Albert Maysles

Barry Levinson’s What Just Happened? is not a particularly good or funny or incisive inside-Hollywood movie, but no one who was leaving the film's premiere on Wednesday evening at the Museum of Modern Art seemed to mind. Afterward, on the second and third floors of the nearby 21 Club, Sean Penn--who before the film started had spent at least three minutes having a gesticulation-heavy conversation with Robert De Niro--was at Table 6. In the film, he plays himself playing the lead role in an overly violent action movie.

What are his thoughts on the financial crisis? “I’m not going to comment tonight," he said. "I’ve had a couple, I’m going to leave it at that."

A few minutes earlier, a significant-looking balding man walked by and said very loudly, “Harvey Weinstein will never speak to me again!” Then an 80-pound woman with razor lips and very touchable-looking hair adjusted the tight, thick leather choker around her neck. Nearby, Men’s Health editor in chief Dave Zinczenko was blocking the way by talking with two men. “This bastard always steals things!” one said to the other about Mr. Zinczenko. Har-har-har! Around the corner there was Cybill Shepherd, dress cut low, talking to four men. And Barbara Walters and Steve Buscemi and Peter Dinklage; Roger Waters, Bob Balaban and Jay McInerney.  read more »

Last December, bearded designer Rogan Gregory and his partner Scott Hahn were invited to a Christmas party at the Midtown home of nonegenarian labor lawyer and free subway advocate Theodore Kheel. Mayor Michael Bloomberg was there, as was Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. ("It was definitely a bit of an older crowd," recalled Mr. Hahn.)

The duo, feeling perhaps a bit out of place, sat down with their friend Julie Gilhart, a fashion director at Barneys New York, and found themselves sharing a table with a curious older gentleman who began telling them stories.  read more »

Ideally, a political convention serves to introduce or reintroduce the public to a party’s presidential and vice presidential nominees in a way that produces a meaningful “bounce” in the polls. It doesn’t always work. Here’s a brief summary of the Democratic nominations of the modern era, ranked (from best to worst) in terms of how effective they were in positioning the party for victory in the fall.

 

1992: It’s unlikely that any future convention for either party will ever be as successful as the Democrats’ 1992 gathering. Bill Clinton came to New York a battered presumptive nominee, lucky to be running ahead of Ross Perot (but still well behind George H.  read more »

A sizable portion of New York’s documentary filmmaking community was packed in at the Maysles Alumni Holiday Party at the Half King Bar and Restaurant on 23rd street. That it was happening in January didn’t seem to faze anyone. “We couldn’t get our act together,” said a fast-talking Xan Parker, a nine-year veteran of Maysles Films.  read more »