Crush Hour

To handpick Northeast Ohio's 40 most eligible bachelors and bachelorettes, the region's Easter Seals chapter will liquor up unattached studs and babes at tonight's Pre-Crush Happy Hour. Judges will interview unmarried candidates over a few drinks, hoping to determine which saucy singles can raise some cash this Valentine's Day, when the cream of the crop will be auctioned off at the annual Crush Party, at Silk Nightclub in the Flats. After passing the judges' interviews, each single will have a couple months to create an auction date package — which could range from a picnic at Blossom Music Center for a Cleveland Orchestra concert to a dinner and private wine-tasting in Little Italy. In the past, packages have been as creative as a nine-hole round of night golf with glow-in-the-dark balls and flags. Some bachelors have even footed the bill for overnight trips to Las Vegas, Orlando, and Nashville. But don't sweat the cost: Easter Seals will help you find sponsors to pay for the dates. "We have to try and talk each single person into doing this, which could be a challenge," says Kelly Schurdell, the agency's special-events manager. "They have to be brave souls." Interviews run from 6 to 9 tonight at Anatomy, 1299 West Ninth Street. You should be single — or at least give your wife a head's up. Admission is free. Call 440-838-0990.
Thu., Dec. 20, 6-9 p.m., 2007