$2.5 Million Raised in AIDS Walk

A handful of celebrities joined about 16,000 people Sunday in a walk that raised more than $2.5 million for AIDS services, an event organizer said.

“We just had the largest and most successful AIDS fund raiser ever held in California,” said Craig Miller, co-producer of the seventh annual AIDS Walk Los Angeles.

He said the count of participants was based on those who signed up to walk the 10-kilometer route, which began and ended at Paramount Pictures. Police did not have an immediate crowd estimate.

Mayor Tom Bradley and Paramount Pictures Chairman Brandon Tartikoff, along with actor Richard Dreyfuss and television stars Amanda Donohoe and John Spencer of “L.A. Law” and Rhea Perlman of “Cheers,” took part in the opening ceremonies or walked the route, Miller said.

The event raised $2,589,872, most of it in the form of $10 and $20 pledges to the walkers, Miller said. A similar walk in July in San Francisco raised $2.1 million for AIDS services, he said.

The money benefits AIDS Project Los Angeles to help sufferers of the deadly disease and fund research, education and lobbying efforts.

“It’s urgently needed, because the number of people with AIDS that we’re serving is growing by leaps and bounds,” he said.

The walk drew a wide array of participants, including “moms and dads and kids in strollers,” Miller said.