---

News Release

November 2005

"Stardom Then & Now"
An Evening to Benefit The Fund for Women & Girls

On Sunday, November 6, The Fund for Women & Girls is sponsoring a benefit evening, "Stardom Then & Now," an insider's look at the star system in Hollywood and how it has evolved through the years. The 'insider' is Jeanine Basinger, the Curator of Wesleyan University Cinema Archives and Professor of Film Studies and Chair of the Film Department. The event will be held at Wesleyan University's new Film Studies Center on Sunday, November 6th at 5 pm, followed by a reception in the grand atrium, offering wine, light fare and dessert.

Professor Basinger will explore the power and limitations female stars dealt with in the early Hollywood years and the influences that changed the nature of stardom into what it is today. Stardom in the thirties, forties and fifties projected glamour, fashion and sex to the public; yet at the same time, the system often dictated the stars' personal as well as professional lives. Ms .Basinger will talk about the long road to independence in the 21st century wherein successful female stars frequently run their own production companies, select their own directors and often have script approval.

Ms. Basinger, author of ten books on Hollywood and films, is nationally known, having served as a 20 year trustee of the American Film Institute and acted as a consultant on numerous documentaries and projects, including director Martin Scorsese's Film Foundation Project. As an expert on various aspects of American film, Professor Basinger grants an average of 85 interviews per year to various television, magazine and newspaper outlets. Her command of film history has led many noteworthy actors and directors to donate their papers to the Wesleyan Archives, including Clint Eastwood, Jonathan Demme, Ingrid Bergman, Frank Capra, Elia Kazan and Federico Fellini.

All proceeds will benefit the Fund for Women & Girls, (an endowed fund of the Middlesex County Community Foundation) created by women for women with the goal of empowering Middlesex County women and girls to be self-reliant and reach their potential. Since its inception in 2001, more than $16,000 in grants has been awarded to organizations that have developed programs that meet the Fund's objectives. In addition, the Fund for Women & Girls is building an endowment so that future generations will benefit from these grants.

Admission is $50 per person. For information or reservations, call the Middlesex County Community Foundation at 860.347.0025 or email at info@MiddlesexCountyCF.org

back