The only real excitement at the staid Republican Convention was a televised birthday celebration for former President Gerald Ford. Engineered by California's lieutenant governor, Mike Curb, the gala featured a galaxy of Hollywood stars, including Jimmy Stewart, Buddy Ebsen, Wayne Newton, Michael Landon, Donny and Marie Osmond, Vicki Carr and Glen Campbell. Kicking it off was a rousing rendition of the Star Spangled Banner by pint-sized sexpot singer, Tanya Tucker.

Politicos and entertainers might seem like strange bedfellows. But party bigwigs routinely recruit celebrities to add an aura of glamor and glitter to what otherwise might be deadly dull political contests. An endorsement by a big name performer can translate into cash and media coverage.

The Federal Election Reform Act of 1974, which limited individual contributions to $1,000, substantially changed the political fundraising game. Generating money at the grassroots level, particularly during the primaries, is now a matter of survival. With no limits on the amount of time stars can donate to their favorite politician's cause, it's not surprising top-notch talents are courted assiduously and negotiations as to the extent of their participation can be as diplomatically delicate as the Salt talks.

All three of the major presidential candidates have corraled a constellation of stars in their corner. Firmly entrenched in the Carter camp are country and western favorites Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Hank Snow, Johnny Cash and Tom T. Hall, as well as Mary Tyler Moore, Muhammad Ali, Neil Simon, Marsha Mason, Lee Majors, Elizabeth Montgomery, Sarah Vaughn and Rosy Grier.

Reagan's line-up of luminaries, in addition to those who performed at the Convention, includes Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, James Cagney, Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Robert Stack, Chad Everett, Pat Boone, Loretta Young and Zsa Zsa Gabor.

There have been no defections from Kennedy's all-star team. Backers such as Shelly Winters, Angie Dickinson, Goldie Hawn, Martin Sheen, Bette Davis, Jack Lemmon and Warren Beatty are sitting out the general election. But liberals like Norman Lear, Paul Newman, Ed Asner, Margot Kidder, Melissa Gilbert, Jason Robards, Gavin McLeod, Todd Rungren and James Taylor have thrown their support to John Anderson. And there are indications that Brown-booster Helen Reddy may join their ranks.

Lear and Newman are prime examples of what a celebrity's support can do for a candidate. Lear has hosted parties, put the financial squeeze on friends and promoted the Illinois Congressman's candidacy across the country. And who else but Paul Newman would have been given the opportunity to plug Anderson on national television during the Democratic National Convention?

Linda Ronstadt may not stuff envelopes, but she's helped Jerry Brown's political career more than dozens of hardworking volunteers. The rock star practically bankrolled the California governor's quixotic presidential bid through proceeds from two benefit concerts in San Diego and Las Vegas which pumped over $300,000 into Brown's campaign coffers.

Concerts have proved to be the most profitable and popular method of fundraising. The gate from these events, less operating expenses, goes directly the candidate's war chest. During the primaries, any of the take over the fair market value of the tickets qualified for federal matching funds. And the pay-off can be enormous.

Last fall, two performances by Wayne Newton in Texas and one featuring Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin in Boston raked in over $300,000 for Reagan. An event in New York on of the eve the Democratic Convention pairing Loretta Lynn and Roberta Flack added close to $200,000 to Carter's coffers. Charlie Daniels, Johnny Cash, Jimmy Buffet, and Dionne Warwick have also put on shows which have brought in big bucks for the President.

This September, Willie Nelson, who's already done several benefits for Carter serenaded over 10,000 listeners at a large venue outside Washington, D.C., generating over $200,000. James Taylor, the perennial lefty, has done six concerts for Anderson. And the independent candidate's imaginative backers paired jazz flutist Herbie Mann with "Saturday Night Live's" Franken and Davis for another event.

"These concerts are the way to go," Jeff Wald, business manager for several top stars including his wife, Helen Reddy, said in a recent interview. Wald, one of Brown's principal fundraisers, adds, "in 1972, (Los Angeles businessman) Max Palevsky gave at least $250,000 to the McGovern campaign.

"That sort of thing is over now. To get that kind of money, you just about have to turn to concerts. Jimmy Carter was almost out of it because of money difficulties early in 1976 (but) a concert by the Allman Brothers allowed him to keep going. And they are, after all, a harmless way of getting funds."

"However," cautions Barbara Silby, coordinator of Artists and Athletes for Carter-Mondale, "the music industry is depressed right now, so we have to be more careful who we put on the bill. We are using these people more judiciously, depending on their drawing power.

If the stars can't sing, campaign committees have little trouble cooking up other ways to put their names and talents to money-making use. Last March, receipts for one night's performance of Neil Simon's latest smash, "I Oughta Be in Pictures," went to Carter's campaign, and Silby says other legitimate theatrical shows are in the offing this fall around the country. Just prior to the Democratic convention a vaudeville show featuring Jule Styne and Leonard Bernstein generated funds to clean up some of Kennedy's campaign debts.

