It’s a Family Affair• Garden of Hope Gala. Strang Cancer Prevention Center, 428 E. 72nd St., nr. First Ave., 6:30 p.m. Rufus Wainwright will perform to an audience that will likely include Mario Cuomo and Lauren Bush. Afterward they can all conference-call the Kennedys and talk about living in dynastic families.
party town
Wynton Marsalis Can Play With His Eyes Closed• An Evening With Wynton Marsalis. New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park W., nr. 76th St., 6:30 p.m. Glenn Close, Angela Bassett, and others are expected to be on hand as Mr. Marsalis performs four songs from his album after a Q&A. We went to a similar event in college, and it ended with him playing a solo and accompanying himself on piano with his left hand. It was pretty awesome.
Or check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
The Countess, in the W, With a Bottle of Hennessy• Hennessy presents short films by Matthew Modine. W Union Square, 201 Park Ave. S., nr. 17th St., 6:30 p.m. BIG turnout for this one: Expected guests include Richard Belzer, Glenn Close, Harvey Keitel, Willem Dafoe, Christopher Meloni, Mariska Hargitay, Aida Turturro, Lauren Bush, Johnny Ventimiglia (a.k.a. Artie Bucco), and more. Also, the Countess LuAnn Nadeau de Lesseps. Stay away from her, though: Given her name, it’s almost certain that she’ll at some point become involved in a murder related to the daring theft of a priceless heirloom.
party town
Russell Simmons Enters Mogul Wormhole• Def Jam: Icon party. Ultra, 37 W. 26th St., nr. Broadway, 8 p.m. Funkmaster Flex, Russell Simmons, Paul Wall, Method Man, and Redman are scheduled to be among those celebrating the third iteration of the be-a-hip-hop-mogul video game. Which is interesting because Simmons is a hip-hop mogul who’s making money off this video game. So one presumes that a good move in the game is making your own video game, and on and on into infinity.
party town
Will Moby and Mariska Order In?• Jackie Robinson Foundation awards dinner. Waldorf=Astoria, 301 Park Ave., nr. 49th St., 6:30 p.m. Stan O’Neal and Spike Lee will be honored; Katie Couric and John Leguizamo expected to attend; Bill Cosby to host. Otherwise, it’s a pretty slow night out in partyland. We’re picturing a four-way split-screen shot of Moby, Kenneth Cole, Damon Dash, and Mariska Hargitay sitting at home, filing their nails, flipping through channels, and tapping their fingers idly on a countertop.
Or check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
It’s ‘Club MTV’ All Over Again• Reebok “Freestyle” 25th anniversary celebration. Culture Club, 179 Varick St., nr. King St., 8 p.m. The Freestyle is a women’s shoe, and the press release notes that expected guests such as Cybill Shepherd, Salt-N-Pepa (!), and Downtown Julie Brown (!!) “helped make the Freestyle what it is today.” Whatever. No word on whether there will also be a party for the underpaid Asian factory employees that literally “make the Freestyle what it is today.”
party town
Grand Old Time for ‘Zodiac’• Cinema Society Zodiac screening and party. Screening at Tribeca Grand, 2 Sixth Ave., nr. White St., 7:30 p.m.; party at Soho Grand, 310 W. Broadway, nr. Canal St., 10 p.m. One presumes there won’t be an after-party, simply because they’ve run out of Manhattan hotels named the “[location] Grand.” Although there’s always the one in Flushing! Expected guests include Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Andy Samberg, Seth Meyers, and Bill Hader.
party town
The Deep End of the Cool Pool• “We Are the Pool” video premiere. Union Pool, 484 Union Ave., nr. Meeker Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn, 7 p.m. How do you wrestle control of public space from the clutches of an evil, expensive promoter? Simple: Gather your Brooklyn pals and do an ironic reenactment of “We Are the World.” The city will be very sympathetic.
party town
Everything — Even Paul Verhoeven Movies — Is Better in the Netherlands• Black Book screening after-party. Osteria del Circo, 120 W. 55th St., nr Sixth Ave., following 7 p.m. screening. Black Book, a World War II thriller, is the most expensive Dutch film ever made. It was directed by Paul Verhoeven, whose Hollywood films include Robocop, Total Recall, and, of course, Showgirls. Verhoeven will be on hand tonight; his movie’s non-translated title is Zwartboek, proving once again that everything except hallucinogen-induced anxiety attacks is better in the Netherlands.
