Last night, the Stand-Up for Animals PETA benefit show at the famous Comedy Store on L.A.'s Sunset Strip was funnier than a barrel of animatronic monkeys.

Bill Maher, Jane Lynch, Carol Leifer, Jeffrey Ross, Marc Maron, and host Fred Willard—in other words, some of the most talented comedians in the world—came together to raise money for PETA and kept the packed house laughing until the audience's sides hurt. 

Guests included Pink, Carey Hart, Olivia Munn, Cloris Leachman, Jorja Fox, Christian Serratos, Renee Olstead, Elisabetta Canalis, Emily Osment, and Moby, many of whom tried valiantly not to do spit takes with The Comedy Store's delicious vegan snacks while laughing at Jeffrey Ross' hysterical poem to his cat or Carol Leifer's explanation that she had to go vegan because being a Jewish lesbian wasn't enough.

Bill Maher quipped, "Before PETA was around, you know, you could f-ck with animals any way, anybody, anytime, anywhere, and now you can't. That's a pretty big change in the world. That's a big achievement. … Animals will not be ignored. They're the Glenn Close of species."

And with all the funds raised by the end of the night, PETA can make sure that animal abusers won't be laughing for long.

CSI star Jorja Fox thinks that everyone should play detective and investigate how animals are killed for food. Jorja unveiled her pro-vegetarian PETA ad to an enthusiastic crowd Sunday at Fort Lauderdale's gourmet vegan restaurant, Sublime, which is owned by PETA member and activist extraordinaire Nanci Alexander.

Jorja even got things cooking in the kitchen, helping the chefs with the evening's delicious cruelty-free feast, which included spicy Singapore street noodles, "chicken" picatta, and gourmet pizzas topped with Thai peanut sauce, vegan caviar, homemade barbecue sauce, and other exotic toppings.

Fox went vegetarian years ago—halfway through a sandwich. "I was having a meatball sub one day in Brooklyn, and it just clicked," she explains. "I was in the middle of that sandwich, and I put it down, and I never had meat again."

CSI fans: Follow Jorja's advice and do some sleuthing into the meat industry by clicking here.

Written by Michelle Sherrow

Who shot J.R.? Currently, TNT is shooting the Dallas patriarch for the reincarnation of the show coming next summer. And Larry Hagman is having a reincarnation of his own off the set: Switching to a vegetarian diet is helping him fight cancer.

Bob Barker and Jorja Fox are waging a fight of their own—for the elephants, tigers, and lions who are forced to spend a lifetime in chains just so that people can have a few minutes of "entertainment." The pair traveled to Washington, D.C., to ask congressional representatives to support the Traveling Exotic Animal Protection Act, which would bar circuses from using wild animals.

The Toronto Maple Leafs' Mike Zigomanis might call himself a lover, not a fighter. The decorated Most Gentlemanly Player takes his thoughtfulness to the kitchen, too, where he whips up amazing vegan smorgasbords that make us nonchefs feel as inferior as his opponents do on the ice.  

The lovely Sasha Grey scored a goal: she just adopted a furry new companion, her rescued dog, MacReady.

You'll find no fur on Placebo drummer Steve Forrest, who stars in a new anti-fur ad for PETA U.K.:

Photo: © Kayla Wren

Fellow fur foe Leona Lewis is launching her own Project Runway of sorts, offering aspiring designers a chance to create an outfit that she will wear on tour and be photographed in. And she has specified that the designers must "make it work" without harming any animals—Leona only wears cruelty-free fashion.

Written by Michelle Sherrow

With Sweden poised to consider whether it should ban all fur factory farms (the country has already banned fox fur farms), the Stockholm-based Animal Rights Alliance has just released a new video showing the horrors that it found during its undercover investigation of 17 mink farms across the country. To help ensure that the footage is seen by decisionmakers, CSI star Jorja Fox sent the video to Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt along with a letter describing the nightmarish conditions on Swedish fur farms—conditions that clearly violate Sweden's Animal Welfare Act. You only have to watch the first 30 seconds of this undercover footage to understand exactly why fur farming must end, but please show it to people who might need a bit of a push.

