New York, June 29, 2007 – We stopped by the Apple store in New York City’s Soho on Friday afternoon, and among the hordes of techies waiting for the fabled iPhone to finally go on sale, we found Spike Lee at the front of the line. But the film director wasn’t pulling celebrity rank – he joined the folks from Keep a Child Alive, an organization that fights AIDS in Africa. Lee purchased the first iPhone for KCA’s online auction; the purchase price includes tickets to the organization’s Black Ball in October, where Alicia Keys will present the iPhone to the high bidder.

Spike surveyed the crowd, which stretched down the block and around the corner, and then pointed to the store’s sign overhead, and warned Apple employees that that’s where they’d end up hanging if they didn’t have enough iPhones for everyone.

Whoopi Goldberg appeared, and greeted Lee with a hug and a chat before disappearing into the belly of the iPhone madness.

Learn more about Keep A Child Alive here

Bid on the iPhone here