• Party for The Black Door. The World Bar at the Trump World Tower, 845 United Nations Plaza, nr. 47th St., 6 p.m. There won’t be any boldfaced names at this party, according to the press release, but there will be waiters carrying around trays of sex toys (The Black Door is a frankly awesome-sounding pulp novel about a high-powered New York lawyer who becomes obsessed with an underground sex club).
Or check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
At Least 100 Black Men at Hilton Tonight• One Hundred Black Men gala. New York Hilton, 1335 Sixth Ave., nr. 54th St., 6 p.m. Expected guests include Kanye West, Charlie Rangel, Cory Booker, Curtis Martin, Calvin Butts, and, presumably, 95 other black men.
party town
Be Older and Hotter on Your Birthday• “All Grown Up & Sexy” birthday party for Mona Scott Young. The Grand, 41 E. 58th St., nr. Madison Ave., 9:30 p.m. Ms. SexyGrown is an exec for the hip-hop management outfit Violator. Expected guests include Missy Elliot, Wyclef Jean, Lyor Cohen, LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Queen Latifah, Q-Tip, Ice-T, and The Wire’s Jamie Hector, a.k.a. Marlo Stanfield. We’re not going, because Marlo offed a favorite character of ours last season and things could get heated if we saw him. Also, we weren’t invited.
party town
Cheers to MoMA• Jeff Wall exhibit opening. MoMA, 11 W. 53rd St., nr. Sixth Ave., 7 p.m. Scheduled attendees: Michael Ovitz, Henry Kravis, William Wegman. Floral arrangements will be provided by Ron Wendt Design. Change “Ron” to “George” in that previous sentences and you’ve got yourself a real party.
Or check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Few People Truly Celebrate Presidents’ DayIt being a federal holiday, many people are taking the day off from working and partying.
• Black Snake Moan premiere. Chelsea West Cinemas, 333 W. 23rd St., nr. Eighth Ave., 5 p.m. Expected to show are stars Samuel L. Jackson, Christina Ricci, and S. Epatha Merkerson. Considering Jackson chains Ricci to a radiator and quotes Scripture at her so they can both learn to love again, expect some heavy drinking here.
Or check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Movie Screenings Keep Nightlife Off Life Support• Gray Matters screening. IFC Center, 323 Sixth Ave., nr W. 3rd St. Stars Heather Graham, Tom Cavanagh, Bridget Moynahan, Alan Cumming, Molly Shannon, and Sissy Spacek are expected along with Parker Posey, Jane Krakowski, and Rachel Dratch. Gray Matters is a drama about solving perplexing brainteasers while bowling. (Note: Plot synopsis derived entirely from speculation based on this photo. It’s actually about siblings trying to find love.)
party town
Time for the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance!• The Winter Dance Celebrates “Gold.” American Museum of Natural History, Central Park W., nr. 79th St., 7:30 p.m. Hundreds of young rich people including our pals Tinsley Mortimer and Fabiola Beracasa will dine in the Grand Gallery and then have dessert and dance under the blue whale in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. It’s socialite prom!
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How Sweet the Guest List• Amazing Grace premiere. Cinema One, 1011 Third Ave., nr. 60th St., 7 p.m.; after-party at Le Cirque, 151 E. 58th St., nr. Lexington Ave., 9 p.m. Amazing Grace is about the guy who wrote “Amazing Grace.” Included in the epically strange list of expected guests: Henry Louis Gates Jr., Susan Sarandon, Floyd Abrams, Al Sharpton, Stanley Crouch, Damon Dash, Al Roker, Moby, George C. Wolfe, Michael Gambon, Albert Finney, and director Michael Apted. It’s the black-intellectual/old-white-actor/Today show–weatherman event of the season!
party town
Television, Radio, and Chamber Music• Museum of Television and Radio gala. Waldorf-Astoria, 301 Park Ave., nr. 49th St., 6 p.m. Hosted by Tom Brokaw in honor of Sir Howard Stringer; guests include Helen Gurley Brown, Dominick Dunne, Angela Lansbury, Morley Safer, and Andy Rooney. Wow. That’s a lot of people who are really, really … uh … experienced in the breadth and totality of television and radio history.
