Outbidding AIDS : 250 Attend Auction That Raises $45,000 for 2 Ventura-Based Charities

Paul Mason of Newbury Park eyed the long tables of Hollywood artifacts at Spanish Hills Golf and Country Club on Sunday, trying to decide which might be worth a bid.

“I’m a big Helen Hunt fan, and they’ve got an autographed photo over there,” he said. “They’ve got a ‘Murphy Brown’ script--that looked interesting.”

Around him, those attending the auction to benefit two local AIDS charities sipped cocktails and awaited the arrival of actors Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen, the auction’s guests of honor. But Mason wasn’t impressed. He had come to help the charities, he said, not to gaze at celebrities.

“I’m not terribly star-struck,” he said.

About 250 people paid at least $50 each for the opportunity to meet the newly married actors and bid on books, photos and scripts signed by celebrities. Organizers had hoped that the auction would bring in $30,000 for Ventura-based AIDS Care, which provides social services to people with the HIV virus, and Christopher House, a Ventura home for terminally ill AIDS patients. They ended up with $45,000.

Steenburgen, an Ojai resident, has worked with both charities before. They need support, she said, in part because Ventura County lacks the strong network of AIDS support groups that Los Angeles County enjoys.

“Up here, it’s a little bit harder, and yet the need is still great,” she said. “Ted and I feel it’s important to support things like this.”

Danson, who married Steenburgen six weeks ago, said he was a newcomer to both groups. “For me, it’s more an opportunity to educate myself,” he said.

Although drawn by the cause, many in the crowd of suits and evening dresses wasted little time examining the memorabilia up for auction. Tables lined up under crystal chandeliers displayed about 185 items for bid. Signed posters of “The Simpsons,” and from the Tom Selleck movie “Mr. Baseball.” A rare toy “tricorder” from the original “Star Trek,” signed by actor George Takei, who played Mr. Sulu. A piece of the “Wheel of Fortune” signed by Vanna White and Pat Sajak, which was more precisely a strip of hot pink plastic with the word surprise spelled in glitter.

Most of the items were part of a silent auction, in which people wrote their bids on sheets of paper posted next to each item. About 35 items, however, were reserved for the live auction, including a signed poster of Steenburgen’s current movie, “Powder,” and a script from the movie “Platoon” that Steenburgen persuaded director Oliver Stone to contribute.

Bidding started slowly, as organizer and Moorpark College professor Ron Halleran tried to work up the crowd.

“Eighty-five a ticket,” he said as he auctioned passes to Disneyland. “God, that felt good. Got 90?”

A few items later, the bidding wars began, with stiff competition for the signed “Murphy Brown” script. Along with a signed cast photo, it sold for $325.

Even before the end of bidding, AIDS Care Executive Director Doug Green said he was pleased with the crowd.

“I’m gratified to see the size of the turnout and to see the faces I haven’t seen before,” he said. “I can’t overstate the importance of an event like this to keep the lights on at the agency.”