The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the organization behind the annual Golden Globe Awards, handed out some $1.2 million in grants to film schools and nonprofit groups Thursday, aided by a gaggle of high-wattage show-biz luminaries.
And though A-listers such as Jennifer Lopez, Jamie Foxx and Charlize Theron are used to following scripts, they were free to abandon them at the easygoing afternoon affair at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
Hilary Swank, who presented the first round of grants to a slew of universities, stumbled as she read from the teleprompter.
“I feel your pain,” said Mr. J-Lo, Marc Anthony, as he and Lopez presented the second round of checks.
“What am I supposed to say,” asked a bumbling Peter Falk as he accepted a $50,000 prize for the Columbia University School of the Arts.
“Where does the foreign press get all this money,” he went on. “I mean, I think it’s great.”
Foxx gave a shout-out to all the Leos (astrological, not DiCaprio) in the crowd — namely Swank and Lopez, whose birthdays are in late July.
After kissing Foxx on the cheek, Josh Brolin, who accepted a $50,000 grant for FilmAid International, turned to the Oscar winner and said, “I’m so nervous, can you give me a hug for a second?”
“You sound like the Moviefone guy,” Foxx said.
The HFPA has given more than $7.5 million in grants over the past 13 years, president Jorge Camara said. This year’s total is the largest ever distributed in the organization’s 65-year history.