[3] Actress Shirley MacLaine had been campaigning so strongly for McGovern in 1972 that her agent threatened to quit, as she was turning down acting roles in films.

[4] One of MacLaine's contacts at Madison Square Garden told her that the Republicans had forfeited a block of dates at the arena; they had failed to pay the advance deposit.

She began calling performers, and amassed a list of celebrity ushers such as writer Tina Sinatra whose famous father was campaigning for Nixon.

[7] Famous people serving as ushers included Beatty, Helen Gahagan Douglas, James Earl Jones, Gloria Steinem and more.

[2] With the crowd still taking their seats,[11] MacLaine introduced Dionne Warwicke who sang a handful of her Bacharach–David hits and asked everyone to vote for McGovern.

Marlo Thomas read a parody excerpt of Erich Segal's Love Story, ending with "Voting for George McGovern means never having to say you're sorry.

They were joined by Cass Elliot to sing political parody lyrics over pop standards, one of them questioning Nixon's National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger.

"[11] Mary Travers followed with a powerful rendition of "I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free", then she had the whole arena join in singing "Blowin' in the Wind".

[11] Judy Collins sang and recited poetry by Bertolt Brecht;[11] she was backed by her band which included the only female supporting musician on stage that night, drummer Sue Evans.

[6] After 3½ hours of entertainment and politics, the evening concluded with a singalong of "America the Beautiful", led by Steinem, Kennedy, Travers and Turner.

She was eating dinner at a Mexican restaurant with consultant Bob Shrum and journalist Pete Hamill, thinking there was plenty of time, when they heard that the television news media was already calling victory for Nixon.

"[12] MacLaine later estimated that she had spent $250,000 of her own money on the 1972 campaign, equivalent to $1,821,000 in 2023, paying for extensive travel, lodging, meals, parties, and innumerable organizational details.