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For years, the race and festival was hosted by Mr. Stewart himself, star of such classics as "It's a Wonderful Life," "Harvey," "The Philadelphia Story," "Rear Window" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington."
There's a fun, picnic atmosphere at the park, and there are celebrity runners. The 26th annual Jimmy Stewart Marathon took place on Sunday, April 23, 2006. The event began early; opening ceremonies kicked off at 7:45 AM, and the race began at 8 AM sharp; the celebrity relay race was at 10:30 AM. The hosts were Robert Wagner and Isaiah Washington (of "Grey's Anatomy"). However, due to "major redevelopment projects", Griffith Park can not accommodate the event this year. So, in its place, the Saint John’s Santa Monica 5000 (including "the Jimmy Stewart Team Challenge"), will take place on Sunday, October 21, 2007, with a seaside race course in Santa Monica, followed by a post-event party the Santa Monica Pier. For more info on this Santa Monica event, go to www.santamonica5000.com, or phone (310) 829-8968. In 2005, the Marathon celebs included Robert Wagner, Faith Ford ("Hope & Faith", "Murphy Brown"), Ted McGinley ("Married with Children", "Happy Days", "Hope & Faith"), Jamie Kennedy, and Hollywood's Johnny Grant. In 2004, the co-hosts were Robert Wagner and Chris O'Donnell ("Batman & Robin"). Participants the 2003 event included George Lopez ("The George Lopez Show"), Olympic Gold Medalist Bruce Jenner, Robin Leach ("Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous", "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here"), John O'Hurley ('J. Peterman ' on "Seinfeld"), Kate Linder ('Esther Valentine ' in "The Young and the Restless"), Eric Lutes ('Del' in "Caroline in the City"), Andy Lauer ('Charlie ' in "Caroline in the City"), Danso Gordon ('Kenny 'Silk' Hayes' on "Hang Time"), Natalie Raitano ('Nikki' on "VIP"), John Lehr ("I'm a Celebrity..."), Jennifer Lopez's ex-hubby, Cris Judd ("I'm a Celebrity..."), Mark DeCarlo ("Curb Your Enthusiasm") and Jose Solano ('Manny Gutierrez ' on "Baywatch"). Celebrity runners in 2002 included Walter Koenig
('Chekov' of "Star Trek"), Tracy Scoggins
('Elizabeth Lochley' on "Babylon 5"), Andy Lauer
('Charlie' in "Caroline in the City"), Bryan Cranston
('Hal' of "Malcolm in the Middle"), Alex Donnelly
('Diane Jenkins-Newman' on "Young and the Restless") and
Kyle Lowder ('Brady' of "Days
of Our Lives"). The host, once again, was Robert Wagner and
his daughter Katie. In
recent years, participants have included Anne Archer
("Fatal Attraction"), model Rachel Hunter
(wife of Rod Stewart), Joey Lawrence
("Blossom"), Kellie Martin
("Life Goes On" & "Christy"), Gabrielle Carteris
(Andrea on "Beverly Hills 90210"), Joan Van Ark
("Knott's Landing"),
Kristin Davis ("Melrose
Place"), Marliece Andrada
("Baywatch") and Justine Bateman
(Mallory on "Family Ties").
Over the years, celebrity supporters of the race
have included Brad Pitt, Bob Hope,
Sharon Stone, Dennis Franz,
Carol Burnett, Phyllis Diller,
Charlton Heston, Ringo Starr,
Bill Pullman, Rodney Dangerfield,
Betty White, Tony Curtis,
Maureen O'Hara, Wolfgang Puck,
Joe Pesci,
Beau Bridges and many others. The main race is a relay marathon, which attracts
over 5,000 runners. Teams of five share the marathon distance, After the main race gets underway, there's also a
celebrity 5-mile relay race, a costume race, children's races, a
Baby Dash, live entertainment, jugglers, clowns, musicians,
(On May 20, 1998, on what would have been Jimmy's 90th birthday, a permanent tribute to Jimmy Stewart, was unveiled at Griffith Park. It consists of an American flag on a 25-foot pole, along with a plaque remembering Jimmy as "A great American whose humanity touched us all through his work as one of the favorite actors of our time.") For more information about the event, contact Rosa Hernandez or Melanie Bauleke at St. John's Hospital (1328 22nd St. Santa Monica) at (310) 829-8968 (or email rosa.hernandez@stjohns.org).
[For
more information, you can access the Marathon's official website at:
http://www.stjohns.org/gift/events/jimmy_stewart/default.htm.]
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