Ethan Hawke Heads to Vampireville

It's good to have a famous son.

Leslie Hawke has once again recruited her famous son Ethan for a charity event in vampire-rich Romania. The child education-minded Ovidiu Rom Association, which Leslie runs, will have a Halloween Charity Ball on Oct. 31 at the Parliament Palace in Bucharest. Ethan will make an appearance, while U.S. Ambassador Mark Gitenstein will deliver the key address. Madonna even committed to donating a personal item that will be auctioned off or given away as a prize.

The Ovidiu Rom Association, which raised 80 percent of its annual funds from last year's ball, is grateful for how well the charity ball is coming together.

"Initially I was not sure that we should organize another event of such importance, considering the financial crisis, but the Halloween Ball from this year appears to be the most interesting so far," Leslie remarked. "Hopefully, the people will further support us in our work, through the ball, even if this year they will "have to search deeper in their purses.'"

Ethan, who participated in the 2005 ball, will be visiting Romania from the set of the "Moby Dick" remake he's currently shooting.  He will also film a TV spot endorsing the Association's new education campaign, "Every Child in School."

Image by Il Tanganelli courtesy of Flickr.