Written by Jeff Mackey

Got plans this upcoming Monday night? Cancel them. Spend the evening with Jane Velez-Mitchell instead! If you've watched her show, Issues With Jane Velez-Mitchell on Headline News (HLN), you know that this longtime vegan and PETA supporter is a dedicated animal rights activist who never misses an opportunity to speak up for animals. Now, she's hosting an unprecedented hour-long special devoted entirely to animal rights!

An exciting opportunity to bring animal welfare issues to the masses, Jane's show will take on topics such as the impact that the oil spill is having on animals, factory farming, the government's round-up of wild horses, the breeding of monkeys in Puerto Rico, and so much more. The program will also include interviews with PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange, Bob Barker, and actors Pierce Brosnan, and Jorja Fox. So grab your friends (or set your DVR), and watch!

"Jane Fights for Animal Rights" will air on Monday, July 5, at 7 p.m. ET on Headline News (HLN).

It's important to show networks that people are interested in animal rights issues, so please watch the program and thank CNN for airing it. Head on over to Facebook to RSVP to this event, and we'll even remind you to tune in!

Written by Amy Skylark Elizabeth

If you've been holding your breath waiting for the day when rats are no longer shoved into tiny containers and forced to breathe chemicals for six hours a day for up to 90 days in order to test chemicals and products such as cigarettes, asbestos, popcorn butter flavoring, jet fuel, and household stain removers, you are probably blue in the face by now. But you may be able to breathe a sigh of relief soon.

Scientists have developed a new apparatus called a lung-on-a-chip that can be used to replace these cruel chemical tests. This artificial lung can mimic the physiology of the organ and can even "breathe."According to a story in New Scientist, the device, which behaves like a real lung, is an "encouraging sign that ethically acceptable and cheaper alternatives to animal testing may be on the way."

PETA's regulatory testing experts (or, as I call them, "really smart staffers") are working hard to reform the government's chemical testing practices and are trying to get government officials to implement modern technology like the lung-on-a-chip. You can help by urging your senators to require the use of alternatives to animal tests in government testing programs. It is the 21st century, after all.

Written by Heather Moore

If you chose "B," you paid more attention in history class than I did.

Washington, D.C., is issuing a license plate commemorating the bicentennial of the War of 1812, in which parts of the city were burned—including the White House and the Capitol—and they're asking the public for design submissions.

Of course, PETA could not resist the challenge of finding an animal rights message in a 200-year-old war—but rather than focus on that unfortunate burning-of-D.C. thing, we thought it would be better to focus on the national anthem, which was written after a U.S. victory. How does this patriotic play on words strike you?

Written by Alisa Mullins

Phil Guest / CC by 2.0

Animals in Jersey City can rest a lot easier this Fourth of July now that a planned fireworks display has been canceled because of a lack of funds. We're asking city officials to end all future fireworks displays and replace them with less costly, more entertaining laser light shows instead.

Fireworks sound like all-out war to dogs, cats, and wildlife and can have devastating consequences. Just ask J.J., the terrified dog Karin wrote about in her recent blog post. My dog, Henry, and I are planning to just chill at home this year and have our own little laser light show (which consists of him chasing a laser pointer). Good times.

You, too, can ensure that a good (and safe) time is had by everyone in your household by following these dog-and-cat-approved fireworks survival tips. And of course, Happy Fourth of July!

Written by Amy Skylark Elizabeth

The flaxen-haired superheroes of Michael Troy's high-larious new comic book, Blonde Squad, may not be the brightest bulbs on the tree, but their hearts are definitely in the right place. For instance, the team's sorta-psychic, Psight, is less offended by a telepathic death threat from the scheming brunette, Dark Swan, than she is by the fact that their nemesis is wearing fur. Then there's the fun fact that the whole Blonde Squad posed for a new PETA ad, proudly—if a bit nonsensically—proclaiming, "We'd Rather Be Blonde Than Wear Fur!"

You've got to love a comic that not only features a villain who disappears with a big "FABOOSH!"—and heroes who don't quite grasp that "BS" means more than the group's initials—but that can also manage to make a point about the cruelty of the fur industry (an ability shared by the bold heroines of Bluewater Comics). And even though I'm blonde (or blond), I think I got most of the jokes—as well as the point: You don't need superpowers to be a hero who stands up for animals who are killed for their fur.

You can order the first issue of Blonde Squad here, and you should also check out Michael's blog.

Written by Jeff Mackey