On September 23, 2011 Michael Cates, known as Phil Donawho, a celebrity lookalike to legendary talk show host, Phil Donahue, was busy that day 'interviewing' another legend, a sports legend, in Coronado, California.
Cates, as Donahue, out of California, met UCLA basketball legend Bill Walton at a fundraiser called Firefighters and Friends held at the The Marriott Hotel in Coronado.
William "Bill" Walton is a retired basketball player and television sportscaster known as The "Big Red-Head." He achieved superstardom playing for John Wooden's powerhouse UCLA Bruins in the early '70s.
Walton won three straight College Player of the Year Awards, while leading the Bruins to two Division I national titles. He then went on to have a prominent career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) where he was a league Most Valuable Player (MVP) and won two NBA championships.
Walton was once quoted as saying:
"Without question, no hesitation, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the best player I ever played against."
Other guests and celebrities included San Diego radio and news personalities, The San Diego Charger Girls and the San Diego firefighters. All donned aprons and served the guests, entertained and posed for photos with fans.
Mike Cates as Phil Donawho also posed for photos with guests.
The event was a success, and to top it off, proceeds benefited United Cerebral Palsy (UCP).
UCP is an international nonprofit charitable organization consisting of a network of affiliates and is a leading service provider and advocate for adults and children with disabilities, including cerebral palsy.
Note: UCP is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement.
The day did not end there as Cates later visited the historic landmark, the Hotel Del Coronado, and walked its beautiful grounds, posing again with more Phil Danahue fans.
It was a fun day in the life of a celebrity lookalike!
One can follow Michael Cates at Facebook.
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