Ouch! Celebs “die” for charity; and fans don’t notice.

Lots of A-list celebrities learned an awful truth this past week—apparently their fans don’t care whether they live or “die.”

It was a good idea on paper: To coincide with World AIDS Day on December 1, celebrities from music, fashion, television and film would swear off Facebook and Twitter until their fans rallied to raise $1 million dollars to benefit Keep a Child Alive, a nonprofit that supports families affected by HIV/AIDS.

The campaign was the brainchild of Alicia Keys. She rallied a star-packed list of celebrities who agreed to “die” digitally: Lady Gaga, Jennifer Hudson, Kim Kardashian, Lenny Kravitz, David LaChapelle, Janelle Monae, Ryan Seacrest, Swizz Beatz, Justin Timberlake, Serena Williams, Usher and many others. Some of them posed as well-lit corpses in coffins in a provocative advertising campaign designed to boost awareness and controversy. One problem: It didn’t work.

Their fans didn’t rally and as World AIDS Day came and went, and the weekend dragged on, it became painfully clear, with only a few hundred thousand dollars collected, the celebs were not going to reach their lofty goal anytime soon. Usher was apparently the first A-lister to blow off his promise and resumed Tweeting on Sunday night.

Never fear, however! Zillionaire philanthropist Stewart Rahr, a former pharmaceutical executive, coughed up more than $500,000 to make the goal and allow the celebrities to get back to the business of self-promotion.

CLICK HERE for the Keep a Child Alive website.