• “Lovestruck” party presented by Lincoln Center Chamber Music patrons’ society. Marlborough Gallery, 40 W. 57th St., nr. Fifth Ave., 7 p.m. Hosted by Gwyneth Paltrow, this event is allegedly a celebration of sensuality and indulgence. We’re not saying it isn’t, but all the people who got their pictures taken at the event last year must be really good at keeping a poker face on their sensual indulgence.
Or check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
‘The Sopranos’ vs. ‘Entourage’?• WATER benefit for Riverkeeper. SF Gallery, 663 Fifth Ave., nr. 52nd St., 6:30 p.m. Sponsored by Salvatore Ferragamo; expected guests include Lorraine Bracco, Ivanka Trump, Lauren Bush, Amanda Hearst, Vanessa Q. Rockefeller, Ana Lucia Vanderbilt, Chupacabra Winthrop-Gugelman, and Mo’nique Astor.
• VH1 party for The Agency. Bryant Park Hotel, 40 W. 40th St., nr. Sixth Ave., 9 p.m. No hugely celebtastic guests are confirmed, but “The Agency” is the Wilhelmina modeling agency, so you can probably count on Piven to be there.
Or, check out our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Rolling and Reading• Rolling With Style gala. Cipriani, 110 E. 42nd St., nr. Vanderbilt Ave., 6:30 p.m. Fashion Week continues to suck the biggest names away from the gala circuit, but Carol Alt and Nick Cannon are expected. Nothing against Nick Cannon, but it’s amusing that the most highly approved sample usage of his name in the Urban Dictionary is “One time Nick Cannon made a joke that was almost funny … just kidding, it was terrible.”
• Because She Can book party. At a private residence on Greene Street. (If you really want to try and crash it, head to Soho and follow the smell of catered appetizers.) Because She Can is the roman à clef by former ReganBooks employee Bridie Clark. Now that Judith Regan, Anna Wintour, and Harvey Weinstein have all gotten the thinly-veiled-fictional-tyrant treatment, it’s clear there’s only one notoriously psychotic boss left to be exposed: this guy.
Or check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Fascist Movie, Moving Fashion, and New Yorkers• The Lives of Others screening. Sony Screening Room, 550 Madison Ave., nr. 55th St., 6 p.m. Elie Wiesel and Frank McCourt are expected to see the film, which portrays East Germans spying on each other under Communism. Holocaust memoirist, child-abuse memoirist, harrowing oppressive-regime drama: Sounds like the post-screening dinner will be a real laugh party.
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Fab Five Wonders if Party Invite Lost in Mail• Glamour Fashion Gives Back event. Milk Studios penthouse, 450 W. 15th St., nr. Ninth Ave., 7 p.m. Tim Gunn, Anna Paquin, Elie Tahari, Padma Lakshmi, and Jamie King are among the expected guests. Todd Oldham has to sit this one out. In case of a catastrophic event, Bravo requires a designated survivor to ensure reality-TV continuity.
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Will Woody Allen Escape the Upper East Side?• amFAR New York gala. Cipriani, 110 E. 42nd St., nr. Vanderbilt Ave., 6:30 p.m. An AIDS charity benefit so gala-riffic that Woody Allen is (scheduled to be) venturing south of 59th Street for something besides a Knicks game. Other expected guests include Beyoncé, Sharon Stone, Liza Minnelli, Michael Eisner, Richard Gere, and Rosie O’Donnell.
• Joey McIntyre performance. Plumm, 26 W. 14th St., nr Fifth Ave., 11:30 p.m. On the guest list: Drew Lachey, Joey Lawrence, and 400 VH1 producers.
