The stuff that brings May’s flowers

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Raining hard in the West Village. 3:20 PM. Click on the image to view a video.

The stuff that brings May’s flowers. The rains came yesterday, as predicted. Maybe not the deluge or the Great Floods predicted by the weatherman, but, if you click on JH’s Vid (above), you’ll getta gander at what it was like to be a duck on a wet April Sunday afternoon in the Village.

Meanwhile back in the sunshine. How do the very rich in New York have real fun? Well, they give themselves birthday parties, just like the rest of us shmoes. Cornball, true; Schmaltzy, maybe; and self-centered, definitely. And raucous? Well, why not? Everybody likes to let their hair down. Or put it away for the night.

Woody Johnson and Suzanne Ircha

There’s Robert Wood Johnson IV, for example. Woody to his friends. He’s rich; a lotta money. Like his father. Like his grandfather. And all the other Johnsons who are also very rich, thanks to all those Band-Aids you’ve been using ever since the first time you fell off your bike and skinned your knee.

Anyway, Mr. Johnson was turning 60 and decided to mark it with a party. So he got together with his Mom, his longtime companion (and mother of his son “Brick” – Robert Wood Johnson V) Suzanne Ircha, and Peggy Siegal and Wendy Carduner and made a plan.

Maybe he was inspired by his friend Steve Schwarzman who, as the world knows, gave himself a multi-million dollar birthday bash at the Seventh Regiment Armory a couple months ago. Although Woody Johnson, being really just a boy from Princeton, decided on something a little quieter: Mr. Schwarzman had something like 460 guests to Mr. Johnson’s list of 170.

The site was Doubles, the soigné red on red private club in the Sherry-Netherland where Wendy Carduner is Directrice and party impresario. Doubles is an especially perfect spot for the very proper rich and sometimes raucous to celebrate.


Wendy Carduner and Peggy Siegal

Woody just wanted a good time and something funny. He thought of wigs. The invitation read: "Wig out With Woody". Dress- cocktail or costume.

Now that’s funny just to think about. All your friends in wigs, no matter what? And just in case anyone showed up wig-less, Suzanne Ircha scoured the town in advance for 75 wigs, all lovingly placed in baskets in the vestibule of Doubles.

The birthday boy came as Andy Warhol, silver fright wig, black glasses, shirt. With Suzanne dressed as his Edie Sedgwick. Their little heir “Brick” made a brief appearance but after having Terry Kramer cradle him in her arms (she was wearing a white Afro and a gold pants suit), Brick suddenly decided that the fright wigs were frightening, and was soon transported back to beddy-bye.

Steve Schwarzman

Nicholas Simunek IV wore a wig that belonged to Nicholas Simunek I. Steve Schwarzman, obviously still celebrating, came in a Rod Stewart wig. Melania Trump came as Jayne Mansfield. Sharon Sondes and Geoff Thomas were Playboy Bunnies, Beth DeWoody went as Beth Rudin DeWoody in Wig, Larry Kudlow came as a barrister naturally, Nina and John Richter came as Sonny and Cher. Dixon Boardman was in a red Afro while Arianna in a red Louise Brooks bob. Charlie Thompson also came as Andy Warhol. Oh, and Matt Nye came as Andy too. Pepe Fanjul was waitin-n-anticipatin’ under a black wig with spiked bangs. Georgette Mosbacher was wearing red wired pigtails and looking much like her ole great-grandmaw Little Bo-Peep. Jane Johnson came as Morticia (from the Addams Family of course). David Koch was wearing a body stocking on his noggin along with a Jets cap, looking suspiciously like a birthday boy out of costume. Jets running back Curtis Martin was there in a gray wig (“the black Richard Gere”) with his beautiful wife. Ben Graham came as Johnny Depp in “Pirates of Penzeance.” Even Charlie Rose wore a wig. Oh, and there was one natural-blonde socialite who came as her great-great-grandmother, Elvira.

Then there was The Donald, who came sans the ersatz tresses. Well, he wasn’t the only one. But. However, host insisted: all must wear a wig.

The Trumps

So Donald tried a few, here and there and finally came up with something blonde which, in a way, didn’t really change things much. Which should come as no surprise since of all the celebrity personas in the room that night, The Donald was the only actual Real McCoy. You didn’t know that? You’re Fired!

