Celebrities Join 4th Annual BID 2 BEAT AIDS Charity Auction Honoring World AIDS Day

New York, NY (RushPRnews)12/02/08-- Bidding begins at noon EST Monday, December 1st (World AIDS Day) on eBay for BID 2 BEAT AIDS, an annual auction of rare and autographed items and meet-and-greets from stars in music, film, Broadway, sports, and television. Concert-goers can snag VIP seats and backstage meet-and-greets with the Jonas Brothers, Tony Bennett, Jewel, Bernadette Peters, Aimee Mann, Duncan Sheik, Harry Connick Jr, Estelle, Hairspray's Harvey Fierstein, Joan Rivers or Michael Feinstein; sports fans can bid on meet-and-greets with Olympic champion Michael Phelps or skateboarder Tony Hawk. There are even a tour of the Howard Stern Radio Show studio and a meet-and-greet with Paul Shaffer at The Late Show with David Letterman on the auction block.

Proceeds benefit LIFEbeat, the Music Industry Fights AIDS to support its ongoing AIDS/HIV programs nationwide. Sponsors of this 10-day eBay auction include MTV and Borders.

LIFEbeat has amassed nearly 900 items for BID 2 BEAT AIDS. Items include: CDs autographed by Mariah Carey, Rihanna, Fall Out Boy, Carly Simon, Jennifer Hudson, Bon Jovi, Lindsay Lohan, Tom Hanks, and Amy Winehouse; signed books by Madonna, Lance Bass, Tori Spelling, Kevin Bacon, and Oscar De La Hoya; posters signed by Jake Gyllenhaal, Owen Wilson, Elijah Wood, Kirsten Dunst, Matthew Fox, George Lucas and Matthew McConaughey; DVDs signed by Sarah Silverman, Will Ferrell, and Steven Spielberg; photos signed by Rufus Wainwright, Chris Noth, Linda Evans, The Osbournes, Joan Collins; plus toys, clothes, instruments, programs, sports equipment and other autographed memorabilia.

The centerpiece of the auction is a one-of-a-kind celebrity autographed "Lend-A-Hand to LIFEbeat" card series. Stars traced their hands on special paper, adding an artistic touch and signature. Cynthia Nixon, Gina Gershon, James Earl Jones, Natalie Cole, Bob Saget, Jack Klugman, Drew Lachey, Sean Hayes, Taylor Hicks, David Hyde-Pierce, Loretta Swit, Jamie Farr, Deborah Gibson, Jerry Mathers, George Wendt, Pete Best, Paige Davis, Faith Evans, Frankie Valli, John Lithgow, Maroon 5, John O'Hurley, Alan Cumming, Robin Thicke, Nathan Lane, John Lequizamo and over 100 others have participated in this unique project.

LIFEbeat - The Music Industry Fights AIDS, is a national non-profit organization dedicated to reaching America's youth with the message of HIV/AIDS prevention. LIFEbeat mobilizes the talents and resources of the music industry to raise awareness and to provide support to the AIDS community. In 2007, LIFEbeat observed fifteen years in the fight against AIDS. For more information visit: www.lifebeat.org

Every item in BID 2 BEAT AIDS comes with a certificate of authenticity, and was obtained directly from the performers, their agents, or other professionals in the industry. Bidders can be assured that they're getting the real deal! For more information on BID 2 BEAT AIDS, including a complete list of participating artists and images of many of the items, visit www.Bid2BeatAIDS.com.

For more information about this auction, visit http://stores.ebay.com/Bid2BeatAIDS.

Photos available by request