The cocktail reception around the Sea Lion Pool at last night's Wildlife Conservation Society gala benefit at the Central Park Zoo, with dining tents in the background. 8:00 PM. Photo: DPC.

June 11, 2009. It was overcast yesterday in New York. The trees are full now and green is everywhere in the city, and it is beautiful, sometimes even moreso in the grey overcast. The Park on these cool days is thick and damp and evocative. I went down to Michael’s to lunch with Barbara Tober, ostensibly to talk about the Museum of Arts and Design that she’s been a powerful force behind for a number of years. I’ve mentioned this before. I plan to write a piece about it. I was particularly interested because I’d heard that Barbara’s interest in the museum was sparked by the simple purchase years ago of something she and her husband Donald saw in an art gallery window on Madison Avenue on a Saturday afternoon. It was a typical Michael’s Wednesday. The town’s around. Joe Armstrong was lunching with Harold Ford Jr. the former Tennessee Congressman; Stan Shuman, Jamie Niven, Gayle Haddon, Gerry Byrne with Henry Schleiff; the Old Boys Club, Imber, Della Femina, Greenfield, Bergman (missing Kramer this day); Arnold Scaasi and Parker Ladd hosting Diana Taylor; Susan Magrino and David Kuhn; Tony Hoyt and Missy Godfrey; Joan Gleman, Sandy Pearl, Kimberly DuRoss and Robin Leacock; Barbaralee Diamonstein-Spielvogel with Deb Shriver; her husband the Ambassador Carl, with Chyrstia Friedland of the FT; next to them, Eduardo Verastegui, the Mexican screen star and creator of “Bella,” in which he starred; moving right along around the room: Cindi Leive, Nikki Haskell, Herb Allen III; Steve Rubenstein, Beverly Camhe; and dozens more just like ‘em. Barbara and I didn’t end up talking about her museum. Instead we talked about the times in which we live and what it’s all about. Alfie, you still out there? Barbara had had a long and successful career as editor-in-chief of Brides magazine for more than three decades. Those successful women magazine editors – the long term ones – mentioned also yesterday in the Diary, can move mountains. And start museums. But more about that later.

Preston Bailey's floral image of the Snow Leopard upon the front steps of the Arsenal facing Fifth Avenue.

Last night it was the annual benefit gala of the Wildlife Conservation Society at the Central Park Zoo. This year’s gala was celebrating the opening of the new Allison Maher Stern Snow Leopard Exhibit at the Zoo, as well as the global initiatives of the WCS, which is now operating in more than 60 countries. The benefit committee this year included: Jamee and Peter Gregory, Muffie and Dr. Sherrell Aston, Cornelia and Martin Bregman, Caroline Hirsch and Andrew Fox, Cynthia and Dan Lufkin, Daisy and Paul Kanavos, Georgette Mosbacher, Ann and Thomas Unterberg, Adrienne and Gigi Vittadini. There is also a big after party every year for the younger set. This was chaired by Mary Dailey Pattee, Elizabeth Belfer and Diana Townsend-Butterworth.

Our furry and feathered friends.

It’s a great privilege to have an evening like this in New York, no matter the weather. And there was no sunshine to cap off the day. But it was a beautiful setting just inside the park, behind the Arsenal, one of the oldest public buildings in Manhattan; with cocktails around the sea lion pool with occasional appearances of the sleek and witty critters. And the women dressed in in bright and vibrant colors and the men in black tie. I bumped into George Gurley, the intrepid reporter talking to Carl Bernstein and recording Carl’s response. When he was finished I asked him what he’d asked Carl. He said he was asking Carl and other guests (and recording their answers) “what animal a specific individual reminded them of.” Then he asked me, for example, “If Michael Bloomberg were an animal, what kind of animal would he be?” I said: “Elephant.” He said, “Why?” “Because he has a long tail.” Bill Gates reminded me of a Kangaroo, and Warren Buffet, a Porcupine. I hadn’t had anything to drink either but I found myself being very amused by my own silliness. I guess I’ll never be lonely.

Guests moving into the dining tents about 8:20 pm.

Wildlife Conservation and all that. Personally, I associate Allison Stern with the Wildlife Conservation Society and vice versa. To me, she is The Wildlife Conservation Society probably because I met her through this organization. She is impassioned basically about saving the animals. I find zoos troubling because they are removing these creatures from their natural environment. Allison argues that while that is true, in many cases, these animals in captivity are preserving them from extinction – which is increasing in numbers faster and faster. Furthermore the zoos are working harder to improve the “environments” for its inhabitants. Allison’s resolve is impressive and humanitarian. Those are good vibes to be around. The party last night has those vibes. It always has which is one of the reasons why it is a pleasure. It’s also the last great benefit gala of the season. It means Recess; school’s out. There’s always a brief relief just like it always was. I always associate the evening with Allison’s vibes but in fact it’s a major joint effort of a lot of people, a lot of volunteers; and it’s the work of those committee people as well as many other associates who support the WCS as passionately as Allison Stern.

The table settings.

That said, it’s a good party. The food came from organic farms of the caterer, Great Performances. The décor and table arrangements were done by Preston Bailey. Mr. Bailey created the white tiger on the steps of the Arsenal at the Zoo’s entrance. All of flowers. This is Mr. Bailey’s particular genius. He creates environments and tableau out of flowers. It’s a wonder. Last night’s were lush and beautiful, and genius in composition, as well as the tablecloths with floral designs sewn on like floral displays. I sat next to a young woman named Elyssa Kellerman who is a nature/animal photographer. In fact she did the book that is being published by the WCS. She’s an attractive young blonde in her thirties, mother of three teenagers, and world traveler photographing the animals. She doesn’t photograph people. I told her of my recently seeing a clip on television of an elephant being attacked by more than a score of lions. It was a hideous experience just to watch, and while you may argue that that’s just nature, it’s was still unnerving and has remained in my craw ever since.

