All the inside buzz from 2010’s first real estate deals.

By Stacey Grazier Pfarr

The late Melvin and Estelle Gelmans’ 2-story-high living room looks out on upon an expansive penthouse terrace on 4201 Cathedral Avenue, NW.

Victoria Reggie Kennedy

VICKI BUYS: Although Victoria Reggie Kennedy hasn’t yet sold 2416 TRACY PLACE NW (the 8,900-square-foot, seven-bedroom house she purchased with her husband, the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, in 1998), but she bought 2128 WYOMING AVENUE NW in Kalorama for $1,650,000 with the help of Jim Bell of Jim Bell Real Estate. The three-bedroom Federal style townhouse, built in 1959, was once the residence of socialite Charles Cudlip, who also resides in Newport, R.I.

KALORAMA RECORD: Last month we wrote that former Defense Secretary and World Bank President Robert S. McNamara’s former home at 2412 TRACY PLACE NW held the record for the highest selling price in Kalorama at $6.1 million, but in fact, 2401 KALORAMA ROAD NW (listed by Ginny Chew of Washington Fine Properties) secured the title in February, 2008, when it fetched $7,165,000. Now there is a pending contract for 2340 KALORAMA ROAD NW that was listed for $8.975,000. This property was set to go to settlement on Jan. 29, 2010, and if it did,  it will hold the new record for the highest sale in Kalorama.

COLOSSAL CONDO: The Wesley Heights penthouse apartment of the late Melvin and Estelle Gelman, 4201 CATHEDRAL AVENUE NW #1215 in The Towers, is for sale for $4.3 million. Mr. and Mrs. Gelman, who died in 1978 and 2009 respectively, owned and operated the Gelman Construction Company which built more than 2,000 houses in the Maryland suburbs and 12 apartment complexes in the Washington, D.C. area. On the market for the first time since they built The Towers in 1960, the condominium occupies a whopping 9,400 square feet and is said to be the largest apartment in Washington. The unit boasts a drawing room with a soaring 16-foot ceiling, a two-story grand entry foyer, and a media room draped from top to bottom in green velvet alpaca. The property is listed by Washington Fine Properties’ William F. X. Moody and Robert Hryniewicki.

Rick Rickertsen

GEORGETOWN GEM: Rick Rickertsen has listed the historic Laird-Dunlop Coach House at 1214 30TH street NW for $11.5 million. Once part of the larger Laird-Dunlop House property next door at 3014 N Street NW (the former home of Robert Todd Lincoln, Rep. Peter H.B. Frelinghuysen, Smith and Vicki Bagley, and currently the residence of Ben Bradlee and Sally Quinn), the site includes a 1799 tobacco smokehouse (now a pool pavilion) and one of the largest and oldest oak trees in Georgetown. In the late 1940s, the original Laird-Dunlop grounds were subdivided when the owner, Mrs. Arthur Woods, a granddaughter of financier J. Pierpont Morgan, sold the N Street mansion and moved to the Coach House, adding a ballroom, or music room, that opened onto the large garden. More recently, Mr. Rickertsen added additional garden space after purchasing adjacent land from Mr. Bradlee and Ms. Quinn. The Coach House was, for 22 years, previously the home of Arnold Sagalyn, a former Treasury Department and Interpol official, and his wife, Louise.

NOT-SO-LUCKY SEVENS: Tom and Randall Phillips didn’t have much luck when they listed their Eaglecrest Compound in McLean (1015 Basil Road) for $17,777,777 last fall. They just dropped the price by nearly 40 percent to $10,995,000. The 16,000-square-foot Georgian Colonial broke records back in 2005 when it was sold for $9,895,000—the highest price ever paid for non-waterfront property in Northern Virginia. Mr. Phillips is currently the chairman of Eagle Publishing, Inc. and the Conservative Campaign Fund.

The 14th annual record of notably social individuals from politics, diplomacy, business, philanthropy, and the arts.

Enrico and Andrea Cecchi (Photo by Joseph Allen)

A
Mr. and Mrs. JAMES ABDO (Mai)
Mr. and Mrs. WILLIAM ABEL-SMITH (Mimi)
The Honorable and Mrs. TYLER ABELL (Bess)
The Honorable DAVID C. ACHESON
Mr. GLEN ACKERMAN and Mr. ERNESTO SANTALLA
Mr. THEO ADAMSTEIN and Ms. OLVIA DEMETRIOU

Read the full story

Vice President Joe Biden and Quinn Bradlee add spark to the Lab School’s 25th anniversary gala.

By Donna Shor

Vice President Joe Biden with George Stephanopoulos and Ali Wentworth at the Lab School’s 25th anniversary. Photo by Daniel Rosenbaum.

