I’m going to close out the Light of Day anniversary blitz on a serious, yet uplifting, note.
Light of Day isn’t just the movie that launched Joan Jett’s acting career. It’s also the name of the Light of Day Foundation, an organization dedicated to raising money and awareness for Parkinson’s and related illnesses. The shared name is no coincidence; the foundation took its name from the movie’s title song, written by Bruce Springsteen. They have raised nearly one million dollars since 1998.
The foundation’s concert series started in 2000 as a single benefit concert at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey, and has since evolved into a huge annual event that has been hosted in seven countries in the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Read more about it HERE.
The organization and its founder, music industry veteran Bob Benjamin, who lives with Parkinson’s himself, are the subjects of a documentary made by Flat Broke Productions, called Just Around the Corner. Flat Broke is giving 100% of the profits from the film back to the Light of Day Foundation to help fund Parkinson’s research. Here is the trailer:
The film has a Facebook page. So far, the release date is listed as Spring of 2010. I’ll let you know when a definite release date has been set.
In 2003, the Light of Day Foundation produced a CD tribute to Bruce Springsteen called Light of Day: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen. The CD contains 35 Bruce Springsteen songs covered by various artists, including an awesome cover of “The River” by my fellow Pittsburghers The Clarks:
100% of the profits from this CD are split evenly between the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation and the Kristen Ann Carr Fund, which funds research for Sarcoma, a rare cancer. You can buy it on Amazon and iTunes. You can also donate directly to Light of Day HERE.
Follow the Light of Day Foundation on Twitter: @lod_foundation. They have a MySpace page too. And while we’re at it, let’s show some love to the Michael J. Fox Foundation (@teamfox).
I think it would be really cool if whoever owns the rights to the Light of Day movie and soundtrack could re-release both of them and donate the profits to this wonderful organization.
Born to be Jetthead 