Funny men (and women) give to funnyman Franken

Posted at 12:30 PM on February 2, 2012 by Catharine Richert
Filed under: U.S. Senate

A peek into Franken MVPs, a fundraising committee meant to help re-elect DFL Sen. Al Franken, shows that the comedian-turned-lawmaker pulled in thousands last year from some of the most hilarious people in Hollywood.

Here are a few highlights, according to Federal Election Commission documents.

- Seth MacFarlane, who is best known for being the brains behind the animated comedy "The Family Guy," gave Franken $10,000.

- Larry David, who co-created "Seinfeld" and created and acts in "Curb Your Enthusiasm," gave Franken $2,500. His ex-wife, Laurie David, gave $2,500 as well.

- Comedienne Kathy Griffin gave $2,500.

- "Late Show" host David Letterman gave Franken $2,500

- Cross-dressing actor and stand-up comedian Eddie Izzard gave Franken $10,000, as did Bill Maher, who is host of HBO's "Real time with Bill Maher."

- Director and producer Ron Howard gave Franken $1,000 as did his wife, Cheryl.

- Actress Meryl Streep and her husband Donald Gummer together gave Franken $1,200.

A few names from Franken's "Saturday Night Live" days also appear on the donor roster, including actor Kevin Nealon, who gave $1,000 and writer Christine Zander, who gave the same amount.

SNL creator Lorne Michaels gave Franken $4,600.

In 2011, Franken MPVs raised nearly $725,000 from a range of donors, including lawyers, investment bankers, business owners, clothing designers and wealthy Minnesotans such as John and Sage Cowles and members of the Dayton family.

Roughly $365,000 of the funds raised last year by Franken MVPs was moved into Franken's 2014 re-election account, and about $206,000 was transferred into the Midwest Values PAC, a pot of money Franken doles out to other candidates and causes.

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