Stars Paint The Turtle Without Paul Newman

At the Davies Symphony Hall, stars like Julia Roberts, Bruce Willis, Sean Penn, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson all gathered for two reasons. First and foremost, the event was a star-studded charity to raise money for The Painted Turtle. Secondly, the evening served to remind those present that Paul Newman, the founder of the camp for children facing life-threatening diseases had recently passed away.

A dramatic reading of The World of Nick Adams moved the audience of around 2,500 people. Danny Glover said, "We expected Paul to be with us and so this kind of turned into kind of a tribute."

Joaquin Phoenix and Casey Affleck showed up looking grungy and thoughtful. For a second there, I thought it was Vincent Gallo, but then I remembered that he probably wouldn't be caught dead within 100 feet of something of something remotely resembling charity.

UPDATE: Here's a little fun fact about the evening. A reader was outside celeb chef Traci Des Jardins' Jardiniere Restaurant last night after the event and got to see Julia Roberts and her friends including Danny Moder, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Bruce Willis, Jack Nicholson, Sean Penn, Robin Wright Penn, Billy Crystal, Janice Crystal, Danny DeVito, Bonnie Raitt and Marsha Williams. Julia was celebrating her birthday and diners inside heard the group sing, "Happy Birthday" to Julia and Rita.

Thanks Trish!

Featured in the gallery: Julia Roberts, Jack Nicholson, Bruce Willis, Bonnie Raitt, Sean Penn, Danny DeVito, Edwards James Olmos, Casey Affleck Joaquin Phoenix, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Robin Wright Penn, Nancy O'Dell and Danny Glover.

Click any photo to view all 40+ photos from a dramatic reading of The World of Nick Adams in the gallery!