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Exhaustion Sets In at ‘Gotham’ Gala• Gotham Magazine Gala. Capitale, 130 Broadway, nr. Grand St., 7 p.m. Truly an overflowing cornucopia of party fruits and sponsorship vegetables, this event is billed as Gotham’s “Seventh Annual Gala” and a retirement party for Tiki Barber; it’s sponsored by Cadillac, the luxury Swiss watchmaker Audemars Piguet, and a London hotel called the Rushmore; entertainment will be provided by D.J. Cassidy, the “Chez-Zam Entertainment Group,” and the “Fifty-Person Rhythm & Rhyme Marching Band.” Scheduled to be exhausted by all of the above are Spike Lee, Ice T, Jon Bon Jovi, Nina Sky, and Elisabeth Hasselbeck.
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Get Hot With Wallace Shawn• The Fever opening night. Acorn Theater, 410 W. 42nd St., nr. Ninth Ave., 7 p.m. First staged in 1990, The Fever (written by and starring Wallace Shawn) involves an “anonymous narrator who wakes up in a war-torn country with a terrible fever, unable to reconcile the privilege he has enjoyed with his current surroundings.” Hey replace, “country” with “living-room floor” and “fever” with “headache” and you’ve described our Saturday morning! Truly, this play speaks to the universal human condition.
P.S.: Parties will be sparse this week; the Super Bowl has sucked a lot of celebrity power to south Florida, while the rest of New York gears up for the Fashion Week kickoff Friday.
Or check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Boomers Rock Tribeca!• RSVP to Help benefit. Tribeca Rooftop, 2 Desbrosses St., nr. Hudson St., 7:30 p.m. The red-hot scheduled-guest list includes Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Joe Torre, Elton John, Lewis Black, and Jon Bon Jovi. We respected JBJ before in a somewhat patronizing way, but since we started doing karaoke more, our respect is complete and sincere. “Livin’ on a Prayer” is tough to sing when you don’t have the rest of the frat party backing you up.
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Because Apple Martinis Are So Over• Absolut Pear launch. The Box, 189 Christie St., nr. Rivington St., 8:15 p.m. Carmen Electra hosts. And the pear so long eclipsed by other fruits as a way to keep your mouth occupied while you pour vodka into your bloodstream finally gets its due.
• High Rise Low Down book party. 820 Park Ave., nr. 75th St., 6:30 p.m. Expected guests include Eunice David and Kathryn Livingston, who are … who are well-known as … okay, you got us. There seems to be a dearth of hot party-heartiness tonight. If the celebs are hitting the town, their publicists aren’t telling us about it.
Or check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Here, You Never Know What You’ll Win• “Room to Grow” children’s charity benefit. Christie’s, 20 Rockefeller Plz., nr. Sixth Ave., 6:30 p.m. Uma Thurman hosts; Josh Lucas, John Leguizamo, and Ken Burns expected to attend, along with Garine Zerounian, senior director of international public relations at Polo Ralph Lauren and winner of the “Party Town” Randomly Selected Member of the Benefit Committee Contest. Congratulations, Garine!
party town
‘Unpredictable’ Party Guests Actually Pretty Predictable• Jamie Foxx Unpredictable tour after-party. Marquee, 289 Tenth Ave., nr. 27th St., 10 p.m. Scheduled guests include Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Will Smith, Spike Lee, Pharrell, Alicia Keys, Hype Williams, Swizz Beatz, Jamal Crawford, and Nate Robinson. We’re not familiar with the work of the special guest D.J. Sky Nellor (an ex-model from Australia), but we suspect that if she falters, there might be a few people in the crowd who could step in.
party town
A Garden Party• “Madison Square Garden’s 50 Greatest Moments” premiere for the series finale. Theatre at Madison Square Garden, 4 Penn Plz., nr. 32nd St., 7 p.m. Expected: Willis Reed, Mark Messier, John Starks, Spike Lee, Walt “Clyde” Frazier. To put it in terms Clyde would understand, attendees will be cheering and premiering, appearing and rehearing (broadcasts of famous moments in Garden history). It is unlikely that there will be any racketeering and civil engineering taking place, but one never knows.
