Campaign features celebrity fans celebrating their favorite Star WarsTM moments, an eBay charity auction offering one-of-a-kind items and an exclusive line of Star Wars t-shirts
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lucasfilm announced today that in celebration of the September launch of Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray, it is linking up with celebrities and eBay to ask fans to Use the Force for Good to support Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C). SU2C funds groundbreaking cancer research that will get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives.
"Lucasfilm joining with eBay and a wonderful group of actors is an amazing force for good being brought to bear in Stand Up To Cancer's fight against this disease, and we are profoundly grateful," said SU2C Co-Founder Sue Schwartz. "With one in two men and one in three women diagnosed in their lifetimes, cancer affects us all. SU2C's mission is to persuade each and every person to support the scientists working to end cancer, and this initiative gives legions of Star Wars fans fun and easy ways to do that."
The campaign will launch today with a video featuring celebrity Star Wars enthusiasts encouraging fans to Use the Force for Good and join Lucasfilm in donating to Stand Up To Cancer. SU2C Ambassadors Emma Stone, Seth Rogen, Aziz Ansari, Zach Galifianakis, Bill Hader, Ed Helms, Ken Jeong, Jaime King, Andy Samberg - along with Star Wars alum Samuel L. Jackson - will each Use the Force for Good as they recreate classic Star Wars scenes to raise awareness for cancer research. The all-star video tribute appears on the Star Wars YouTube channel youtube.com/starwars.
Also, eBay will use the Force of its 97 million active members to give fans an online destination for browsing unique and special Star Wars items: ebay.com/usetheforceforgood. The destination will allow fans to bid on rare and exclusive items and a once-in-a-lifetime experience; dinner with prominent San Francisco filmmakers George Lucas, Chris Columbus, Francis Ford Coppola, Philip Kaufman and John Lasseter. All charity auctions will begin on September 16th at 4:00 p.m. PDT, and continue until 4:00 p.m. PDT on September 23rd.
Star Wars and SU2C have also created a Stand Up To Cancer line of Star Wars t-shirts. The tees will feature iconic Star Wars artwork alongside SU2C's signature upward arrows, with slogans like "Blast Cancer" and "Use the Force for Good." The exclusive tees will be available now and can be purchased through the end of the year at store.standup2cancer.org/shop with proceeds benefitting SU2C.
"We are thrilled to be using the launch of Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray as a call to action for our fans to Use the Force for Good," said Kayleen Walters, Senior Director of Marketing at Lucasfilm. "We are happy to use the power of Star Wars to support this noble cause."
About Stand Up to Cancer
Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) -- a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), a 501(c) (3) charitable organization -- raises funds to accelerate the pace of groundbreaking translational research that can get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives. SU2C facilitates collaboration among the best and the brightest in the cancer research community. The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and a Scientific Advisory Committee led by Nobel Laureate Phillip A. Sharp, Ph.D., conduct rigorous, competitive review processes through which SU2C's grantees are selected. By galvanizing the entertainment industry, SU2C generates awareness and builds grassroots support for this new approach to ending cancer.
To view the recently televised Stand Up To Cancer fundraising special, please visit: www.su2c.org/2010show. For general information, please visit www.su2c.org.
About eBay
Founded in 1995 in San Jose, Calif., eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) is about connecting buyers and sellers. We do so through eBay, the world's largest online marketplace, which allows users to buy and sell on eBay platforms in nearly every country on earth; through PayPal, which enables individuals and businesses to securely, easily and quickly send and receive online payments; and through GSI Commerce, which facilitates ecommerce, multichannel retailing and digital marketing for global enterprises. We also reach millions through specialized marketplaces such as StubHub, the world's largest ticket marketplace, and eBay classifieds sites, which together have a presence in more than 1,000 cities around the world. For more information about the company and its global portfolio of online brands, visit www.ebayinc.com.
About Star Wars: The Complete Saga on Blu-ray
Relive the unforgettable moments and experience the spectacular adventure of STAR WARS The Complete Saga in a way only Blu-ray can deliver. This incredible collection unites all six Episodes together for the first time in stunning high definition with the purest digital sound in the galaxy. With over 40 hours of thrilling special features, including all-new content created exclusively for this release, you can journey deeper into the Star Wars universe and discover more than ever before. Feel the Force of STAR WARS The Complete Saga on Blu-ray this September!
Lucasfilm, STAR WARSTM and related properties are trademarks and/or copyrights, in the United States and other countries, of Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. TM & © Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved. All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners.
Contacts
Stand Up To Cancer
Maurine Slutzky, 213-240-3923
Mslutzky@eifoundation.org
or
Lucasfilm Ltd.
Barbara Gamlen, 415-746-8528
bgamlen@lucasarts.com