OUT OF SCHOOL REVELATIONS

What did Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein, Sir Winston Churchill, Walt Disney, and Cher have in common? They all suffered from dyslexia, the neurological condition that makes it difficult to read, write, and spell. But they didn’t have the Lab School to help.

Read the full story

The 2009 Choral Arts Gala, Photo by Kyle Samperton

The 2009 Washington Life Guide to Balls and Galas.

SEPTEMBER

WNO’S OPENING NIGHT GALA
WL SPON
What to Expect: Join fellow opera enthusiasts for the Washington National Opera’s highly-anticipated Season Opening Night Gala dinner dance following the premiere performance of Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, where the funds raised benefit the WNO’s performance programs and educational outreach projects.
Date: Saturday, September 12; 7 p.m.
Location: Performance at the Opera House, The Kennedy Center; gala dinner at the Hall of the Americas, Organization of American States Building
Attire: Black-tie
Price: Starting at $500; sponsorship packages starting at $5,000; performance tickets sold separately
Contact: WNO Special Events Hotline, 202-295-2449, specialevents@dc-opera.org; performance tickets, 202-295-2420

2009 WOLF TRAP BALL
What to Expect: The vast Filene Center stage transforms into a magical setting as Germany marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and celebrates “Freedom without Walls” at the performance venue’s annual ball. As the foundation’s largest fundraiser, proceeds benefit Wolf Trap’s arts and education programs.
Date: Saturday, September 12; 7 p.m.
Location: Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts
Attire: Black-tie
Event Chairmen: Mary E. Arnold and James C. Nesbitt III
Price: $500 to $1,000; tables from $5,500 to $25,000
Contact: Melanie Allan McCarty, 703-255-1944, events@wolftrap.org

 NATIONAL HISPANIC FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS’ NOCHE DE GALA
WL SPON
What to Expect: Always high on the caliente chart, the evening brings A-List Hispanic entertainers together for dinner, dancing, and fundraising. Founded by actors Jimmy Smits, Sonia Braga, Esai Morales, and Washington attorney Felix Sanchez, the foundation offers graduate scholarships and programs to young Latinos pursuing careers in entertainment and media.
Date: Tuesday, September 15; 6:30 p.m.
Location: Corcoran Gallery of Art
Attire: Black-tie
Event Chairmen: Joaquin Bacardi III, Sonia Braga, Ginny Grenham, Merel Julia, Esai Morales, Felix Sanchez, and Jimmy Smits
Price: $1,000; corporate sponsorships available
Contact: Jennifer Castillo, 202-293-8330

Read the full story

The press gets a new home and kicks off the gala season

By Janet Donovan

Chris and Kathleen Matthews, Joe Scarborough, and Mitt Romney

Matters of Opinion

Washington Post columnist Ruth Marcus, Atlanta-Journal Constitution’s editorial cartoonist Mike Luckovich, and Talking Points Memo blogger Josh Marshall had plenty of reasons to celebrate at The Week’s Fifth Annual Opinion Awards dinner at the Four Seasons on April 8th: they won.

The elegant and intimate evening raised eyebrows when panelists took center stage, and the discussion turned into a testosterone versus estrogen contest. This was led by Time.com’s Anna Marie Cox, who questioned why, when we have an African American and a woman running for President, the panel of experts were all white men? Fair question.

Read the full story

Author Jane Stanton Hitchcock’s latest novel is the talk of the town, whether you’re in it or not.

By Kevin Chaffee

Author Jane Stanton Hitchcock at home

What do Jim Kimsey, Ben Bradlee, Sally Quinn, Carolyn Peachey, Liz Stevens, Amanda Downes, Jim Johnson, Deborah Gore Dean, Rima Al-Sabah, Ann Jordan, Carol Joynt, Leo and Grega Daly, and Rep. Jane Harmon have in common? – apart from living in Washington, that is.

Yes, all were spotted at the party celebrating Jane Stanton Hitchcock’s recent novel, “Mortal Friends,” at Café Milano on Thursday night, but there is a far deeper connection. It turns out that each is a character in her book – but under a totally different name, of course.

Anyone who really knows the Washington scene won’t have too much trouble deciphering that “Nouria Salaha,” described as the ultra-fashionable spouse of a Middle Eastern ambassador, is based on top diplomatic hostess Rima Al-Sabah, wife of Kuwaiti Ambassador Salem Al-Sabah. Or that “Bob Poll,” an “ageless rake with military bearing” sure seems a lot like AOL co-founder Jim Kimsey, who, if he minded any of the comparisons, was shrugging them off that night (as he did during Joynt’s sold-out “Q&A” lunch with Hitchcock at Nathan’s earlier that day).

“Mortal Friends” is sure to be this summer’s essential plane or beach read. It’s a delicious thriller filled with social climbing, back-stabbing, deceit, betrayal, and the hunt for a serial killer who carries out his terrible deeds in such familiar haunts as Georgetown’s Montrose Park. No wonder Politics and Prose sold out every copy – the first time that has ever happened at a book party, according to a member of the sales staff.

