SEE them.

[progressivelady]

It's nice to see Talented and Intelligent people, Supporting Obama, It will be intresting to see who show's up to see the Twin's next week, In the Twin citie's

[ScandalousCandice]

You know who is showing up in the Twin Cities? Heidi Montag.

Queue Patrick Bateman's laugh after he tells the Ed Gein joke.

[coldshot]

I never have understood why Hollywood celebs and other pantywaists are always such strong supporters of the democrat party.

[Iamfedup]

First off it's the Democratic party, not the Democrat party and taking the ic off of it does not diminish it's importance.
And secondly Hollywood flocks to the DEMOCRATIC PARTY because frankly we're just cooler.

[blancmange19]

Perhaps we should start calling you humps "Republics." Lincoln, TR, Ike and even Nixon (bless his black little heart) must be spinning in their graves seeing what's happened to the GOP.

[speakyourmind]

I have never understood how anyone could look at today's economy and still think we need more of the same "leadership."

[peachesmahoney]

By Talented and Intelligent people, I assume we're ignoring Jennifer Lopez on that list, right?

[hartkid]

You know who wasn't there? Estelle Getty. I heard that she had planned to be there and had even performed a zombification ritual before her death in hopes that she could be there in any event. I don't think it worked. Unless maybe Biden's mom.... nah... couldn't be...though you never see them in the same room at the same time. hmmmm.

[Iamfedup]

What an undignified remark.

[thecanadian]

Actually hartkid, that was a sick remark.