LoungeMachine
03-05-2005, 11:04 AM
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (March 4) - Republican media adviser R. Gregory Stevens, recently co-chairman of the Bush/Cheney Entertainment Task Force, died in a guest room at the home of longtime friend and actress Carrie Fisher. He was 42.
Stevens was found dead by Fisher last Saturday at 10:14 a.m., said David Campbell of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office. An autopsy failed to immediately determine the cause of death and the coroner was awaiting lab results.
Foul play wasn't suspected, Campbell said Friday.
Fisher, the daughter of actress Debbie Reynolds and actor Eddie Fisher, played Princess Leia in the "Star Wars" trilogy, and she is the author of several books, including "Postcards From the Edge" which became a successful movie starring Meryl Streep.
Fisher's publicist Carol Marshall said Friday the actress was "distressed," and was waiting to hear a cause of death from the coroner.
"He's one of her best friends," Marshall said. "He was staying at her house as many of her friends do when they come into town."
Stevens, an associate with the Washington lobbying group Barbour Griffith & Rogers, specialized in foreign campaign consulting and has advised candidates in 24 international elections, according to his biography on the Barber Griffith & Rogers Web site.
He consulted on political operations in Costa Rica, Hungary, Kenya, Macedonia, Montenegro, Nigeria, South Korea, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Thailand and Togo.
Telephone messages left Friday for Barbour Griffith & Rogers spokesman Loren Monroe weren't immediately returned.
During last year's Bush for President campaign, Stevens served as co-chairman of the Bush/Cheney Entertainment Task Force and managed the campaign's relationships with key entertainment industry leaders and film, television and music celebrities.
He served as director of Entertainment Outreach for the 2001 Presidential Inaugural Committee, where he recruited and directed celebrity involvement on behalf of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
During the administration of former President George H.W. Bush, Stevens served as special assistant to Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Jack Kemp. Before that, he was deputy executive director of the California Republican Party where he directed financial operations for the successful Pete Wilson gubernatorial campaign.
From 1984 to 1987, Stevens was assistant to Drew Lewis, chairman of Warner-Amex Cable Communications Inc. During his tenure, he was appointed by President Reagan to assist Drew Lewis efforts as special envoy to Canada for acid rain.
Stevens also served on the Reagan-Bush 1984 re-election campaign as an assistant to Lewis, who was then chairman of national strategy and the Reagan-Bush Platform Team.
Stevens, a native of San Clemente, received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Southern California.
Funeral arrangements weren't disclosed.
Stevens was found dead by Fisher last Saturday at 10:14 a.m., said David Campbell of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office. An autopsy failed to immediately determine the cause of death and the coroner was awaiting lab results.
Foul play wasn't suspected, Campbell said Friday.
Fisher, the daughter of actress Debbie Reynolds and actor Eddie Fisher, played Princess Leia in the "Star Wars" trilogy, and she is the author of several books, including "Postcards From the Edge" which became a successful movie starring Meryl Streep.
Fisher's publicist Carol Marshall said Friday the actress was "distressed," and was waiting to hear a cause of death from the coroner.
"He's one of her best friends," Marshall said. "He was staying at her house as many of her friends do when they come into town."
Stevens, an associate with the Washington lobbying group Barbour Griffith & Rogers, specialized in foreign campaign consulting and has advised candidates in 24 international elections, according to his biography on the Barber Griffith & Rogers Web site.
He consulted on political operations in Costa Rica, Hungary, Kenya, Macedonia, Montenegro, Nigeria, South Korea, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Thailand and Togo.
Telephone messages left Friday for Barbour Griffith & Rogers spokesman Loren Monroe weren't immediately returned.
During last year's Bush for President campaign, Stevens served as co-chairman of the Bush/Cheney Entertainment Task Force and managed the campaign's relationships with key entertainment industry leaders and film, television and music celebrities.
He served as director of Entertainment Outreach for the 2001 Presidential Inaugural Committee, where he recruited and directed celebrity involvement on behalf of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney.
During the administration of former President George H.W. Bush, Stevens served as special assistant to Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Jack Kemp. Before that, he was deputy executive director of the California Republican Party where he directed financial operations for the successful Pete Wilson gubernatorial campaign.
From 1984 to 1987, Stevens was assistant to Drew Lewis, chairman of Warner-Amex Cable Communications Inc. During his tenure, he was appointed by President Reagan to assist Drew Lewis efforts as special envoy to Canada for acid rain.
Stevens also served on the Reagan-Bush 1984 re-election campaign as an assistant to Lewis, who was then chairman of national strategy and the Reagan-Bush Platform Team.
Stevens, a native of San Clemente, received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Southern California.
Funeral arrangements weren't disclosed.