Debbie Bancroft, Dayssi Olarte de Kanavos, Jack Bryan, and Catherine Bryan

Muffie Potter Aston, Sherri Rollins, Somers Farkas, and Adrienne Vittadini

So I asked Elyssa Kellerman how she could handle those moments photographing. She said that when she was shooting “in the box,” she’s focused entirely on the photograph and is detached. However, she did see one particular “kill” of lions with a buffalo that she said was so gory and bad that she couldn’t take it. She described some of what she saw. The bigger animals don’t die as quickly, and elephants, she said are huge and also the most intelligent in the animal kingdom, so their deaths are not instant. She also said they were not as commonplace as we might think. She told me that when photographing apes she had to learn to handle the male’s aggressiveness at first. “It’s all about respect” with the animals, she told me. “They must see your respect.” The first time a male ape confronted her she knew to hang her head, look at the ground, cower slightly and not move. Thirty seconds can be excruciatingly long while a male ape is in your face. He can smell who she is. This particular ape did this to Elyssa the first three times she was in his presence. The fourth time he was fine with her: www.kellermanwildlifephoto.com. [1] Muffie holding her perfect Judith Leiber jeweled evening purse in her Zang Toi sweater and her GAP tee. Respect. This is the word that could articulate the work of the Wildlife Conservation Society, and of Allison Stern. I sat next to Maureen Reidy and Muffie Potter Aston. They were talking about Muffie’s couture concoction: a Galliano skirt, a Zang Toi sweater over her shoulders and a tee from the Gap. And the pearls and what looked an awful lot like diamonds. The color of her ensemble was going to be pink and it would be accessorized by Judith Leiber who was a major sponsor of last night’s gala. I guess all the women committee members were sporting Judith Leiber jeweled purses. For some reason the color pink was dropped for a light blue/green. The Leiber purse arrived in the late afternoon and it too was blue and green. This is fascinating stuff, no? From there we went on to talking about children. Muffie is a fairly new mother. Her twin girls are four. She spends a lot of time with them now because, as she put it, in another year they’ll be in school all day. Learning is what she stresses and the little ones sound like a couple of geniuses. Muffie believes that what influences and interests the child will determine its interests later in life. I agree, in case you’re wondering. So Muffie is actively involved in developing that for her little ones. In the meantime, one of them can explain the whole human digestive system. Maybe she’s going to be a doctor.

Margo Langenberg and Jamie Figg

Sylvester and Gillian Miniter

Larry Leeds and Ben Lambert

From the back ...

Kirk Henckels with Cynthia and Dan Lufkin

Emily and Harold Ford with Marlene Hess

George Gurley asking Carl Bernstein what kind of animal Mayor Bloomberg would make.

Nancy Missett and Jay Gunther

Lisa Schiff

Jamee Gregory

Dan Lufkin and Francesca Stanfill

Cynthia Lufkin and Paul Kanavos

Barbara and Michael Gross

Mary Hilliard

Elyssa Kellerman, the photographer

Stephanie Krieger

Diahn McGrath and Brian Stewart

Muffie Potter Aston and Dr. Sherrell Aston

Georgette Mosbacher's Blackberry with a picture of her and Tom Cruise

Prudence Inzerillo and Deborah Grubman

John Veronis and Cynthia Lufkin

Somers Farkas and Richard Mishaan

The artist assesses. The great Frank Stella, on right, inspecting the Judith Lieber evening purse with friends.

Edith McBean and Graham Arader

Bill Flaherty and Katherine Bryan

Allison Stern and her brother, Jim Maher

Meanwhile back in the Naked Jungle. The day before yesterday, according to yesterday’s New York Post, a young woman named Allison Frey was hit by a cab after exiting a subway station on Park Avenue. It was two-thirty a.m., and she had her tiny black and white Maltese with her, evidently without a leash or collar. And the young woman was on her cell. All of a sudden a cab came out of nowhere and struck the young woman who went up in the air. Her dog landed wherever and fled, now having disappeared. Allison Frey (NY POST) Ms. Frey, according to the Post, broke both knees. And cannot find her adored little dog. This is one reason why your dog should always be on a leash in the city. Although it is an obscure reason to a variety of people. Cellphones are turning out to be a scourge. They’re everywhere. They’re very useful many times. And they’re entertaining, amusing, good company. They’ve probably been very helpful for compulsive fingernail biters because cell phones are a bigger compulsion/obsession. And they’re everywhere. People everywhere with one pressed to an ear. Or looking, even gawking at them. It’s universal madness, an evolutionary abdication of consciousness, to put it politely. It can cause you to be hit by a bus, and does. It can cause you to swerve all over the road, risking your lives and potentially hundreds of others. And does. The lady pushing her little one in a stroller, into on-coming traffic with a cell phone cradled between her shoulder and her ear, is another one. It got me started; sorry. I hope Ms. Frey finds her little pup, Bagel is his name. Must be terrified by now. He’s got a microchip so any animal shelter or vet can tell you if he’s the one. Please investigate immediately if you find the little guy so he can be returned to his owner who will probably NOT ever take the dog out again. It got me started, sorry. Otherwise a beautiful day and night in New York, it was.

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