Media-Whore D'Oeuvres





"If you ever got to play a snowflake in the Kindergarten Christmas pageant, you would have felt right at home in the ballroom at Cipriani 42nd St. during last night's UNICEF 2008 Snowflake Ball. Snowflakes were everywhere -- on the tress, on the tables, projected onto the ceiling, and in the coveted little Tiffany gift boxes. Lucy Liu (who a photographer said was 'gorgeous enough to raise the dead') and Gary Cohen were honored by the non-profit, and Ms. Liu pointed out that with the current economic crisis, UNICEF's role was that much more vital, as children will be suffering more than ever. Others in attendance were Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Barbara Bush, David Lauren and Lauren Bush, Tea Leoni, Matt Lauer and Cecily Tyson." (Caroline Torem Craig/Papermag)

"We almost choked on our sushi when (George Clooney) walked through the door of our favourite London restaurant, Nobu, and plonked himself down at the next table .. Glancing over at our mouth-watering black miso cod, sashimi and soft shell crab, George said: 'Hmm, that looks good, girls. Let’s order everything.' He wasn’t just talking about the food. A round of vodka, champagne and beer later and his party were rocking the restaurant with infectious laughter ..And we have to say, George was the perfect gentleman (damn and blast). Clearly unable to choose between us, he swapped numbers with a petite brunette cocktail waitress instead." (3AMGirls)

"I've been hearing a rumor for the past few days that DreamWorks 2.0 supposedly can't get a bank loan. Here's what my reporting turned up: the heads of the start-up independent film company, Stacey Snider and Steven Spielberg, were advised to slow down the bank syndication process in order to let the capital markets stabilize in these volatile financal times." (DeadlineHollywoodDaily)

"There are no signs that point the way to Markaz-e-Taiba except for the sudden appearance of closely situated gas stations, and even a housing settlement, with conspicuously Quranic names. But everyone in this area of Pakistan seems to know where this alleged stronghold of the outlawed militant group Lashkar-e- Taiba is located. Since India's claims of the organization's involvement in the Mumbai attacks, it has been speculated that this 'Center of the Pious' could be a potential target of highly unlikely but still-feared Indian airstrikes within Pakistan proper. In a rare gesture, the center opened its doors to journalists on Thursday to counter what it said was Indian propaganda." (Fasih Ahmed/Newsweek)

"It's slim pickings left for high-profile White House hopefuls, as bold-face names like Clinton and Gates have taken some of the plum postings. With the inner circle occupied, most of the jockeying now focuses on powerful, lower-profile sub-Cabinet positions. But there are a few gems left for the taking as Barack Obama fills out his White House roster - including a few that might be uniquely Obama." (Politico)

"After the Plaza I couldn’t resist stopping by Michael’s to see if I missed anything. All kinds of Hollywood there too. Ron Howard was being interview in the bay about his new film 'Nixon/Frost.' Bonnie Timmerman was occupying my regular table. Liz Smith was lunching with the Daily Variety’s Peter Bart and his wife Phyllis, in from L.A. Right next to them, movie mogul Herb Siegel was lunching with former actor/now entrepreneur businessman Wayne Rogers. On the other side of Liz’ table, her old friend Joe Armstrong was lunching with Dr. Sarah Simms Rosenthal." (NYSocialDiary)

"PAGE SIX Magazine is a starmaker. After the profile of bisexual publisher Neal Boulton in last Sunday's Post, Boulton was swamped with offers of books and reality shows about his lifestyle. Yesterday, he inked a deal with literary agent Donna Bagdasarian over lunch at Cipriani to pen a memoir. The article related how Boulton - who infamously made out with Jann Wenner in front of Time Warner Center, as we first reported - has been in an open marriage for 16 years with the bisexual mom of his two kids, Claire Boulton. Neal told us he's ecstatic, quipping, 'I'll be able to afford all of the Botox I need.'" (PageSix)

"Even those who have plenty left to spend aren’t spending it. 'I ran into a couple I always see at the antiques show,' one Upper East Side woman recounts of her visit to the Armory show on Park Avenue. 'They always buy something fairly grand. ‘What have you bought this time?' I asked. 'Oh, nothing!' they said. 'We’d feel .. ashamed.' Another Upper East Side woman often goes from lunch at Michael’s restaurant on West 55th Street to Manolo Blahnik a block away to pick up a $600 or $700 pair of shoes as 'retail therapy.' No more. 'I was at Michael’s yesterday and was thinking, Oh, Manolo’s .. But then I thought, Why? Why do that? It just doesn’t feel good.' Only months ago, ordering that $1,950 bottle of 2003 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon at Craft restaurant or the $26-per-ounce Wagyu beef at Nobu, or sliding into Masa for the $600 prix fixe dinner (not including tax, tip, or drinks), was a way of life for many Wall Street investment bankers. 'The culture was that if you didn’t spend extravagantly you’d be ridiculed at work,' says a former Lehmanite. But that was when there were investment banks .. The new thriftiness takes a bit of getting used to." (Michael Shnayerson/Vanity Fair)

