EVENTS

Hollywood and Rock Royalty at John Varvatos Stuart House Benefit

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Steven Tyler, John Varvatos and Joe Perry on the red carpet at the 10th Annual Stuart House Benefit, photo courtesy of John Varvatos

John Varvatos knows how to draw on star power. Hollywood and rock n’ roll royalty were out in full force yesterday for the 10th Annual John Varvatos Stuart House Benefit. Award winning director Ben Affleck and wife Jennifer Garner were the Honorary Co-Chairs of this year’s event and Aerosmith front men, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, gave a special performance to support the cause.

There were plenty more celebs - including Rachel Zoe and Rodger Berman with son Skylar, Cindy Crawford and husband Rande Gerber and Bill Bellamy and family - who joined Varvatos at his West Hollywood boutique to raise $830,000 to aid Stuart House. The program, created by the Rape Treatment Center at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center, serves the special needs of sexually abused children.

Affleck and Garner spoke in support of the program and the importance of creating awareness for the topic of sexually abused children. Varvatos, who brought his daughter on stage, said the event was originally created because “We wanted to partner with something special and to us, that is Stuart House.” One hundred percent of the funds raised at the event, which included a silent and live auction, were donated to the program.

The event was sponsored by Chrysler and Hasbro Studios, who created a family friendly Kids’ Tent where children could play games. Other highlights of the day included Billy Idol and son Willem Wolfe DJing in the store and Tyler, to the crowd's delight, pulling Slash up on stage to play a set. Food trucks, shopping and the iconic rock n’ roll hits of Aerosmith kept the Melrose boutique hopping all afternoon.

Varvatos’ event has raised $3.53 million over the past ten years to aid Stuart House. An online auction, which features items such as a McIntosh x John Varvatos Custom Built SoHo Audio System and Factory Tour valued at $150,000, is open to the general public until March 21. Go to CharityBuzz.com/JohnVarvatos for more details.

Here are some pictures from the event.

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The intimate stage setting on Melrose Ave. gave me the opportunity to capture this shot of Steven Tyler.

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Ben Affleck and wife Jennifer Garner speak in support of Stuart House, photo courtesy of John Varvatos

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John Varvatos

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Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and surprise guest, Slash, perform at the event.

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The proceeds of the silent auction support Stuart House.

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Steven Tyler and Joe Perry performing to an enthusiastic L.A. crowd.

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Billy Idol and John Varvatos

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Inside the John Varvatos boutique