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Celebrate Raquel Welch’s Beauty• Raquel Welch/MAC Beauty Icon dinner. Gilt Restaurant at the New York Palace Hotel, 455 Madison Ave., nr. 49th St., 7 p.m. MAC is holding this event, expected to be attended by Petra Nemcova, Emmy Rossum, Bridget Moynahan, Tim Gunn, and others. It’s honoring Raquel Welch for literally nothing except being hot. A lot of other hot people will be there, and given its location across the street from New York’s offices, we may just saunter over to creepily ogle the guests in person.
party town
Museum Movies, Home Technologies, Musical Tributes• Sleepwalkers premiere. MoMA, 11 W. 53rd St., nr. Sixth Ave., 5 p.m. Director Doug Aitken will be there to see his short films projected on the side of the museum. Bjork, David Byrne, and Laurie Anderson will be among those commiserating about sore necks at the 7 p.m. cocktail reception.
party town
Terror at the ‘24’ Premiere?• 24 screening. Core Club, 66 E. 55th St. nr. Park Ave., 7 p.m. Jack “Kiefer Sutherland” Bauer will be on hand to host. Harvey Weinstein, Tommy Hilfiger, Kenneth Cole, and Damon Dash are supposed to be there too, unless their limos are hijacked by teams of ruthless (but daring) narco-terrorist rebel Marxist ninjas.
• The Scene opening night party. Spanky’s BBQ (really!), 127 W. 43rd St. nr. Broadway, 9:20 p.m. Stars Tony Shalhoub and Patricia Heaton will be there; actorish types including Annabella Sciorra, Julianna Margulies, and Andrew McCarthy are also promised. Sciorra and Margulies have both done sex scenes with James Gandolfini on The Sopranos. Is McCarthy next?
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Reality-Show Royalty at the Marriott Marquis• YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund gala. Marriott Marquis, 1535 Broadway, nr. 45th St., 7:15 p.m. Tim Gunn emcees a ceremony honoring Paula Abdul “for her devoted support of young people seeking higher education.” It’s like the Yalta of weekly-elimination talent shows.
• Jean-Paul Goude exhibit opening dinner. Hasted Hunt Gallery, 528 W. 20th St., nr. Tenth Ave., 6:30 p.m. Scheduled guests include Sarah Jessica Parker and Janet Jackson. What if Sarah Jessica and Janet hit it off and ended up collaborating on a sexy-shoe-related eighties-dance-pop musical-drama television series? The DVD collections of sororities across the nation would never be the same, that’s what.
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Michael Musto Keeps Exposing Himself• La Dolce Musto book party. Room Service, 35 E. 21st St., nr. Broadway, 9 p.m. Promised guests include Michael Musto, Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, Moby, and Duncan Sheik. Also: Rosie Perez and Perez Hilton, and it’s really too bad Paris Hilton isn’t coming, because then that would be, like, three people with interchangeable names! Maybe there’ll be a transgender performance artist named Hilton Rosie or something? Rosie Hilton? Boutros-Boutros Perez?
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Holiday Exhaustion Leaves Social Calendars EmptyThis place is dead! After the holidays and New Year’s Eve, red carpeters have no more stamina. Parties will resume over the weekend, after everyone is rested, revitalized, and ready to leave town again.
party town
Russian Intellectualism Is the New Spirit of ChristmasAs we get closer to Christmas, the citizens of Party Town begin to flee. Festive occasions thin out this time of year.The Coast of Utopia: Part II – Shipwreck opening. Vivian Beaumont Theater, Lincoln Center, 150 W. 65th St., nr. Broadway, 6:45 p.m. If you don’t already have tickets to Tom Stoppard’s trilogy, too bad. By the time you read this, even the 3 p.m. matinee on New Year’s Eve will be sold out. You’ll have to see Billy Crudup and Ethan Hawke another time. Just rent Big Fish and Gattaca it’s the same thing.
Or, check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
The Road to the Oscars Starts Here, If You’re AlgerianAs we get closer to Christmas, the citizens of Party Town begin to flee. Festive occasions thin out this time of year.
