WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama asked members of his finance team yesterday to help Hillary Rodham Clinton pay off at least $10 million of the debt from her failed White House bid.

In an afternoon teleconference with his top fundraisers, Obama asked them to "do what they could do" to help Clinton, according to a Democrat familiar with the call.

A campaign spokesman also confirmed that Obama had asked them to help the former first lady.

"Some of our donors have asked and Barack said if they have the ability to raise or give money to help on debt, we encourage them to do so," spokesman Robert Gibbs said.

Obama's directive came two days before he and Clinton meet in Washington tomorrow with some of her top fundraisers to get them on board with his campaign after their bruising contest for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Obama clinched the nomination earlier this month; Clinton suspended her campaign and endorsed him.

Clinton ended May $22 million in the red. More than half of the total was her own money that she poured into the campaign.

Yesterday, former President Bill Clinton offered to help Obama win the White House, although what work he'll do for his wife's former rival remained uncertain.

The Obama campaign is still smarting over some of Bill Clinton's criticism in the primary race, while the last Democratic president remains a popular political draw. But before the two can work together, they have to speak.

Obama and Hillary Clinton have taken steps to join efforts in the past three weeks — she met with him privately, endorsed his campaign and will campaign with him Friday. But the former Democratic president and the man running to be the next one haven't talked since the campaign ended.

Obama spokesman Bill Burton said the 42nd president came up in a phone call between Obama and Hillary Clinton on Sunday. They talked about how Obama should connect with Bill Clinton in the future, Burton said.

Last night, movie stars Samuel L. Jackson and John Malkovich, big-name directors and other celebrities turned out to contribute to Obama's campaign.

Obama's campaign would not say how much was raised, but Democratic officials said the event raised nearly $5 million. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the numbers publicly.

The guest list for the gala, in which top tickets cost more than $30,000, included actor Jennifer Beals, models Heidi Klum and Cindy Crawford and boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard.

Also seen was Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am, who created two music videos for Obama during the primary season — including one called "Yes We Can" that set music to clips from his speeches.

Obama's campaign and the Democratic National Committee will share the money raised at the gala. The asking ticket price for the gala's general reception was $2,300; tickets to a VIP dinner were $28,500. The DNC would get the $28,500 donations and Obama would get the $2,300 share.

The list of famous donors who already have given to Obama includes George Clooney, Will Smith, Jennifer Aniston and Oprah Winfrey.

McCain and the Republican National Committee raised a combined $7 million at a similar joint fundraiser in New York last month that was hosted by New York Jets owner Woody Johnson.

Shattering records, Obama had raised more than $287 million through the end of May. Last week, he reversed an earlier promise and said he would not take public financing for the general election. The move lifts the cap on what he can spend, allowing him to pour hundreds of millions more into his campaign against Republican John McCain, who has said he would take public financing and has criticized Obama's decision.