"President-elect Barack Obama has appointed an extraordinary team for national security policy. On its face, it violates certain maxims of conventional wisdom: that appointing to the Cabinet individuals with an autonomous constituency, and who therefore are difficult to fire, circumscribes presidential control; that appointing as national security adviser, secretary of state and secretary of defense individuals with established policy views may absorb the president's energies in settling disputes among strong-willed advisers ..The security adviser inevitably has the advantage of propinquity. His or her office is 50 feet from the president's; the secretary of state is 10 minutes away. That difference seems to ensure special access for the security adviser. Then, institutionally, the security adviser works almost exclusively on problems of concern to the president. The secretary of state has many clients around the world requiring attention, sometimes not of overwhelming presidential interest. The secretary also travels frequently, while the security adviser is almost always within reach of the president. His special relationship to the president requires a delicacy in conduct not always achieved by security advisers, including myself." (Henry Kissinger/WashPo via TheDailyBeast)

"Reports of the death of the power lunch are, by the looks of things at Michael's today, most definitely premature. It will be a sure sign of the apocalypse when the regulars at 55th & Fifth stop showing up to cook up their next big move over burgers and Cobb salads ... (Table 3) 'Mayor' Joe Armstrong and Carl Bernstein .. (Table 4) Tommy Mottola and an unidentified older gentleman ... (Table 8) Mary Lou Luther and Isaac Mizrahi .. (Table 18) Tina Brown and CNBC's Jonathan Wald talking about The Daily Beast, no doubt ..." (Lunch at Michaels/FishbowlNY)

"My girlfriend and I have been on and off for almost two years. I took her back after she cheated on me. The only thing now is that she wants to have a threesome. I am really not down with sharing her, but I am willing to do it because otherwise some other girl will do it for her. I told her that I want to be stoned when it happens, because I don't think I can handle it sober. She got mad because she doesn't like drugs. Then what am I supposed to do?" (Dan Savage/VillageVoice)

"Moscow came to Miami on Wednesday night. Fur-clad women lined Collins Avenue until the wee hours of the morning for the next round of parties at Art Basel Miami Beach. Atop the Gansevoort Hotel, 'The Russian Party' was a vodka-soaked soirée for the new owners of Phillips de Pury ..'I've been coming for the last four years,' said Kelly Klein, who expressed her love of the younger emerging artists like photographer Ryan McGinley ..Nate Lowman and Mary Kate Olsen mingled in the lobby while Jeffrey Chodorow held court at the newest outpost of Asia de Cuba .. The late-night destination was Paris' Le Baron nightclub, which this year took over the Delano's Florida Room .. The door was so tight that even gallerist Andrew Kreps was left waiting before being swept in by a French-speaking publicist .. Kirsten Dunst stopped into say hello, and at the next table over a newly single Marilyn Manson enjoyed the company of several ladies." (Fashionweekdaily)

"As in many other areas, the biggest education debates are happening within the Democratic Party. On the one hand, there are the reformers like Joel Klein and Michelle Rhee, who support merit pay for good teachers, charter schools and tough accountability standards. On the other hand, there are the teachers’ unions and the members of the Ed School establishment, who emphasize greater funding, smaller class sizes and superficial reforms." (David Brooks/NYTimes)

"IT was a worshipful crowd at the screening of HBO's 'Le Cirque: A Table in Heaven,' at the Bloomberg building Wednesday night. Luminaries from the culinary and broadcast worlds sat spellbound through the documentary directed by Andrew Rossi, which relates the saga of Sirio Maccioni's reign over three incarnations of the legendary eatery. At the after-party in the restaurant, designer Adam Tihany and Maccioni, who'd been feuding, seemed to bury the hatchet. Nicole Miller was fetching in a green dress of her own design. Tim and Nina Zagat enthused over din ners they're sponsoring featuring foods of the 19th Century .. Also there: HBO honcho Richard Plepler, Howard Lorber, Martha Stewart, Fran Drescher, Bill McCuddy, Bill O'Shaughnessy, Sandra Ripert (husband Eric had to work late at Le Bernardin), Bill Boggs and Robert Wuhl." (PageSix)

"Tim Geithner is Barack Obama's pick for Treasury Secretary, which is probably the most important job in his administration, and no one really quite knows how to feel about that. He's a Rubinite and maybe responsible for killing Lehman but also he's never been a banker, so there you go." (Gawker)