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Fans were excited and shouting on a
rainy December night in San Francisco,
where actor Will Smith, San Francisco
dignitaries and the producing /
directing team of Columbia Pictures'
"The Pursuit of Happyness" were on hand
for the San Francisco premiere
of the film. As part of Glide Memorial's
Holiday Festival, the screening was also
a benefit for Mo’s Kitchen and programs
of The Glide Foundation. Some of
the famous faces at the benefit included
San Francisco Mayor
Gavin Newsom, former Mayor Willie Brown,
filmmaker George Lucas ("Star
Wars"), actor Peter
Coyote, and Smith's wife and actress
Jada Pinkett-Smith ("The Matrix
Reloaded").
 In a movie inspired by a true story,
Will Smith ("Men in Black,"
"Independence Day," TV's The Fresh
Prince of Bel-Air) plays Chris
Gardner, a bright and talented, but
marginally employed salesman. Struggling
to make ends meet, Gardner finds himself
and his five-year-old son (played by
real-life son
Jaden Christopher Syre Smith,
making his film debut)
evicted from their San Francisco
apartment with nowhere to go. When
Gardner lands an internship at a
prestigious stock brokerage firm, he and
his son endure many hardships, including
living in shelters, in pursuit of his
dream of a better life for the two of
them. Besides the Smiths, the film also
stars Thandie Newton, Dan
Castellaneta and Kevin West.
In the video segment, Natalie and Eve
interviewed the film's executive
producer Mark Clayman and director
Gabriele Muccino,
Rev. Cecil
Williams of Glide Memorial Church,
executive director Denise Bradley of The
Museum of African Diaspora, actor
Peter Coyote, the real
Chris Gardner, and Will Smith.
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