• Days of Glory screening. Tribeca Grand Hotel, 2 Sixth Ave., nr. Walker St., 7:30 p.m. Ludacris hosts a reception for the film about African soldiers who side with the French in the fight against the Nazis which is Algeria’s submission to the Academy Awards. Algeria won an Oscar for Z in 1969 and is tied with Canada, the Czech Republic, Russia, and Taiwan for three nominations in the Best Foreign Language Film category. Good luck with the 2007 Oscars, Algeria. We’re all pulling for you. Especially Ludacris, and perhaps Tommy Hilfiger and Al Sharpton, who might also be there.
Or, check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Tribute to Nigerian President Is a GasAs we get closer to Christmas, the citizens of Party Town begin to flee. Festive occasions thin out this time of year.
• Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo tribute. Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, 301 Park Ave., nr. 49th St., 6 p.m. Hosted by Andrew Young, former mayor of Atlanta and ambassador to the U.N. Black tie or national dress required. Go with national dress; black tie is so dull and drab. Sponsored by Chevron!
Or, check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Get in Bed With Sean Penn• Creative Coalition Gala. Duvet, 45 W. 21st St., nr. Sixth Ave. Hop on a bed with Sean Penn and pretend you’re in a little rescue boat with him. He’s also winning the Christopher Reeve Award for “unwavering convictions in the face of pressure.” Like when he told off Chris Rock for making fun of Jude Law at the Oscars. Oh, and Marcia Gay Harden, Harvey Keitel, and Branford Marsalis will be there too.
party town
Marquee Party Hot With Cat-Scratch Fever• Marquee Third Anniversary celebration. 289 Tenth Ave., nr. 27th St., 11 p.m. Marquee has a bad rap because of the Hilton-Lohan factor, but the general vibe and bathroom-line conversation are considerably less smug and/or date rape-y than your average Murray Hill bar. Still, God willing, tonight will degenerate into some sort of tabloid-tastic, coked-out skank brawl for the ages.
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Marc Jacobs Raises Party Crashers’ Ire• Mark Jacobs’s Venetian Carnivale Masquerade. Gotham Hall, 1358 Broadway, nr. 36th St., 8 p.m. Invites to this bad boy are highly prized; when we called Marc Jacobs’s offices for information, they put us on hold and then called someone else on the New York staff to make sure we weren’t an impostor looking to crash the party. Worry not, Marc Jacobs public-relations staff, we do in fact work here … but we’re also the leader of an entire underground army of party crashers, and you shall rue the day you put us on hold! Mwahahahaha!
• Notes on a Scandal screening. MoMA, 11 W. 53rd St., nr. Sixth Ave., 7:30 p.m.; dinner at Il Gattopardo, 33 W. 54th St., nr. Fifth Ave., 9 p.m. Stars Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett, and Bill Nighy will be among the guests. Granted, the movie hasn’t opened yet, but so far the only “memorable quote” on its IMDB page is “She’s the one I have waited for.” Wow, it’s like the next Caddyshack!
Or, check out all our Agenda listings for tonight, selected by New York’s culture editors.
party town
Movies and Galas• Venus premiere. Celeste Bartos Theater, MoMA, 4 W. 54th St., nr. Sixth Ave., 6:30 p.m. Expected attendees include Natasha Richardson, Corinne Bailey Rae, Dan Hedaya, Arianna Huffington, and Damian Loeb. Dan Hedaya isn’t in Venus. But he was in Swimfan. Once again, point Hedaya.
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Matt Damon Learns an Important Lesson• The Good Shepherd premiere. Ziegfeld Theater, 141 W. 54th St., nr. Sixth Ave., 7 p.m. Director Robert DeNiro and stars Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie, Billy Crudup, and John Turturro expected. Based on the movie’s title and trailer, we’re supposing that a white-haired mentor figure will shoehorn some sort of half-assed allegory about sheep into a conversation with Matt Damon’s character.
• Partnership for Public Service gala. Cipriani, 110 E. 42nd St., nr. Vanderbilt Ave., 6:30 p.m. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly will award Senator Joe Lieberman with the Theodore Roosevelt Award for the Advancement of Public Service. Humorously, Dennis Haysbert will be honored for the “portrayal” of public service but sadly will not receive it from Commissioner Tony Scali.
