PARTY LINES : HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL AT CANCER FUND-RAISER.Byline: Barbara De Witt De Witt, uninc. town (1990 pop. 8,244), Onondaga co., central N.Y., a residential suburb of Syracuse. The City of Angels is also a City of Hope. For 50 years, a group of philanthropic-minded women in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. have been raising money for City of Hope's cancer research by throwing a lavish luncheon, and each year it gets bigger and better. In 1948, it was a small group - only 125 guests - who gathered at the Hollywood Athletic Club. This year the City of Hope annual spring benefit had 1,200 guests, with luncheons held on Wednesday and Thursday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills Beverly Hills, city (1990 pop. 31,971), Los Angeles co., S Calif., completely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles; inc. 1914. The largely residential city is home to many motion-picture and television personalities. . In honor of its golden anniversary, co-chairwomen Betty Gorelick and cancer survivor Nadine Mosk (they've been friends since their days at CSUN CSUN California State University Northridge ) picked ``the Best of Times'' as their theme, added a huge runway fashion show, a boutique offering everything from toys to mink coats ... and invited honorees of the past to be saluted. Those celebrated guests included restaurateurs Maude Chasen and Madame Sylvia Wu, in addition to Nina Blanchard, Ginny Mancini, Rhonda Fleming, Lillian Zackey (of Zackey Farms chicken), Marion Ross Marion Ross (born October 25, 1928) is a Golden Globe-nominated American actress. Born Marian Ross in Albert Lea, Minnesota, she grew up there, and in nearby Waconia and Willmar. , Constance Towers, Kathy Hilton and fashion critic Mr. Blackwell, who thanked City of Hope for saving his life in 1960. Each honoree went to the podium to be applauded and receive gifts, but Lesley Ann Warrengot the most attention. After she was introduced twice, and she still didn't come up on stage, we learned that she was in the ladies' room. When she finally arrived, the embarrassed actress apologized, saying she'd been on the phone trying to line up a new film. The actress is busy again, with two new films in the works - ``All of It'' and ``Love Kills.'' Also at Warren's table were Ginny Mancini, who looked stunning in a smart tan and black suit, but had trouble with her double-breasted jacket. Table partner Mark Harris of Howard Stern's radio program advised her to unbutton the inside button to make the jacket lay flat while seated. Later, he told me the radio shock jock is a lot nicer than people think ... then he bragged about his daughter Candice, who's a cover girl and runway model. Rhonda Fleming was at the table, too, looking fab in a white suit with turquoise silk blouse. She said she has no plans to do any more films, as she's too busy with the Rhonda Fleming Resource Center for Cancer at UCLA UCLA University of California at Los Angeles UCLA University Center for Learning Assistance (Illinois State University) UCLA University of Carrollton, TX and Lower Addison, TX and its new Reflections boutique, which sells special hats, wigs and other items so that women patients can go home looking pretty. Mr. Blackwell couldn't help but notice what all the women were wearing. ``There's a transitional change going on, with suits worn longer, at the knee. But I think the shirtwaist dress soon will be replacing suits,'' he added. After a chicken lunch, with ice cream and chocolate sauce for dessert, it was time for the fashion show with designs by Gottex, Lane Davis, Fe Zandi, Remi and Edwards-Lowell, with plenty of celeb ce·leb n. Informal A celebrity. models vamping on the catwalk, from Blackwell with Susan Blakely to Steve Garvey and Faye Resnick. The event raised in excess of $200,000 to help fight the war against cancer, diabetes, Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease or Parkinsonism, degenerative brain disorder first described by the English surgeon James Parkinson in 1817. When there is no known cause, the disease usually appears after age 40 and is referred to as Parkinson's disease. and HIV/AIDS HIV/AIDS Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome at the City of Hope National Medical Center City of Hope is one of 39 NCI-designated Cancer Centers and is located in the city of Duarte, California. City of Hope comprises an ambulatory and in-patient cancer treatment center as well as a biomedical research facility known as the Beckman Research Institute and the City of Hope and Beckman Research Institute The Beckman Research Institute (BRI) is a research facility affiliated with the City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, CA. It is dedicated to studying normal and abnormal biological processes which may be related to cancer. . Fans of the L.A. Opera had their own soiree soi·ree also soi·rée n. An evening party or reception. [French soirée, from Old French seree, from seir, evening, from Latin April 25 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is one of the halls in the Los Angeles Music Center (which is one of the three largest performing arts centers in the United States). The Music Center's other halls include the Mark Taper Forum, Ahmanson Theatre, and Walt Disney Concert Hall. . It was the opening night of Verdi's ``Il trovatore,'' an Italian opera with all the usual drama plus some sword fights and gypsy dancing. At the cast party, sexy soprano star Carol Vaness, who wore a stunning Nolan Miller gown, greeted guests enthusiastically. Asked about the evening's performance, she was all smiles. ``I thought it went very well and the characters jelled,'' she told me. A graduate of CSUN who now lives in Upland, Vaness was the only local artist in the cast that included Russian tenor Vladimir Bogachov and Finnish baritone Jorma Hynninen. Also in attendance was Italian film legend Sophia Loren - who looked swell, according to several admiring males - attending with Nolan Miller and her son Carlo Ponti, who lives in Thousand Oaks. While young Ponti, who is studying to become a conductor, talked about music with L.A. Opera conductor Gabriele Ferro, Loren told me she had several projects in the works, including a cookbook. ``Il trovatore'' continues at the Music Center through May 16. CAPTION(S): 5 Photos Photo: (1) Honoree Mr. Blackwell chats with fashion designer Fe Zandi at the 50th-anniversary gala for City of Hope at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. (2) Mugging for the camera are City of Hope gala chairwomen Betty Gorelick, left, and Nadine Mosk with pianist Dean Mora MORA, In civil law. This term, in mora, is used to denote that a party to a contract, who is obliged to do anything, has neglected to perform it, and is in default. Story on Bailm. Sec. 123, 259; Jones on Bailm. 70; Poth. Pret a Usage, c. 2, Sec. 2, art. 2, n. , who entertained guests as they entered the Beverly Hilton ballroom. (3) Faye Resnick was among the celebrity models at the City of Hope's fashion show. Tina Gerson/Daily News (4) Carol Bayer Sager, left, Carol Burnett and Carol Channing were all honored at the ``AmFar Salutes the Carols'' gala last week at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. The women were honored for their commitment to the fight against AIDS. Berliner Studio (5) Sherman Oaks residents Cynthia Gullen, left, and Peter Somogyl visited with ``Il trovatore'' soprano Carol Vaness at the L.A. Opera's opening-night party held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Lee Salem |
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