Alzado Tribute Unraveled at Last Minute : Sports: Sponsors never materialized for cancer-stricken ex-Raider’s fund-raiser.

For nine months, Lyle Alzado has been suffering from terminal brain cancer that has made him a hostage of his once-powerful body. Through the pain, Alzado looked forward to one special evening organized for him by his longtime manager and best friend--looked forward to it so fervently that some friends felt he was hanging on just to be there.

It was to be a wonderful night in the Beverly Hilton ballroom, where family and friends and celebrities such as Charlie Sheen and George Foreman would pay tribute to the former Raider defensive end known as a gentle giant.

They would dine on salads of edible blossoms, listen to Jerry Lee Lewis sing “Over the Rainbow,” and applaud heart-wrenching news clips of Alzado in his prime, cursing and brutalizing opponents on the field, and hugging kids off the field with a giant paw. Yes, that Saturday night, Jan. 11, was to be the night of Alzado’s 42-year life.

Only it never happened.

In Los Angeles, where celebrity benefits are routine, pockets are deep and Hollywood endorsements are dime a dozen, the unthinkable had happened. Corporate sponsorships never materialized; the organizer, Greg Campbell, had a heart attack, and the whole “star-studded” event never came off.

When the call came, Alzado was already bundled up in his new Christmas scarf and coat ready to walk out the door to arrive at the hotel early to avoid the paparazzi . His wife, Kathy, tried to break it to him gently. But Alzado took it hard. All afternoon, he just sat there. Silent.

Alzado was not the only one shaken by the cancellation. Shock waves went out through the whole societal web out of which such events are woven: fund-raisers, florists, caterers, public relations firms, beauty shops, agents, security guards, camera crews, and the media.

“This is nothing I’ve ever encountered before,” said Kevin Deverich, general manager of the Beverly Hilton Hotel. “I can’t remember anything canceled on this short a notice that wasn’t related to some significant national disaster.”

As a public relations move, the event was a disaster. Rock ‘n’ roll star Lewis broke his trademark rule--”You don’t pay, Jerry Lee don’t play”--and flew out from Memphis on a chartered plane billed to his manager’s credit card.

Journalist Maria Shriver, who had broken the story of the cancer Alzado blamed on bodybuilding steroids, did not get word of the cancellation and showed up in the Hilton dressed for the gala. There, she and others found a brief notice saying the event had been canceled. Except to say that the cancellation was not related to Alzado’s health, the note gave no reason.

“How could anyone let this happen?” a volunteer said she asked.

Though Alzado had nothing to do with the debacle, he called friends and apologized. For the next four days, he did not even answer his phone.

It had been a tough week, even for a tough man. On Tuesday, a day after his wife had ordered matching Giorgio Armani tuxedos for the tribute, doctors told Alzado his cancer is no longer in remission.

“I was heartbroken,” Alzado said in his Beverlywood home Thursday. “First I found out that my cancer . . . had come back, and then the benefit was canceled, and then my best friend of 15 years had a heart attack.”

Campbell, sitting in a Beverly Hills pizza parlor late last week and looking haggard and far older than his 43 years, said he still hopes to repay those who lost money and put the event on.

“I take full responsibility,” he said, near tears. “But I must look like a damn fool, don’t I?”

Campbell had been Alzado’s business manager for 15 years when Alzado’s cancer was diagnosed last April. He had followed Alzado through three football teams. Then came the movie contracts, the divorces, the mood swings caused by steroids. The two men became best friends.

In May, Campbell decided to organize a tribute for his friend. Elise Kim, chief executive officer of the Gardena-based charity Athletes and Entertainers for Kids, wanted to set up a steroid education program in Alzado’s name. In September, they decided to work together on a combination tribute-fund-raiser that guaranteed the charity $100,000.

Campbell said he relied heavily on their corporate fund-raising expertise and even hired one of their advisers because he had never organized such an event. Kim said fund raising was Campbell’s responsibility.

Campbell said Alzado would also be paid an appearance fee that would help him with his bills.

“Everything was going to be the best for Lyle,” he said.

Campbell reserved the International Ballroom at the Hilton, the place where socialite Barbara Davis threw her “Carousel Ball” and Ronald Reagan blew out his 80th birthday candles. He ordered flowers from Michael’s of Beverly Hills--orchids.

He selected a meal of five courses with the finest wines. Even the press was to be served lobster hors d’oeuvres. He hired the best public relations firm and the most experienced producer.

Dionne Warwick was to sing the national anthem. George Foreman was to narrate a film clip of an exhibition bout Alzado once fought with Muhammad Ali. Lewis’ grand finale of “Great Balls of Fire,” he felt, would “bring down the house.”

“It was one of the greatest all-star lineups to salute anybody of this type that I’ve ever been involved in,” producer Donald Colhour said.

The invitations were lavish, full-color fold-outs printed with silver foil.

It was with that silver foil, he said, that things started going wrong. The printer could not get it to stick, Campbell said, and the invitations were mailed out less than a month before the event.

By then, the holidays had arrived. Corporate executives--those faceless donors who Campbell was convinced would open their wallets and underwrite most of the costs--seemed to be out of town. His only corporate donations were $75,000 from the Raiders and $25,000 from Occidental Petroleum.

Campbell clearly did not know that most corporations are used to being approached six to 12 months in advance.

Out $40,000 of his own money by Jan. 1, he decided to cancel. But, over the next 10 days, a close associate came up with last-minute sponsors who seemed to keep his dream alive. Still, deadlines came and went. By Jan. 10, the day before the tribute, he was two days late on the $100,000 he owed the hotel.

“I was on orders from the hotel manager not to cancel--because of Lyle Alzado,” said catering manager Linda Kent.

Meanwhile, volunteers and production crews had moved into the hotel. Press credentials had been issued. Alzado’s family and friends had arrived.

“Get some sleep,” Kathy Alzado said she told Campbell. “You look terrible.”

As Friday dawned, Campbell started driving around town calling on everyone he could think of, asking for the $228,000 he needed for the event to go on.

Back at the hotel, technicians who were going to put on the show had set a deadline of 8 p.m. on Jan. 10 to get their money. Around 7:30 that day, the hotel called Campbell on his car phone to ask if the latest would-be sponsor had written the check.

“They’re going to sleep on it,” Campbell answered.

The technicians walked.

Shortly after that call, Campbell said he felt “an earthquake” in his chest. “Help,” he called out to his driver. “I think I’m having a heart attack.”

An hour later, he was in in the hospital with what his doctor later said was angina pectoris, a mild heart attack.

On Jan. 11, a meeting was called for “damage control.” The announcement was made; the tribute was off.

“You’re joking--what am I supposed to tell people?” Anne Bendheim of Lee Solters’ public relations firm asked when she heard the news. But Campbell’s assistants could give no reason, so she wrote up a press release without one.

Immediately, organizers started trying to contact 600 guests and 100 journalists.

An hour later, paparazzis’ beepers started going off at an MTV “rock ‘n’ jock” event at USC. “We were furious,” said celebrity photographer Vinny Zuffante. “We had to choose between Alzado and the NAACP Image Awards. And now it was too late to get credentialed for NAACP.”

“Greg tried so hard,” Alzado said. “He wanted to surprise me. If he’d only told me we weren’t getting the money, we could have downscaled and it would have been all right with me.”

Campbell said: “The only way I can fix this is to make it happen. You should have seen the show. . . . “