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Hasselhoff Continues to Show Up at Things• High Fidelity opening night. Imperial Theatre, 249 W. 45th St., nr. Broadway, 5:30 p.m. Nick Hornby, Hope Davis, Alec Baldwin, Rachel Dratch, Lauren Bacall, Bebe Neuwirth, and David Hasselhoff expected. Free premise for aspiring “Shouts & Murmurs” writers: What if Nick Hornby had written Baywatch?
party town
Boldfaced Names Flock South for Art Basel WinterArt Basel has sucked New York’s boldfaced types down to Miami’s $4.99 early-bird dinner buffets. We are left with a surfeit of socialites, a David Mamet play without David Mamet, and Geraldo.
• Ugg Australia grand opening. 79 Mercer St., nr. Broome St., 7 p.m. Guests scheduled to include Molly Sims, Jacinda Barrett, and Dr. Lisa Airan, who’s the only socialite in the Socialite Rank Top 20 with a medical degree. She’s an emergency-room trauma surgeon in the South Bronx. Just kidding, she’s a dermatologist.
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Fashion Weirdos Celebrate at Seedy Club• Kai Kühne holiday party. Beatrice Inn, 285 W.12th St., nr. W. 4th St., 10 p.m. The Beatrice Inn is a crap-looking but secretly exclusive club owned in part by Paul Sevigny. Kai Kühne is an entertaining parody of a parody of a whacked-out fashion designer lost in his own Zoolander world of egotism, spandex, and sparkly things shaped like butterflies. And there’s a rumor the Proenza boys may show up.
party town
Canary Sent to Screen ‘Dreamgirls’Tonight’s boldfaced parties:
• Dreamgirls premiere. Ziegfeld Theater, 141 W. 54th St., nr. Sixth Ave., 7 p.m. Stars Eddie Murphy, Beyoncé Knowles, Jamie Foxx, Danny Glover, and Jennifer Hudson expected. As our job requires monitoring multiple media outlets that sometimes cover the same stories, we tend to get grouchy about publicist-created hype juggernauts like Dreamgirls. Then we feel guilty, because, as workplace hazards go, skimming ten stories about Jennifer Hudson’s moving breakout performance isn’t quite black lung. But still, when people have to remind themselves that reading about your movie is better than having black lung, have you really done your job, publicists? (Yes.)
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Hot 97 Just Wants to Say Thanks Tonight’s boldfaced parties:
• Blood Diamond screening. MoMA, 11 W. 53rd St., nr. Sixth Ave., 7 p.m. Ed Zwick hosts. Nothing against Ed Zwick, but we were annoyed when his 2003 Tom Cruise vehicle The Last Samurai was on AMC the other day. Get it together, AMC. Turner Classics is running you ragged on the programming, and they don’t have commercials.
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If There’s a Party, There’s Mariska HargitayTonight’s boldfaced parties:
• Gotham Awards. Pier 60, West Side Hwy. nr. 23rd St., 6 p.m. David Cross hosts; honorees and expected guests include Tim Robbins, Kate Winslet, Ed Norton, and Mark Cuban. Despite the fact that the Gotham Awards’ own Website proclaims that its mission is to “celebrate the authentic voices in the year’s best American films,” the Mexican directorial all-star team of Alfonso Cuarón, Guillermo del Toro, and Alejandro Gonzáles Iñárritu will also be honored. Someone tell Lou Dobbs!
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Barbara Bush Stops By Cipriani En Route to OblivionTonight’s boldfaced parties:
• UNICEF Snowflake Ball. Cipriani, 110 E. 42nd St., nr. Vanderbilt Ave., 6:30 p.m. Al Roker, Téa Leoni, Barbara Bush the Younger, Jeff Zucker, and Oprah pal Gayle King are slated to attend. One of our friends once turned down the chance to hang out with Barbara Bush, thus depriving us of an opportunity to obnoxiously name-drop his secondhand story about hanging out with Barbara Bush whenever her name is mentioned. How selfish.