Myrtle Beach area News

Celebrities Add Extra Excitement to the 2008 Sun Fun Festival

Fans of all ages will be thrilled with the celebrity line-up as part of the festivities for the area’s 57th annual Sun Fun Festival. Well-known celebrities – Ruben Studdard and Ace Young of FOX’s “American Idol,” Eric Braeden of CBS’s “The Young and The Restless,” Cody Linley of Disney’s “Hannah Montana” and Demi Lovato of Disney’s “Camp Rock” – will be greeting fans on Saturday, June 7, at Grand Park across from The Market Common (see full schedule below).

Ruben Studdard, who won the second season of FOX’s “American Idol,” will be singing the National Anthem at the Sun Fun Festival’s Kickoff Ceremony, presented by The Sun News, at 10 a.m. Ace Young, a finalist in the fifth season of FOX’s “American Idol,” will perform several songs before his meet and greet.

Television and movie stars also will be participating in the festivities. Eric Braeden has starred as Victor Newman on the No. 1 rated daytime drama series “The Young and The Restless” since 1980. Cody Linley has appeared in many hit feature films and guest stars in the popular television shows “Hannah Montana” and “That’s so Raven.” Demi Lovato stars as Mitchie Torres in “Camp Rock,” a Disney movie scheduled to be released in June.

The celebrity schedule is as follows:

• Ruben Studdard will sing the National Anthem at Grand Park at 10 a.m. and will do a meet and greet immediately following the kickoff ceremony until 1 p.m. (Tent 1).
• Ace Young will sing several songs beginning at 1 p.m. and then do a meet and greet from 1:30-4 p.m. (Tent 1).
• Cody Linley will do a meet and greet from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. (Tent 2).
• Demi Lovato will do a meet and greet from 2-5 p.m. (Tent 2).
• Eric Braeden will do a meet and greet from 12-3 p.m. (Tent 3).

In addition, Nickelodeon’s Jimmy Neutron, Boomerang’s Fred and Barney of “The Flintstones” and Scooby-Doo and Shaggy of “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” presented by Time Warner Cable, will be greeting Sun Fun Festival guests throughout the day. National recording artists Third Eye Blind will perform on the main stage at 7 p.m. As the perfect ending to a perfect day, a spectacular fireworks extravaganza, presented by Melrose Pyrotechnics, will be displayed over the lake immediately after the Third Eye Blind performance at approximately 9 p.m.

The Grand Strand’s summer festival season begins with the 57th annual Sun Fun Festival June 5-9 and ends with the Beach, Boogie & BBQ Festival Aug. 29-30. Sponsored by the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, the festivals offer days full of free, family-friendly events, headline concerts and much, much more. The Sun Fun Festival will offer hot air balloon and boat rides, celebrity meet and greets, sporting events, food and arts/crafts vendors, a parade of favorite kids’ characters, to name a few activities. For a complete list of events, visit SunFunFestival.com.