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Despite Rumors Flying in New York, Town & Country‘s Pam Fiori Exemplified Class

There’s a rumor floating around about Town & Country Editor-in-Chief/founding co-chairperson of the UNICEF Snowflake Project  Pamela Fiori (pictured) who was in Dallas Monday for a luncheon and book signing of her new book In the Spirit of Capri. No, it wasn’t that she’s a Miranda type. Nor was it that T&C is going weekly. It was. . .

But first, let’s review her Dallas visit. (more…)

Washington Post Leads Gail McGovern Story With Dallas Event

In a February 8th Washington Post article on Gail McGovern, head of the American Red Cross, reporter Annie Gowen writes:

“American Red Cross chief executive Gail J. McGovern was about to give a fundraising pitch to a roomful of Texas millionaires when news of the earthquake in Haiti reached her by text message.

She knew right away that this would be her first real test as chief of the renowned relief organization, which had fallen into debt and disrepute after missteps after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and Hurricane Katrina. But she wasn’t about to abandon her talk to donors at the home of a concrete-paving magnate, an estate modeled after a French chateau.

Without “an eyelash out of place” — as one Dallas charity blogger noted — McGovern went on coolly with her prepared remarks, making scant mention of the disaster then unfolding. And she stayed and mingled afterward, charming the wealthy crowd with a self-deprecating anecdote about her first meeting as Red Cross chief with their home-town son, George W. Bush. (She’d burst into tears telling him that she’d dropped her kid off at college the previous day.)”

SweetCharity covered the party at the Schlegel estate and enjoyed her chat with Annie.

Brit Hume And Laura Bush Add Political Aura To Annual Salvation Army Lunch

Thursday’s Salvation Army luncheon packed Trinity Hall at the Anatole. Traditionally the lunch provides the crowd with inspiration, but this year they got a double dose of political fiber from the start. As guests arrived at their tables, it was obvious that things were stirring at the front of the room. With FOX News Senior Political Correspondent and featured speaker Brit Hume (pictured) at one table and across the aisle former First Lady Laura Bush (pictured) at Gene Jones’ table, guests were stretching their necks from watching the two. Photographers were being pulled in two different directions. Luckily, Brit and Laura came together like old classmates at a reunion. Then Brit graciously stepped back just a smidgeto let fans. . . or rather, friends both old and new, surround her. It was rather endearing to see even the most sophisticated ladies -who-lunch come clear across the ballroom (and that’s quite a hike) to say “Hi” to Laura. But as typical of the Laura, she greeted each one as if they were the only ones in the room.

Then it was on with the big show! (more…)

Is Troy Dungan Out As A Santa’s Helper?

Uncle Barky is reporting that Santa’s favorite elf for 30 years Troy Dungan has gotten a chilly silent treatment from ABC Channel 8 management about his participation in the annual “Santa’s Helpers” program.

Oops! Is a Definite No-No at SweetCharity

I suspect that my brothers and sisters of the D Blog Empire will tell me to take my old-world ways to the timeout corner on this one.

Recently, the SweetCharity headquarters has received releases with “oops!”

What’s an “oops!”? How about misspelled names, wrong locations, not-quite-accurate facts, and incorrect times? While volunteer pr types are cut some slack for providing error-ridden materials, professionals need to clean up their acts. An oops! not only throws the professional’s reputation into purgatoire, it also reflects poorly on the group/person they represent.

Heaven knows SweetCharity minions are far from perfect (don’t agree too quickly on that one) and grovel occasionally for forgiveness, but we have a high standard for the Dallas PR folks and expect them to surpass our expectations.

SweetCharity will now get down from her soapbox and be prepared to be stoned.

Media Pack Invades the AT&T PAC

Last night the AT&T Performing Arts Center had its first official performance with Bruce Willis on stage at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre to greet the VIP crowd. But the entire center had its baptism of fire with a mammoth media tour. Now, for the faint of heart having more than two media types in a room is a daunting task. They’re rarely housebroken, don’t you know. However, the PAC organizers knew that they would have to open the doors of the Wyly and the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House to the press some time, and that time came today.

9:30-10 — 150+ of the media entourage (left) convene at the Wyly for coffee and credentials. Oops, no sweet rolls and the coffee is running low at 9:45. Not a good sign. Media without coffee can turn into an angry mob scene. Horrors, visions of Les Miserables! Quickly, coffee urn is refilled.

