Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 18, 1992 TAG: 9202180279
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
PEOPLE
Boxing great Muhammad Ali was treated to a serenade by Whitney Houston at a belated birthday bash thrown by entertainers and star athletes to raise money for the United Negro College Fund.Ali, who turned 50 on Jan. 17, smiled Sunday night as Houston sang "The Greatest Love of All" at the benefit in Los Angeles.
The guest list included Ali's admirers, such as rap star Hammer and former sportscaster Howard Cosell, and former antagonists like Ken Norton, who said, "He had a gift for the gab . . . and showmanship."
Ali, whose career record was 56-5, waged epic battles with the likes of George Foreman and Joe Frazier, but now fights Parkinson's disease, which has left his speech slurred and his body shaky.
Filmmaker Spike Lee is editing footage he shot in Africa and Brooklyn for a video to go with Prince's next single, a spokesman for the rock star said in Minneapolis Monday.
While Lee was in Africa to shoot part of his latest film, about the slain black leader Malcolm X, he also shot footage to be used in a video accompanying Prince's single, "Money Don't Matter 2 Night," Prince publicist Garvey Rich said.
Footage of a struggling family in Brooklyn shot under Lee's direction will be included in the video, as will archival footage of the Great Depression, Rich said. He described it as a topical video.
The single is expected to be released at the end of the month, Rich said.
Lee said Monday on ABC-TV's "Good Morning America" program that his Malcolm X film is planned for Christmas release. Lee's other films include "Do the Right Thing" and "Jungle Fever."
Actor Glenn Ford, who collects rare manuscripts containing the signatures of Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill, has added some new documents to his collection: court papers.
Ford, 75, sued a dealer to whom he gave some valuable documents for sale on consignment about 1 1/2 years ago. The suit, filed last week, seeks $25,000.
The dealer, Charles Sachs, said he's trying to reach a settlement with the star of "The Blackboard Jungle" and "Experiment in Terror."
Sachs said he traded some of Ford's documents for other valuable papers, but couldn't sell those newly acquired documents.
"We're in the middle of a recession," Sachs said. "It's just a bad time for business."