Lee National Denim Day
Encyclopedia
Entertainment Industry Foundation
The Entertainment Industry Foundation , based in Los Angeles, is a 501 non-profit and the leading charitable organization of the entertainment industry...
. Every year, people are asked to donate the money they'd spend on a pair of jeans to support breast cancer research and wellness programs. Beneficiaries include the Women's Cancer Programs of the Entertainment Industry Foundation, Cancer Support Community, Lee Labs and the EIF Breast Cancer Biomarker Discovery Research Project.
Program history
Lee National Denim Day has raised more than $83 million in the fight against breast cancer. In 2008, an estimated 800,000 individuals wore denim on Lee National Denim Day.Celebrity spokespersons
- 1996 – Professional Basketball player Rebecca LoboRebecca LoboRebecca Rose Lobo-Rushin is an American television basketball analyst and a former player in the professional Women's National Basketball Association from 1997 to 2003...
, whose mother is a breast cancer survivor. - 1998 – Actress Yasmine BleethYasmine BleethYasmine Amanda Bleeth is an American actress. Her television roles include Caroline Holden in the long-running series Baywatch.-Early life and career:...
, who played Caroline HoldenCaroline HoldenCaroline Holden is a fictional character from the popular American television show Baywatch, portrayed by Yasmine Bleeth.-Season 4:Caroline made her first appearance on Baywatch in Season 4, Episode 7 'Tentacles Part 2'. She came to Baywatch to announce to her sister, Stephanie Holden, that she was...
on the TV show BaywatchBaywatchBaywatch is an American action drama series about the Los Angeles County Lifeguards who patrol the beaches of Los Angeles County, California, starring David Hasselhoff. The show ran in its original title and format from 1989 to 1999, sans the 1990-1991 season, of which it was not in production...
. Yasmine's mother died from inflammatory breast cancerInflammatory breast cancerInflammatory breast cancer is an especially aggressive type of breast cancer that can occur in women of any age .It is called inflammatory because it frequently presents with symptoms resembling an inflammation...
when Yasmine was 20 years old. - 1999 – Actress Patricia ArquettePatricia ArquettePatricia T. Arquette is an American actress and director. She played the lead character in the supernatural drama series Medium for which she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series....
, who played the psychic Allison DuBoisAllison DuBoisAllison DuBois is an American author and medium. DuBois has controversially claimed to possess psychic abilities and use them to help U.S. law enforcement officials solve crimes, which formed the basis of the TV series Medium....
on the TV show MediumMedium (TV series)Medium is an American television drama series that premiered on NBC on January 3, 2005, and ended on CBS on January 21, 2011. Themed on supernatural gifts, its lead character, Allison DuBois , is a medium employed as a consultant for the Phoenix, Arizona district attorney's office...
. Patricia's mother died from breast cancerBreast cancerBreast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
in 1997. - 2000 – Actor Rob LoweRob LoweRobert Hepler "Rob" Lowe is an American actor. Lowe came to prominence after appearing in films such as The Outsiders, Oxford Blues, About Last Night..., St. Elmo's Fire, and Wayne's World. On television, Lowe is known for his role as Sam Seaborn on The West Wing and his role as Senator Robert...
, who later played Sam SeabornSam SeabornSamuel Norman "Sam" Seaborn is a fictional character portrayed by Rob Lowe on the television serial drama The West Wing. He is best known for being Deputy White House Communications Director in the Josiah Bartlet administration throughout the first four seasons of the series.-Creation and...
in the TV show The West WingThe West Wing (TV series)The West Wing is an American television serial drama created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999 to May 14, 2006...
, was the first male spokesperson for the Lee National Denim Day. His grandmother and great-grandmother both suffered from breast cancerBreast cancerBreast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
. - 2001 – Actress Lucy LiuLucy LiuLucy Alexis Liu is an American actress and film producer. She became known for playing the role of the vicious and ill-mannered Ling Woo in the television series Ally McBeal , and has also appeared in several Hollywood films including Charlie's Angels, Chicago, Kill Bill, and Kung Fu Panda.-Early...
, co-star in the film Charlie's AngelsCharlie's AngelsCharlie's Angels is a television series about three women who work for a private investigation agency, and is one of the first shows to showcase women in roles traditionally reserved for men...
and on TV's Ally McBealAlly McBealAlly McBeal is an American legal comedy-drama series which aired on the Fox network from 1997 to 2002. The series was created by David E. Kelley, who also served as the executive producer, along with Bill D'Elia...
. Liu was once diagnosed with a non-cancerous breast lumpBreast lumpBreast lump is a localized swelling that feels different from the surrounding breast tissue. It is a symptom/sign for a variety of conditions. As approximately 10% of breast lumps ultimately lead to a diagnosis of breast cancer, it is important for women with a breast lump to receive appropriate...
. - 2002 – Actress Melina KanakaredesMelina KanakaredesMelina Eleni Kanakaredes Constantinides is an American actress. She is widely known for two starring roles on U.S. prime-time television drama series; playing Detective Stella Bonasera in CSI: NY and portraying Dr...