Guests sipped wine and Champagne while waiting patiently in line for author inscriptions. It wasn’t long before the crowd spilled out into the reception area, and from there to patio where Jill Biden, the wife of the vice president, had quietly entered to dine with a friend (even she ended up getting a book.)

Jane Stanton Hitchcock's latest novel "Mortal Friends" explore dangerous liaisons in Washington social life.

Here’s who else was there:

From the diplomatic corps: German Ambassador Klaus Sharioth, Yemeni Ambassador Abdulwahab Al-Hajjri, Japanese Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki and Yoriko Fujisaki, and Lady (Julia) Sheinwald, wife of British Ambassador Sir Nigel Sheinwald.

From the media: Jim Hoagland (Hitchcock’s spouse), Bob Schieffer, Arnaud de Borchgrave, Tammy Haddad, Andrea Mitchell, Margaret Carlson, Edie Emery, Jim Lehrer, David Corn, Ann Geracimos, Roxanne Roberts, Fred Hiatt, Patrick Gavin, Steve Smith and Sally Bedell Smith.

From the social scene: Andy Athy, Michael and Afsaneh Beschloss, Dr. Susan Blumenthal, Conrad and Ludmila Cafritz, Buffy Cafritz, Marcia Carter, John Cecchi, Walter and Didi Cutler, Count Renaud de Viel Castel, Susan Eisenhower, Nini Ferguson, Bitsey Folger, Jim and Ann Free, Ina Ginsburg, Lloyd and Ann Hand, June Hechinger, Chris and Jennifer Isham, Winston Bao Lord, Capricia Marshall, Mac and Donna McLarty, Bill and Dorothy McSweeny, John and Diana Negroponte, Mike Peabody, Gerald and Eden Rafshoon, Lucky Roosevelt, Jackie Rush, Aniko Gaal Schott, Prince Ermias Selassie, Jamal Simmons, and Judith Terra.

Queen Rania Al Abdullah and Nafis Sadik

Location: Residences of Ben Bradlee and Sally Quinn, Jim Kimsey, and British Ambassador Sir Nigel and Lady Sheinwald

WL EXCLUSIVE - Photos by Joseph Allen, Carrie Dorean, and Kyle Samperton

HOME SWEET HOME: Since the UN Foundation Board of Directors’ annual meeting brought some of the world’s most influential philanthropic leaders to the District, it was only fitting that consummate Washington hosts Ben Bradlee and Sally Quinn would offer a warm welcome to notable participants in their Georgetown home (where CNN founder Ted Turner livened up the crowd with a convivial “two bits for philanthropy” cheer). On another evening, the swiftly flowing Potomac River provided a stunning backdrop at Jim Kimsey’s McLean home at a private dinner for Nothing But Nets. At a third gathering at the British Ambassador’s residence, climate change was the topic of major concern. WORLD VIEWS: Aside from UN Foundation board members, the three events were attended by influential political scientists, economists, and diplomats, including: Jordanian Amb. Prince Zeid, Japanese Amb. Ichiro Fujisaki, Korean Amb. Tae-sik Lee, Monaco Amb. Gilles Noghes, and Swedish Amb. Jonas Hafstrom.

Click here for the full gallery of photos from the Kimsey Residence

Click here for the full gallery of photos from the Bradlee Residence

Top Row: President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, Rahm Emanuel, Bob Woodward, Teresa Heinz Kerry, John Kerry, Don Graham, Adrian and Michelle Fenty, Vice President Joseph Biden and Jill Biden. Second row: Rep. Barney Frank, Desirée Rogers, Victoria and Sen. Ted Kennedy, Valerie Jarrett, Timothy Geithner, Eric Holder and Sharon Malone, Peter Orzsag, Jane Stanton Hitchcock. Third row: Sen. Mark Warner, Alexandra Wentworth and George Stephanopolous, Justice Antonin Scalia, Elizabeth and George Stevens, Salem Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Queen Noor, Robert Duvall, Roger Sant. Fourth row: Katharine Weymouth, Justice Stephen Breyer, Sheila Johnson, Plácido Domingo, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Amb. Pierre Vimont, Ted and Annette Lerner, Sen. Harry Reid.

Big changes are always in store when a new president takes office. The “out-with-the-old, in-with-the-new” transition of power is even more historic when a change of party occurs (check) and especially when a two-term presidency ends (double check). Barack and Michelle Obama are also younger than their predecessors (they were born at the end of the Baby Boom era; the Bushes at its very beginning), and, most relevant of all, are the first African-Americans to occupy the White House.

