xcel
11-22-2006, 10:15 AM
The only way to describe what ensued is to imagine a horribly awkward blind date. “No one was bidding”. (http://www.forbesautos.com/news/headlines/2006/november/fadc111606-oceana.html)
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Lexus_GS450h.jpgNate Chapnick - ForbesAutos - Nov. 16, 2006
The night had all the makings of a dream Hollywood fundraiser for environmental nonprofit Oceana: A-list celebrities and Hollywood bigwigs, including agents, filmmakers, managers and network executives, gathered in a 17,000-square-foot Beverly Hills mansion to bid on, among other things, a $58,000 Lexus GS 450h donated by parent company Toyota. Little did Oceana or Lexus know that the well-heeled attendees had bargain shopping, not philanthropic altruism, on their minds.
A red-carpet entrance greeted guests, along with a sea of photographers clamoring to snap celebs Pierce Brosnan, Salma Hayek, Jamie Lee Curtis, Nicholas Cage, Jason Priestley and Ted Danson. The stars came out to support Oceana, whose mission is to prevent ocean habitat destruction, overfishing and pollution. From the outset, it seemed as if Oceana surely stood to benefit handsomely at its biggest fundraiser of the year, which included both a silent auction and a live auction of the sought-after Lexus GS 450h. The high-performance gasoline/electric hybrid luxury sedan is currently on one-month-plus dealer back orders.
But after auctioneer Richard Houk opened bidding on the GS 450h, the only way to describe what ensued is to imagine a horribly awkward blind date. “No one was bidding. People started to walk out,” said Dana DuBose, director of Oceana's Southern California office. The awkward silence finally lifted when a hand was raised and at last the bidding began. “Only two people out of 200-plus bid,” DuBose said.
After the begrudged first bid, the auction mercifully came to an end with a lowball bid from Keith Addis, Ted Danson’s manager, who raised his paddle for $54,000 - a stunning $4,000 below the vehicle’s base price. Incredibly, he walked away with the back-ordered GS 450h below market value. The look on the winning bidder’s face was priceless. As if he had just won a momentous battle, Addis proudly bragged about his wheel steal while waiting for a drink at the bar after the auction. “I just got the winning bid on the GS 450h, $4,000 under MSRP!” he exclaimed, unraveling a tightly rolled packet of Toyota information he received as proof of his victory. Bewildered, a gentleman standing beside Addis at the bar asked: “Wasn’t this for a charity?”
Addis did well, scoring a hot luxury hybrid below its value. But Oceana didn’t do too badly, either. Though the stars didn’t jump in and boost the car’s auction value, the $1,500 VIP and $500 general tickets did, raising a total of $483,000 for the night including the auctioned items.
An environmental nonprofit and a big auto manufacturer may seem like strange bedfellows, but Oceana believes its partnership with Lexus’ parent, Toyota, has been a good match. “Toyota is an industry leader in hybrid technology and clean manufacturing, so we’re obviously extremely excited to partner with them,” DuBose said. In fact, this is not the first time that Lexus has contributed to the charity’s coffers. Two years ago Oceana received the first RX 400h for a very successful raffle, as its altruistic winner, David Atus of Virginia Beach, Va., donated the car back to the organization. “We were obviously very grateful to Mr. Atus for allowing us to keep the vehicle, which we then used for another auction," DuBose said. Jim Sandler, an Oceana board member, bid $63,000 for the car, bringing in a total of $145,000 after both events.
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Lexus_GS450h.jpgNate Chapnick - ForbesAutos - Nov. 16, 2006
The night had all the makings of a dream Hollywood fundraiser for environmental nonprofit Oceana: A-list celebrities and Hollywood bigwigs, including agents, filmmakers, managers and network executives, gathered in a 17,000-square-foot Beverly Hills mansion to bid on, among other things, a $58,000 Lexus GS 450h donated by parent company Toyota. Little did Oceana or Lexus know that the well-heeled attendees had bargain shopping, not philanthropic altruism, on their minds.
A red-carpet entrance greeted guests, along with a sea of photographers clamoring to snap celebs Pierce Brosnan, Salma Hayek, Jamie Lee Curtis, Nicholas Cage, Jason Priestley and Ted Danson. The stars came out to support Oceana, whose mission is to prevent ocean habitat destruction, overfishing and pollution. From the outset, it seemed as if Oceana surely stood to benefit handsomely at its biggest fundraiser of the year, which included both a silent auction and a live auction of the sought-after Lexus GS 450h. The high-performance gasoline/electric hybrid luxury sedan is currently on one-month-plus dealer back orders.
But after auctioneer Richard Houk opened bidding on the GS 450h, the only way to describe what ensued is to imagine a horribly awkward blind date. “No one was bidding. People started to walk out,” said Dana DuBose, director of Oceana's Southern California office. The awkward silence finally lifted when a hand was raised and at last the bidding began. “Only two people out of 200-plus bid,” DuBose said.
After the begrudged first bid, the auction mercifully came to an end with a lowball bid from Keith Addis, Ted Danson’s manager, who raised his paddle for $54,000 - a stunning $4,000 below the vehicle’s base price. Incredibly, he walked away with the back-ordered GS 450h below market value. The look on the winning bidder’s face was priceless. As if he had just won a momentous battle, Addis proudly bragged about his wheel steal while waiting for a drink at the bar after the auction. “I just got the winning bid on the GS 450h, $4,000 under MSRP!” he exclaimed, unraveling a tightly rolled packet of Toyota information he received as proof of his victory. Bewildered, a gentleman standing beside Addis at the bar asked: “Wasn’t this for a charity?”
Addis did well, scoring a hot luxury hybrid below its value. But Oceana didn’t do too badly, either. Though the stars didn’t jump in and boost the car’s auction value, the $1,500 VIP and $500 general tickets did, raising a total of $483,000 for the night including the auctioned items.
An environmental nonprofit and a big auto manufacturer may seem like strange bedfellows, but Oceana believes its partnership with Lexus’ parent, Toyota, has been a good match. “Toyota is an industry leader in hybrid technology and clean manufacturing, so we’re obviously extremely excited to partner with them,” DuBose said. In fact, this is not the first time that Lexus has contributed to the charity’s coffers. Two years ago Oceana received the first RX 400h for a very successful raffle, as its altruistic winner, David Atus of Virginia Beach, Va., donated the car back to the organization. “We were obviously very grateful to Mr. Atus for allowing us to keep the vehicle, which we then used for another auction," DuBose said. Jim Sandler, an Oceana board member, bid $63,000 for the car, bringing in a total of $145,000 after both events.