An animated Howard “The Jacket” Rachofsky is walking between the Wyly and Winspear with landscape architect Michel Desvigne. Planters in the Hal and Diane Brierley Esplanade take turns tipping over due to the wind. Wyly architect (aka Michael Bolton look-alike) Joshua Prince-Ramus (pictured right with Rem, left) and his former partner Rem Koolhaas sit outside looking a bit dejected, like football players warming the bench. Is the reason for their down mood because they’ve read The New York Times article by Nicolai Ouroussoff about their “divorce” over the Wyly? By divorce, we mean professional divorce. The Times claims that the two haven’t spoken at all since the breakup. Must have been an interesting time completing the Wyly. But here they are together looking friendlier than Jon and Kate or Bill and Hillary on 60 Minutes. Is a reconciliation in the future? Ah, come on, kids. Let’s try a little counseling. After all, you have a bouncing baby Wyly.

PAC Board Chair Howard “Happy” Halam arrives bright and chipper; Winspear designers Norman Foster and Spencer de Grey are greeted like rock stars and the anticipation is starting to build; Mayor Tom Leppert, like so many others, tries to enter through a door that won’t open; and PAC pr staff or media wranglers are getting their ducks in a row. All these media types corralled in the lobby of the Wyly is an intimidating prospect. Would they be user-friendly or useless brats?

10:10- The media is headed up and moved upstairs to the Potter Rose Performance Hall. Everyone is mooing gently, or rather behaving nicely so far. Who said media tours were like herding cockroaches? Howard H, AT&T PAC President/CEO Mark Nerenhausen, and Mayor Tom talk to the group. It’s sorta a repeat of the congratulatory words spoken at Monday’s dedication. Caren Prothro (pictured), who was instrumental in gearing up the funds, and Anita Martinez, of Ballet Folklorico, sit way in the back among the regular folks. Everyone applauds at the appropriate times. Now the big media herd is broken into smaller groups (green, yellow, red, etc.) for tours of the facilities. Ah, these PAC organizers are crafty. They know that by breaking the media mob up into smaller pods, they’re more manageable.

10:45 – As the green group hikes up the esplanade from the Wyly to the Winspear, Mark Lowry of Theater Jones tells his fellow journalists that it will be interesting to see the vertically-challenged esplanade in a rain storm. “It’ll be a big whoosh!” Laughter. Another media types adds, “An ice storm will turn this into a skating rink.” Still another chimes in with, “Wonder who’ll get the naming rights to it?” Don’t think these comments were in the media wranglers’ scripts (aka bibles).

Two groups are put together in the C. Vincent Prothro Lobby to hear the Winspear architects describe the facility. Norman (pictured left with Spencer) is a cross between Stanley Tucci and Patrick Stewart. Very natty and upper brow. You can just imagine him having tea with the royals. Spencer is a bit more casual with shaggy blonde hair and glasses. He seems like a fish-and-chips kind of fellow. As they start their discussion, three things become quite apparent. First, they should have their own talk show. Everything is interesting. Second, the two of them—though they’re the designers of this amazing opera house–have a very soft spot for rock and roll. Third, they prove that a British accent just elevates any discussion to a new level of intelligence and sophistication. (more…)

SOLD OUT: M.D. Anderson’s Living Legend Luncheon with Laura Bush and Cokie Roberts

According to insiders, this is the largest attendance (1,000+) for the annual Dallas luncheon benefiting M.D. Anderson.

The Rosine Smith Sammons Butterfly House Opens Saturday with Hundreds of Monarchs, Swallowtails, and Zebra Longwings

Photo by Janet D. Smith

The late philanthropist Rosine Smith Sammons loved butterflies. So much so that her daughter Mary Anne Sammons McCree arranged for a $3 million lead gift funded in part by the Rosine Foundation Fund of Communities Foundation of Texas to create a year-round tropical butterfly house at the Texas Discovery Gardens in Fair Park. 

This Saturday, Texas Discovery Gardens President Barbara Hunt Crow and WFAA co-anchor Gloria Campos (just back from a chat with Oprah in Chicago) will cut the ribbon at 9:45 a.m. to officially open The Rosine Smith Sammons Butterfly House and Insectarium. Fluttering around will be hundreds of free-flying monarchs, swallowtails, and zebra longwings. To ride herd on the mariposas is “butterfly wrangler” John Watts, who just joined the Gardens last week. 

Admission for this weekend’s grand opening is half price with sponsors including Calloway’s Nursery, Dallas Child Magazine, El Centro College, Half Price Books, Preservation Tree Services, Southwest Airlines, Starbucks, Wendy Krispin Caterer, and WRR 101.1 FM.