Read the full story

A Look Back at this Year’s Kennedy Center Honors Gala

By Janet Donovan

Beyoncé Knowles on the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors. Photo by Kyle Samperton

Ribbons, Priceless

Guests attending the glamorous 31st annual Kennedy Center Honors on December 7th may have arrived camera-ready in emeralds and diamonds, but the best decorations were worn by honorees Morgan Freeman, George Jones, Barbra Streisand, Twyla Tharp, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey. Bestowed upon them the previous evening at a lavish State Department dinner hosted by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the medals displayed by the six pack on the red carpet gratified the crowd of onlookers to say nothing of the celeb-starved photographers.

Four of the six honorees were sighted at George and Liz Stevens’ lavish brunch earlier that day (Streisand and Freeman passed) when a jubilant VIP crowd packed Café MoZU at the Mandarin Oriental. Ethel Kennedy, in a jovial mood, said she had every reason to be happy before pointing out that her niece, Caroline, who now emcees the Honors, would have been a good choice for the New York Senate seat once occupied by her late husband, Robert F. Kennedy, from 1965 to 1968.

Read the full story

Angus and Sissy Yates and Dana and Timothy Rooney joined our photo shoot at the newly renovated and redubbed Fairfax Embassy Row Hotel.

This roster is neither the first, nor will it (inevitably) be the last to single out certain individuals, who, by virtue of birth, rank, wealth, or accomplishment, take part in the social life of the nation’s capital. Estimable precursors – drumroll here – include “The Green Book,” so-called for its faux green suede cover, which has appeared continuously since 1930; and The Blue Book of Washington, which ceased publication around 1990 after a century in print. The Social Register, sometimes called the “Black Book,” also contains the names of numerous prominent local figures, many hailing from so-called “blue blood” families, although its thin Washington edition was merged into a much larger 12-city national version in the 1980s.

A key difference separating Washington Life’s list from the others – apart from having no discernible color – is that we do not publish a “phone book” of addresses and contact information, schools attended, club and yacht listings, and the like. Ours is merely an alphabetical nomenclature of people who make a difference by adding immeasureably to Washington’s political, diplomatic and cultural scene. Another point of contrast is size. Compared to the thousands of entries in other directories, WL’s Social List, currently about 700 names and counting, is a relatively small effort. As far as “official Washington” is concerned, we include only a select few of the more sociable (“dining out,” as they were once so charmingly called) members of the Congress, Cabinet, and Supreme Court.

Read the full story

The 13th annual record of notably social personalities from the worlds of politics, diplomacy, business, philanthropy, and the arts.

By Kevin Chaffee

John Pyles and Barbara Harrison

This roster is neither the first, nor will it (inevitably) be the last to single out certain individuals, who, by virtue of birth, rank, wealth or accomplishment, take part in the social life of the nation’s capital. Estimable precursors – drumroll here – include The Green Book,” so-called for its faux green suede cover, which has appeared continuously since 1930; and the Blue Book of Washington, D.C., which ceased publication around 1990 after a century in print. The Social Register, sometimes called the “Black Book,” also contains the names of numerous prominent local figures, many hailing from so-called “blue blood” families, although it merged its thin Washington volume into a much larger 12-city national version back in the 1980s.

A major difference separating Washington Life’s list from the others – apart from having no discernible color – is that we do not publish a “phone book” containing addresses and contact information, much less schools attended, club memberships and yacht listings. Ours is merely an alphabetical nomenclature of people who make a difference by adding immeasurably to their city, and by extension, their country and the world. Another point of contrast is size. Compared to the many thousands of entries contained in other directories past and present, WL’s Social List, currently about 700 names and counting, is relatively small. We do not see the need to include every member of the Congress, Cabinet or Court (i.e., Supreme), much less all those with top jobs listed in the “Plum Book” of political appointments.

Read the full story

The 16th Annual Record of the Washington Social Scene.

Deborah and Curtin Winsor III, Kathy Kemper and Jim Valentine, and Francis Colt de Wolf III and his wife Nathalie de Wolf, stroll the iconic Peacock Alley in the Willard InterContinental Washington while enjoying a few fine flutes of bubbly off the champagne cart. Photo by Clay Blackmore

“A beautiful summer week-end with a few dear friends at our farm in Middleburg.” – Roger and Vicki Sant

“I enjoyed listening to my friend Rima at her baby shower talk about how much fun it was being pregnant, she was enjoying all the attention her husband was giving her and would miss that after she gives birth.” – Irene Pollin

“My favorite social event of 2007 was Marvin Hamlish’s birthday party – lots of laughter and music provided by Marvin and good conversation – a very fun, totally wonderful dinner in Marvin’s honor. It was great to hear him play his own birthday song!” - Ann Hand

“One of our favorite memories of 2007 was the Harman Center for the Arts opening event. The evening was all about enlightenment and enchantment.” – Huda and Samia Farouki

Read the full story