And you thought George Clooney was just a hunk, nothing more. Nope, he's an artist, too.

        That came out not long ago when longtime Kidney Foundation of Greater Cincinnati volunteers Chris Stubbins and Linda Appleby began planning a Nick Clooney tribute honoring his 50 years in broadcasting.

        In meeting with Nick and wife Nina, they discovered the Clooneys have a caricature George did when he was 16 and yeah, they'd be happy to let the Kidney people copy it.

Caricature of Nick Clooney by his son, George | ZOOM |

        All this is in advance of Saturday's fund-raiser at Music Hall, a $125-$300-a- ticket do emceed by Channel 12's beloved former backward writing weather guy Ira Joe Fisher. George, despite a schedule that keeps him filming 14 hours a day, will be there to honor his dad, who says he “used to be known as Rosemary Clooney's brother. Now I'm George's dad.”

        People at the party will find out differently after dinner when they air a career tribute video produced by WCET and former Channel 12 shooter Clay Wagonlander — a career Nick likes to joke about by saying, “Oh yeah, I've been fired by every TV station in town.”

        This party will be huge — it's already sold out. It's also expected to make a ton of money, what with all the auction items, including an Ocean's Eleven script signed by the cast, signed photos of the cast, Rosemary CDs and books, all signed, and sports goodies.

        More honors: Well for goodness sakes, look who Sarah Jessica Parker's getting sentimental about in Marlo Thomas' new Right Words at the Right Time ($25, proceeds go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital). None other than former Cincinnati Ballet associate director and Newport resident David Blackburn.

        Blackburn, recall, also played Mother Ginger in the early days of the Nutcracker. He was the one wheeled out on a platform hidden by an enormous, and we do mean enormous, hoop skirt which hid 20 or so Ginger Kids.

        The book, it develops, is a batch of essays by famous people (Tom Brokaw, Steven Spielberg, Venus Williams, Toni Morrison, Jack Nicholson, Laura Bush, Billy Crystal) about one person who was a major influence in their lives.

        Blackburn says Parker wrote about when he was “teaching and she and Toby (her brother) were studying with me.

        “I arranged scholarships and they went on to become accomplished dancers. They were in that very first Nutcracker, Sarah as a mouse and Toby as Fritz.

        “After they moved, I helped her get into one of the New York Schools and, well, you know what happened after that.”

E-mail: jknippenberg@enquirer.com.

Two area spots offer spray-on tan, so we tried it
Literature's most famous lovers
KNIPPENBERG: Knip's Eye View
Northside Tavern owner serves potent music mix
Laredo, CSO principals shine
Ryder tries humor to defuse scandal
The Early Word
Top 10s
Get to it