Media-Whore D'Oeuvres



"NBC's Jay Leno will spend less than 24 hours in Washington D.C. for his gig as the entertainment selection for the White House Correspondents' Dinner. After Leno tapes his 'The Tonight Show' Friday night, he'll hop on a red eye to Washington. After the performance Saturday night, he'll get on another plane and quickly return to Los Angeles." (FishbowlDC)



"TBS's Conan O'Brien tells '60 Minutes'' Steve Kroft he would have left NBC rather than do what Jay Leno did to him. 'He went and took that show back and I think in a similar situation, if roles had been reversed, I know -- I know me, I wouldn't have done that,' O'Brien says. 'If I had surrendered The Tonight Show and handed it over to somebody publicly and wished them well -- and then...six months later. But that's me. Everyone's got their own, you know, way of doing things,' he tells Kroft." (TVNewser)



"The annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, the ostensible main event for Oscar Night on the Potomac, has created more demand than ever before. But it’s really the parties surrounding the dinner for 2,700 that have people — lots of whom aren’t even invited to it — trying to score invitations. The party buzz has, if possible, grown even louder this year: There are at least three important new events — one of which is hosted by POLITICO Publisher Robert Allbritton and his wife, Elena — plus two dramatically rejiggered soirees. But it’s getting harder to get invited because many hosts are trying to control their creeping guest lists. For Washington’s social set, the weekend has become a hallmark of the year. 'The dinner now rivals, if not beats, the Kennedy Center Honors in terms of wattage,' floral designer Allan Woods said." (Politico)



"On the night of Monday, May 3, a red carpet will cover the stairs leading up to the Metropolitan Museum, serving as the entryway for guests of what is considered the city's most fashionable event of the year: Vogue's annual Costume Institute Gala, also known as the Oscars of the East Coast. Behind the planning this year for the first time is 28-year-old Sylvana Soto-Ward, who was promoted from accessories editor at Vogue to special-events planner in July. She has a model's height and figure, and smooth, highlighted brown hair parted down the middle. Teetering in her four-inch gray suede Miu Miu heels just six days before the event at a run-through in the museum, she shows no signs of freaking out. She's only been working on this event for ten months. 'I'm shocked the planning started so early, but it does. It takes almost a year. You get two months off and then right back at it,' she said. Each year a fashion label sponsors the ball. Last year it was Marc Jacobs, and the year before Giorgio Armani. But this year it's the Gap. 'I think the Gap is perfect for the theme,' Soto-Ward says, referring to Costume Institute's new exhibit (what the Gala is meant to inaugurate) devoted to the fashion of American women from 1890 to 1940. 'Yes, it's been sort of these high-fashion companies, but particularly in this economy and in this world right now where it's not all about high fashion but it's about the mix and about high-low, you know? It's certainly something we're trying to portray in the magazine and everything else we do,' she says." (NYMag)



(Mrs. DeNiro via style)

"'This is the glamorous part of the gig,' said Selma Blair, a Tribeca Film Festival juror, at Chanel's annual Odeon dinner party last night ... Elsewhere, Terry Richardson and Olivier Zahm occupied themselves by snapping the ladies' footwear, and Julian Schnabel, with son Vito in tow, signed copies of his book, one of the art tomes given away as gifts to every guest. In the middle of it all, at a table with Angela Lindvall and a top-hatted Yoko Ono, was festival co-founder Robert De Niro. Deflecting compliments as usual, he said, 'I really should be thanking Chanel tonight. My wife looks beautiful.'" (Style)



(image via takistopdrawr)

"Last week, after a late night, I went to a Broadway matinee on my own. It was Jersey Boys, the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, a hit show with tunes that slam one with waves of nostalgia and longing. One particular song almost knocked me out, 'My Eyes Adored You.' Perhaps it was the hangover, but most likely it was Pam Wallin, a beautiful Palm Beach girl that once walked barefoot onto the plane when I was leaving the beach for (NYC), just to say goodbye. Those were innocent days and a pretty girl could walk on and off a plane undisturbed. She had a boy’s haircut and the best legs in Florida. An older boy at Lawrenceville, my first prep school, was her beau, but he was at Lehman Brothers while I was in Palm Beach. He hated me in school and his hatred grew after graduation. 'My Eyes Adored You' was our song, Pam’s and mine, and last week I listened to it and almost cried. Cried because I haven’t seen her in 55 years and she is now in her seventies. I have no idea what happened to him, and frankly, my dears, I don’t give a damn. Music can do things to romantics. It’s a collaborative adventure. The romantic brings emotion and feelings to the table, lust or sorrow, the music does the rest." (Taki Theodoracopulos)



(image via NYSD)

"Yesterday in New York was one of those blazingly beautiful (and WINDY) days with one of the bluest of blue skies and Sun shimmering against the glass and the brick of the city’s canyons, kissing the creamy white tulips along Park Avenue. With just enough of a subtle nip in the air to remind us that it’s Springtime, when gardens are planted. I went down to Michael’s for lunch with my new old friend Joan Kingsley, who lives mainly in London with her husband Philip, the world’s premier trichologist. Michael’s was buzzing with a diverse group: Charlie Rose with Nazee Moinian, the rising authority on Iranian/American relations; Leslie Stahl with Steve Rattner; Fredi Friedman with Linda Stasi of the NY Post where she used to write one of the best commentaries about New York. Meanwhile, in the garden room, there was a party for Lisa Birnbach and Chip Kidd, who have collaborated on 'True Prep; It’s A Whole New Old World.' Lisa, as you may know, was the creator/author of the 'Official Preppy Handbook' that became an atavistic force of influence on the eternal 30-somethings among us, noting what’s good for a laugh and a ballast against the winds of change." (NYSocialDiary)



"Here is Ben Silverman’s recent keynote speech at the MIPTV market in Cannes. I’ve watched this video 3 times now and still have no idea what he’s talking about: 'Hyper-globalisation is a comment on every moment but clearly adapted in localisation'? 'Full circle is where culture really can manifest'? 'How do you scale bespoke'?" (Deadline)