You never know who is going to show up at Chabad’s annual “L’Chaim — To Life” telethon, which this year is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 29, from 5 p.m. to midnight, on KCOP Channel 13.
Bob Hope has paid his respects. Bob Dylan has appeared five times. And last year, the entire cast of “Friends,” one of NBC’s top-rated sitcoms, feted Chabad in a schmoozy segment recorded just for the telethon.
This year, the celebrities scheduled to appear include Sid Caesar, Steve Allen, Rich Little, James Caan, Bob Saget and, of course, Jon Voight. Fyvush Finkel, wearing his ubiquitous bow tie, will host, along with his son, the musician. Stars will don yarmulkes, offer Chabad testimonials and dance the dervish-like kazatzka with Rabbi Boruch Shlomo Cunin, Chabad West Coast director and telethon founder.
It’s a unique mixture of Hollywood marketing savvy and Chassidic religious fervor — one of the last live variety shows on TV, according to its promoters. The goal is to surpass last year’s telethon tote board total of $4,387,652.
The money will help support the 36 new Chabad houses opened locally during the last five years. It will also help fund the new campus of the Chabad Residential Treatment Center and the Chabad Sober Living Center, located at 5675 W. Olympic Blvd. in Los Angeles. The 28,000-square-foot facility opened in July.
For more information, call (310) 208-7511.
