CHARITY FUNDRAISERS ASK CLOONEY FOR WEDDING TIE

CHARITY FUNDRAISERS ASK CLOONEY FOR WEDDING TIE

(ANSA) - Lecco, October 20 - Charity fundraisers in northern Italy have asked Hollywood superstar George Clooney for his wedding tie if and when he marries Italian actress Elisabetta Canalis, the group said Tuesday.

The Polisportiva di Monte Marenzo, a sports club in the Lake Como town of Lecco, active in raising money for Italy's charity Telethon said they want to auction the tie to raise money for genetic disease research.

A letter addressed to Clooney's villa, which neighbors the town on the shores of Lake Como, asked for ''an object or item of clothing, preferably a tie, worn during the wedding that we can auction during this year's telethon in December''.

Last year, the group said it raised over 182,000 euros auctioning a jersey worn by Milan striker Filippo Inzaghi, a jacket belonging to Italian journalist and politician Lilli Gruber and a pipe once owned by 1960s union boss Luciano Lama.

Rumors about Clooney possibly tying the knot with Canalis have circulated since September when the two walked down the red carpet together at the Venice Film Festival.

While nuptials have yet to become official, Clooney is reported to have given his new girlfriend a Cartier diamond band, which some Hollywood starwatchers have taken for an engagement ring.

This week the couple are in Rome for the capital's fourth annual film festival, where George Clooney is presenting his new film Up In The Air about a travelling corporate axeman. Photo: Clooney and Canalis on the red carpet for the Rome International Film Festival