There were lots of Johnsons there including daughters Jaime and Daisey and Jane, (daughter Casey who lives in California, was not there); but Woody’s sister Libet Johnson was, and brother Christopher, mother Betty. In the crowd: Bridget and Bill Koch, brother David and Julia Koch, Pepe Fanjul, Larry and Jane Kudlow, Susan and John Hess, Charlie Rose, Christine and Steve Schwarzman, Bob and Veronique Pittman, Karen and Richard LeFrak, Nick Simunek (who wore one of his family heirloom wigs), Beth DeWoody, Eva and Glenn Dubin, Mailey and Peter Smtih, Ellen and Chuck Scarborough, Deborah Norville and Karl Wellner, Laurie and John Sykes, Stacy and Terry McDonell, Debbie and John Loeffler, Sara and Charlie Ayres, Serena Boardman, Stephanie and Christopher Clark, Carol Mack, Linda Wells and Charlie Thompson, Matt Nye and Jann Wenner, Liz Finkle and Stephen Sans, Susan Calhoun and Charlie Moss, Charles Gargano, Ann Tannenbaum and Thom Lee, Robert Wiesenthal, Mark Gilbertson, Soledad and Robert Hurst, Lally Weymouth, Rory and Elle Tahari, Antonia Thompson.

Bob Pittman, Christopher Johnson, John Loeffler and Donald Trump all toasted their friend. There were former Jets owners, John Hess and Jet’s arch-rivals, Patriots owner Robert Kraft. And Bridget Rooney Koch whose Pa owns the Steelers. Even Jon and Steve Tisch whose family own the Giants were invited (but couldn’t make it).

Valley of the Dolls Meets Mod Squad, Liz Finkle and Stephan Sans at the Wigged Out Birthday party of Woody Johnson

Sound hysterical? Buncha screwballs? Fun? What do you think? A buncha boomers boogeying around in wigs? And then: after dinner, while everyone was dancing to the Spin of Tom Finn, the Cast of “Jersey Boys” came in after their show. They did four numbers from the show, brought down the house for a second time in one night and exited as Tom Finn put on the cast album.

Great music, the Jersey Boys, Non-stop live-it-up partying for a few hours. Even the very rich need a few laughs in these times. Finally about one o’clock Manhattan babies started to think about tomorrow and slowly disappear from the very good time had by all.

Saturday night before the rains I went down to the Village to meet some friends for din at the Waverly Inn. Believe the hype, the place is jumping. I got there about eight when it was just beginning to build. When I finished dinner at 10:30, they were waiting ten deep in the bar for their tables.

Nina and John Richter

Among the crowd: Sharon Sondes and Geoff Thomas, Barbara and Michael Gross, Ann Jones, Roy Kean, Mandolyna Theodoracopoulos, Serena Boardman, Gina Gershon and owner (partnered with Eric Goode and Graydon Carter) Steve McPherson, Ellin Saltzman, Marianne Harrison, Kathy Steinberg, Carlos Mota and Michael Dupont, Andy Reznik, Jonathan Capehart (who’s deserted New York for Washington and the editorial board of the Washington Post) with Scott Byrd, Nina and John Richter.

People were just ariving when I left (after having a drink at the bar) about 11:30, and still waiting for a table. With all this, this new incarnation of the Ye Olde Waverly Inn, in the exact same spot as a century ago, the place still hasn’t “officially” opened. The menu still says “Preview Menu” on it. As if they hadn’t made up their minds. But frankly, you can order anything on it without a bit of disappointment. Plus same with the desserts. And the wine. And the noise because this place attracts the talkers big time. It’s rockin’ as they say.

It is said you have to know someone to actually get a table. Which may be so, I’m not sure. If so, there are obviously a lotta people who “know someone.” Or someone knows a lotta people. Maybe just about everybody.

Marisa Brown

Also Saturday night not far from the Waverly, as the crow flies, Marisa Noel Brown was celebrating her Big Three Oh at the Brown duplex loft in Soho. The theme: “American Idol.” And 100 of “the hottest most gorgeous New Yorkers” (obviously I wasn’t there) all-singing-all-costumes.

And there were judges, just like the show (I’ve never seen): Dennis Basso, indefatigable, party-boy-billionaire Steve Schwarzman, now dressed as a record producer (Rod Stewart’s?), in pink shirt with matching tie and lots of bling in bracelets and rings (Arnold Stiefel?)

There was Christy Turlington, Ed Burns, Lance Armstrong, Tory Burch, David and Danielle Ganek, David Arquette (someone said he was “crashing”?) who sang “Celebrate” with Lance; Eleanor and Jon Ylvisaker, Colina and Rebekah McCable, Christine Schwarzman, Pierre d’Arenberg, Rena Sindi who just can’t get enough of New York. Mariah Chase, Bridie Clark, Lindley Pless and Alexandra Wilkis sang “Bad Girls” (Harvard girls). Ayla Farnos, Stephanie Douglass, Kristina Loverro sang “Dontcha” (pussycat dolls). Urica Lanaro and Charlotte Assaf sang “Hot Stuff” a la Donna Summer. Christine Schwarzman and Kalliope Karella sang “Girl From Ipanema,” Peggy Siegal sang “I Love the Nightlife” (no kidding Peg). Manhattan babies don’t sleep tight, until the dawn. As they used to say.

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