The Ritz-Carlton

Photos by Tony Powell

Colin Powell and Henry Kissinger

THE EVENT: The Atlantic Council of the United States honored Adm. Michael Mullen, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, media mogul Rupert Murdoch and Russian piano virtuoso Evgeny Kissin at its annual awards dinner, after which Kissin gave a performance. THE GUESTS: Colin Powell, Brent Scowcroft, Henry A. Kissinger, Brig. Gen. Jim Jones, former Polish President Aleksander Krasniewski, Russell and Aileen Train, Donatella Flick, Lloyd Hand, Dan and Rhoda Glickman, Arnaud and Alexandra de Borchgrave, Bob Barnett and Rita Braver.

Location: The John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts

WL SPONSORED – Photos by Kyle Samperton

HONORED VOICES: Over one thousand guests gathered at the Kennedy Center to celebrate the eighth annual Vital Voices Global Leadership Awards, first over cocktails and then in the Eisenhower Theater. The star-studded evening was dedicated to five honorees from Cambodia, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, all making great progress for women in their respective nations. The final award, presented by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, went to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who was declared a “Global Trailblazer.” “As a presidential candidate last year,” Hutchison said, “she made 18 millio

Ben Affleck, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, and Alysee Larsen

n cracks in the ceiling and inspired women all over the world.” Needless to say, political divides don’t apply when it comes to the global advancement of women. CELEBRANTS: French Ambassador Pierre Vimont, Wolf Blitzer, Andrea Mitchell, Tammy Haddad, Nina Totenberg, Juleanna Glover, Dan and Rhoda Glickman, John Pendergrast, Ellen Bennett, and Melanne Verveer.

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Bonnie McElveen Hunter and Alma Gildenhorn

Juggernaut hostesses, priceless porcelain, and Tom Hanks’ socialite crush.

By Donna Shor

THE “WISE” OF TEXAS
A group of legendary ladies from Dallas arrived for Bonnie McElveen-Hunter’s luncheon honoring philanthropist Ruth Altshuler, one of that town’s leading movers and shakers. The event, a triumph of planning and charm, included 40 brilliant and high-powered women. Lucky Roosevelt, one of the local guests who knows a thing or two about effective organizing, said, “Everything Bonnie does is flawless. It started on time and ended on time, and she kept it moving and fun.”

Actually, the event reflected Bonnie’s life. She’s ten women rolled into one, juggling service as the first female chairman of the American Red Cross with running Pace Communications (which publishes most of the U.S. in-flight airline magazines); finding time for family life with her husband, son, and mother; and maintaining a busy social life. Guests included Margot (Mrs. Ross) Perot, Lucky’s houseguest; Elaine Agather of J.P. Morgan; Gene Jones, chairman of the Dallas Cowboys and major sponsor of the Jefferson Library at the Library of Congress; Jean Baderschneider, a vice-president of ExxonMobil; PR whiz Laurie Peat; Peggy Sewell; Nancy Dedman; Marcia Mayo; Rae Evans; Melanie Schelhaus; Ann Korologos of the Rand Corporation; and Susan Sherwin, vice president of The Aspen Institute.

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Brian Dailey with Shela and Art Collins

Location: The Phillips Collection and Anderson House

WL SPONSORED – Photos by Kyle Samperton and Tony Powell

THE EVENT: A perennial favorite among Washington society figures, this year’s Phillips Gala was “Bal des Canotiers,” the Boater’s Ball, and the decadent French theme was on display in every gallery of the museum. The evening also served as an informal going-away party for museum Director Jay Gates, who will retire this year. Gates oversaw a five year, 30,000-foot expansion of the Phillips, including the construction of a garden and an auditorium. THE SCENE: Lobster and veal were served at tables topped with five foot-tall topiaries. Dessert and dancing were held at the Anderson House. THE GUESTS: Justice Alito and Martha Ann Alito, Mayor Adrian Fenty and Michelle Fenty, Linda Douglass, and Sidney and Rep. Jane Harman, David and Katherine Bradley, and Dan and Rhoda Glickman.

Anthony Williams and Adrian Fenty

Location: Nationals Ballpark

WL EXCLUSIVE – Photos by Tony Powell

THE EVENT: Nationals owner Ted Lerner and wife Annette Lerner are more than sports fans; they’re quite literally sports supporters, as their brand-new Nationals Park will support the weight of hundreds of thousands of Washingtonians eager to catch a home game. After so much planning and prepping, it’s no surprise that this Opening Day 2008 celebration was attended by so many VIPs. THE GUESTS: Frederick Shaufeld, Nancy Brinker, Paxton and Rachel Baker, Beth Dozoretz, Catherine Reynolds, Norah O’Donnell, Geoff Tracy, Claire Simmons, Nancy Taylor Bubes, Mark Ein, David Dupree, Dan and Rhoda Glickman, Hanayo Kato and Japanese Amb. Ryozo Kato, Tony Kornheiser, Tony Nader, Alphonso Jackson, Deborah Epstein, and Wolf Blitzer.

Peter Barris, Ted Leonsis, Joe Robert, Thomas Hale Boggs Jr., Walter Isaacson, Tom Friedman David Rubenstein Bob Woodward, Placido Domnigo, Katherine Bradley,

By Ann Geracimos

Some men, and some women, are born with power, to paraphrase the old adage, while others have it thrust upon them. This seldom is the case these days. The majority of people on Washington Life’s selective list of the most powerful have earned their status the hard way. They would be first to admit that a sense of power is in the eyes of the beholder—that projection often is the key to how power is best applied.

Such a concept was part of the infamous list entrepreneur Bill Regardie contrived someyears ago to define the term and its relevance to the Washington scene. His “rules” perversely eliminated anyone drawing a government paycheck, which at canceling theidea that titles automatically confer prestige. (They often do so, but empty suits are all too common a sight among posturing strutters in our public office.) Another Regardierule stated that wealth doesn’t necessarily beget power, which means that many hoping to claim advantages based on inheritance or a talent for acquisitiveness have to prove otherwise. Money is easy; it’s power that is hard — hard to get and relatively easy to lose.

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