By Todd Cunningham
LOS ANGELES, March 4 (TheWrap.com) - Presidential candidate Ron Paul will make a fundraising pitch to Republicans and backers on Tuesday, March 20, in Los Angeles, TheWrap has learned.
The $2,500-per plate dinner will take place at the Los Angeles home of Mark Spitznagel, the co-founder and chief investment officer of hedge fund Universa Investments.
Leading Republican candidate Mitt Romney will follow with his own L.A. fundraiser on March 27.
Romney took in an estimated $1 million at a Beverly Hills fundraiser in December. The bulk of that money came from investment fund sources rather than Hollywood figures.
Paul's invitation lists no industry figures, although Spitznagel's home was previously owned by Jennifer Lopez. Spitznagel is known for his value- and derivatives-based stock market investing, and made huge profits during the financial crisis of 2008 by having essentially bet on the crash.
Paul will give a talk after a 7:30 cocktail reception, followed by dinner at 8:30. Also speaking will be Nassim Taleb, author of "The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable," a treatise on human behavior upon which Spitznagel has in part based his bearish investment strategies.
Speaking Sunday on CBS' "Face the Nation," Paul predicted that he would win all three states holding caucuses on "Super Tuesday" March 6: Alaska, Idaho, and North Dakota. Seven other states are holding primary elections that day.
Hollywood Republicans increasingly have come out of the shadows in this election cycle.
President Barack Obama was in town recently, rubbing elbows with Hollywood supporters, and raised an estimated $4 million at a star-studded event at an event in Holmby Hills.
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