Springsteen Auctions Guitar, Lasagna for $300K

The 8th annual Stand Up For Heroes comedy and music mash-up in New York this week raised more than $1 million, and more than half of that was thanks to Bruce Springsteen. He managed to auction off a heck of a night (a guitar he has played, an hour-long lesson on how to play it, a ride in the sidecar of his motorcycle, and a lasagna dinner at his house) for $300,000—and he auctioned off two such packages, reports the AP.

Springsteen, who performed a five-song solo acoustic set that included "Born in the USA" and "Dancing in the Dark," had quite a lineup of opening acts, including comedians Jon Stewart, John Oliver, and Louis C.K. Oliver, host of "Last Week Tonight," described how scared he was during Superstorm Sandy in 2012: "I'm not sure many people in this room will identify with that level of cowardice," he told the audience of veterans. Over the course of the year, Stand Up For Heroes has raised $6 million. (Springsteen also makes an appearance at Rutgers, where his songs are the central focus of a theology course.)