House parties, with a guest list culled from the well-heeled friends and associates of the celebrity, also bring in the bucks. This spring, fashion designer Pauline Trigere hosted a posh bash for the Fifth Avenue crowd, with the proceeds going to John Anderson. Actress Margot Kidder, a highly visible Anderson booster, threw a gala at her Beverly Hills digs after the first television debate in September. Helen Reddy brought some of her buddies together for a postconvention consolation party for Kennedy supporters such as Elliott Gould, Carroll O'Connor, Burt Bacharach, Jackie Cooper and Francis Lear.

Since both major presidential candidates get $29.5 million from the federal government to bankroll their bids, fundraisers generally take a back seat after the conventions (although both parties are allowed to raise two cents per voter, which translates into several million dollars). The emphasis shifts to allout campaigning. Celebrities do commercials or head out for the hinterlands on speaking engagements.

A star in a television spot will certainly arouse far more viewer interest than the politician himself. When Henry Fonda, exuding the folksy charm which has endeared him to generations of moviegoers, strode into our living rooms earnestly asking our support for Tom Hayden, it implicitly tied the former radical's senatorial bid to the kind of values Fonda has exemplified for the American public. The fact that Hank was stumping for his son-in-law did little to lessen the impression the veteran actor made on voters.

It certainly didn't hurt Kennedy when Carroll O'Connor, flashing that same baleful look Archie Bunker reserves for "Meathead," denounced Reagan and urged us to vote for the Senator. And who could possibly resist the nation's most famous G-man, Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., whose very presence invokes the same heartfelt traditions of God and country, pitching for Ronald Reagan?

These "star wars" are a long-standing Hollywood tradition. Some political observers say it dates back to the 1944 campaign of Franklin Roosevelt. On the eve of that election, a group of celebrities, led by Orson Welles, went on the radio extolling FDR's virtues.

Wald says the practice goes back even further. Silent movie stars went on the stump for Woodrow Wilson, and Al Jolson was active in Warren G. Harding's successful presidential bid.

Over the years, stars have given colorless candidates an added edge of glamor. Adlai Stevenson came off like an icy egghead to many voters. But when Hollywood's gritty tough guy, Humphrey Bogart, and his saucy wife, Lauren Bacall, threw their support to Stevenson, it aided in making him more palatable to the general public.

Entertainers' involvement in presidential politics reached its height during John Kennedy's campaign. The late President's Hollywood connection was legendary and pundits joked that he was going to appoint Frank Sinatra the Secretary of State. At the convention, there were so many luminaries jockeying for a position on the podium, from Marlene Dietrich to Marilyn Monroe, it's a good thing Kennedy had enough of his own charisma or he might have been totally overshadowed.

Hollywood's involvement in politics has diminished in recent years, some believe. "Contributions have dropped a each election their participation has been less and less," according to Jules Glazer, a member of the Democratic National Committee and a long time party bigwig. Glazer attributes the decline to the same disillusionment with the political process that has taken root among the rest of the electorate.

There are also real professional risks for an actor who stumps for a politician. "When you endorse any candidate, as least half the population thinks you're wrong," points out Pat Boone, who was a Reagan delegate at the 1976 convention and has narrated a fundraising film for the current campaign.

"Some don't like to get involved because it may hurt them commercially," says Silby. "People won't go to see their movies."

Indeed, when Charlton Heston went on civil rights marches in the Sixties, Moses or no Moses, studio bosses were counting heads in the South. But Heston, who's served on the board of the American Film Institute and been active in the actor's strike, takes his civic responsibilities seriously and is slated to do commercials for Reagan.

However, as one source astutely observes, Heston can afford to be visible. Others are not as fortunate. One performer who is the spokesperson for a nationally known product has been champing at the bit to publicly endorse Anderson. But advisors persuaded the star to keep that preference under wraps.

Other celebrities shy away from politics because they may influence the public. "I have not come forward many times when the subject was political," Carol Burnett stated in a recent interview. "I've always thought 'what if I'm wrong? I could sway a lot of people, and my vote should be private.' "

"Why shouldn't I get involved?" counters Boone. "Entertainers are citizens, too. We shouldn't have to give up the rights and privileges of citizenship just because we are in the public eye.

"But I do feel we have to be careful about offering support to a candidate or a cause, because an entertainer might exert more influence than the average person."

James MacArthur, another Reagan booster, sees things a little differently. "Among certain stratas of the population, there could be a backlash, but I don't think that actors getting into the political arena affects their careers. Just because one's an actor doesn't mean we should be penalized because we have a broader forum due to the nature of our business.

"Besides, I'm not so sure how much influence actors really have," he adds. "And anyone who votes for a candidate solely on the advice of his favorite actor isn't too bright in my book."