Opening night reporters got told, “Come black-tie.” The theater’s outside huge poster toppled. Banging it back, security guard Herman Foster rescued us. A pedicab smacked famous cosmetic surgeon Dr. Daniel Baker’s car. One guest guzzling a water bottle said: “It’s for my health.” She also smoked a cigarette. The red carpet? Longer than the show’s first act.
First arrivals: Vogue’s Hamish Bowles escorting his Obama-loving boss who dissed her on the ambassador to France job . . . Sarah Jessica Parker on husband Matthew Broderick: “I’ve seen the show for six weeks. Tonight I sent him a bunch of loving e-mail texts” . . . Post-surgery Roma Torre, back on NY-1: “I lost seven pounds. All in the right places.” . . . Michael Feinstein escorted Henry Mancini’s widow, Ginny.
Angela Lansbury: “I played this theater before in ‘The Best Man.’ Good dressing room. Some are awful.” . . . Andy Cohen: “I love having dinner with Matthew after the show.” . . . Thomas Roberts, MSNBC’s “Way Too Early” anchor: “I get up 3 a.m.” So why’s he at the show? “I got invited.” Featured in the play’s a fake Playbill. The cast got mockups as gifts.
The Matthew, F. Murrray Abraham, Stockard Channing, Megan Mullally cast are triple-A. Nathan Lane’s entrance applause is still going on. So’s the first act. Another minute and I’d have needed to tweeze my chin.
And we bid Seldes farewell
At McNally’s “It’s Only a Play,” I remembered Marian Seldes. ’05 she told me: “I’m starring in McNally’s new play.” ’06 she kept her coat on at a Tony event. ’03 she wore “Sweet Bird of Youth’s” prop pearls to a party. ’07 she did “Deuce” with Angela Lansbury. ’86 she dated widower Garson Kanin. ’90 she married him. Last week we lost her.
Times follows onwedding news
How’s the former Paper of Record get leads? From me. Oct. 7 I reported two magicians — a former beauty queen and a Lincoln descendant — booked abracadabra and shazam/kazam jugglers plus acrobats to play their wedding this week. I don’t know either one from a tractor trailer. I just printed a good story.
The shriveled Times staff, with nobody left to scratch up news, phoned them to photograph the ceremony.
I’m hurt. No thanks from the reporter. Not even a frame from Tiffany’s.
Odds & ends
North Fork, LI, winery Bedell Cellars, previously paired with Chuck Close, Eric Fischl, April Gornik, Ross Bleckner doing a new First Crush red in tandem with filmmaker Mickalene Thomas. You’ll read about this in 2015’s Times…
Two-time Tony winner Joe Mantello to direct next year’s off-B’way newie “The Humans”…
Tilda Swinton grabs the Independent Spirit Awards acting tribute in December…
Patsy’s seeped in culture
When the founder of 236 W. 56th’s eatery landed here, Ellis Island officials couldn’t pronounce Pasquale. They nicknamed him Patsy. From yesterday’s steady Sinatra visits via a private secret entrance to today’s P. Diddy, Rush Limbaugh, Jennifer Lopez, Frankie Valli, Michael Bublé, Alec Baldwin regulars, Patsy’s is the go-to.
Joe Scognamillo, Patsy’s son: “I started here at 11 — 70 years ago.” Third-generation son Sal is today’s chief cook.
Patsy’s Italian restaurant — spaghetti, red sauce, antipasto, veal parmigiana. An NYC institution.
Only in New York, kids, only in New York.