, star of CSI: NYCSI: NYCSI: NY is an American police procedural television series that premiered on September 22, 2004, on CBS. The show follows the investigations of a team of NYPD forensic scientists and police officers as they unveil the circumstances behind mysterious and unusual deaths as well as other crimes...
as Detective Stella Bonasera. A friend of hers was diagnosed with breast cancer. - 2003 – Actress Christina ApplegateChristina ApplegateChristina Applegate is an American actress. She is best known for playing Kelly Bundy on the Fox sitcom Married... with Children. Since then, she has established a film and television career, winning a Primetime Emmy and earning Tony and Golden Globe nominations...
, who played Kelly Bundy on the sitcom Married... with ChildrenMarried... with ChildrenMarried... with Children is an American surrealistic sitcom that aired for 11 seasons that featured a dysfunctional family living in Chicago, Illinois. The show, notable for being the first prime time television series to air on Fox, ran from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997. The series was created...
. Christina's mother, Nancy PriddyNancy PriddyNancy Lee Priddy is an American actress and singer-songwriter. As an actress, she has appeared on many television series, including Bewitched, The Waltons, and Matlock.-Career:...
, suffered from breast cancer but survived. - 2004 – Actor Charlie SheenCharlie SheenCarlos Irwin Estevez , better known by his stage name Charlie Sheen, is an American film and television actor. He is the youngest son of actor Martin Sheen....
, of the TV show Two and a Half MenTwo and a Half MenTwo and a Half Men is an American television sitcom that premiered on CBS on September 22, 2003. Starring Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer, and Angus T. Jones, the show was originally about a hedonistic jingle writer, Charlie Harper; his uptight brother, Alan; and Alan's growing son, Jake...
. A close friend of his lost her life to breast cancerBreast cancerBreast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
and Charlie wanted to help find a cure for the disease. - 2005 – Actors James DentonJames Denton (actor)James "Jamie" Thomas Denton, Jr. is an American film and television actor, best known for playing Mike Delfino in the television series Desperate Housewives.-Early life:...
and Ricardo Antonio ChaviraRicardo Antonio ChaviraRicardo Antonio Chavira is an American actor, perhaps best known for his role as Carlos Solis on Desperate Housewives.-Early life:...
, stars of the TV show Desperate HousewivesDesperate HousewivesDesperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. Executive producer Cherry serves as Showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season include Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, George W...
, helped raise $8.5 million. The mothers of both actors lost their lives to breast cancer. - 2006 – Actor Pierce BrosnanPierce BrosnanPierce Brendan Brosnan, OBE is an Irish actor, film producer and environmentalist. After leaving school at 16, Brosnan began training in commercial illustration, but trained at the Drama Centre in London for three years...
, who played British spy James BondJames BondJames Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
. Brosnan's first wife, Australian actress Cassandra HarrisCassandra HarrisCassandra Harris was an Australian actress.Born Sandra Colleen Waites in Sydney, Australia, Cassandra Harris was a student at the National Institute of Dramatic Art. She enrolled in 1961, aged 12, under the name Sandra Gleeson. She went on to perform in the successful Sydney stage production of...
, died due to ovarian cancerOvarian cancerOvarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
, and he has been a cancer research advocate ever since. - 2007 – Actress Mariska HargitayMariska HargitayMariska Hargitay is an American actress, best known for her role as New York City sex crimes Detective Olivia Benson on the NBC television drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, a role that has earned her multiple awards and nominations, including an Emmy and Golden Globe.The daughter of actress...
, who plays detective Olivia Benson on Law and Order:SVU. Her childhood friend lost her battle with breast cancer in Spring 2007. Billy Ray CyrusBilly Ray CyrusWilliam "Billy" Ray Cyrus is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor and philanthropist, who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon...
, and actresses Gabrielle UnionGabrielle UnionGabrielle Monique Union is an American actress and former model. Among her notable roles is as the cheerleader opposite Kirsten Dunst in the film Bring it On. Union starred opposite Will Smith and Martin Lawrence in the blockbuster film Bad Boys II and played a medical doctor in the CBS drama...
and Kerry WashingtonKerry WashingtonKerry Washington is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Ray Charles's wife, Della Bea Robinson, in the film Ray , as Idi Amin's wife Kay in The Last King of Scotland, and as Alicia Masters, love interest of Ben Grimm, The Thing, in the live-action Fantastic Four films of 2005 and 2007...
also supported the campaign. - 2008 – Actors Chandra WilsonChandra WilsonChandra Danette Wilson is an American actress and director, best known as Dr. Miranda Bailey in the ABC television drama, Grey's Anatomy.-Early life:...
, who plays Dr. Miranda Bailey on Grey's AnatomyGrey's AnatomyGrey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
, and Tim Daly, who plays Dr. Pete Wilder on Private Practice, joined the campaign in support of loved ones who have struggled with the disease. - 2009 – Actress Christina ApplegateChristina ApplegateChristina Applegate is an American actress. She is best known for playing Kelly Bundy on the Fox sitcom Married... with Children. Since then, she has established a film and television career, winning a Primetime Emmy and earning Tony and Golden Globe nominations...
, program ambassador in 2003, announced in May 2009 she was returning to support the campaign after suffering from breast cancer herself in 2008.
External links
- Denimday.comhttp://www.denimday.com/default.aspx
- About Lee National Denim Dayhttp://www.lee.com/wps/wcm/connect/lee-en_us/our_company/denimDay/
- Entertainment Industry Foundationhttp://www.eifoundation.org/
- Cancer Support Communityhttp://www.cancersupportcommunity.org/