Lynn, I and Eileen were lucky enough to get an invite to the AHAVA party at "Top of the Rock" in the Weather Room at 30 Rockefeller Plaza the other night. Oddly enough, the party was on a Tuesday and we were unsure of weather to venture into Manhattan near rush hour on a weekday and have to be driven back to Long Island afterwards-The promise of Sex and the City's Charlotte York, aka Kristin Davis was enough to tip the scales and motivate us to push forward with an adventure into Manhattan-
Luckily, the weather was perfect and our driver Dennis was clearly an old pro at getting into the city with savvy and good instincts. We arrived a few minutes after 6 (the party was 6-8) and were whisked through a couple of checkpoints into a private elevator that took us up to the 67th floor at "30 Rock" (The top of the elevator played a projection of many decades of NBC highlights as we shot up story after story).
At the point we got to the party, there were maybe 65-70 people in attendance. The Weather Room has a kind of outdoor rooftop area that is enclosed in a ten foot glass fence. The view is genuinely breataking as the Empire State Building stood guard on one side and Central Park stretched out before us on the other side. We were quickly offered Bellinis and Hors D'oeuvres. The best food was the asparagus wrapped in salmon and the bartenders (from Cipriani's no less) made amazing martinis. I asked for my favorite drink; A Vodka Martini with a dash of Campari. The bartender did not know the drink and asked me if I had a name for this concoction. Unwilling to dissapoint the suave bartender, I mentioned that I called it an "M. Rhodes." This seemed to please him and he said he would try to rememember this if and when he might serve it again.
Lynn met up with the AHAVA reps who could not have been nicer or happier that we accepted their kind invation. There was much chat about the environment, the great weather, business, restaraunts, etc. I had another martini and the sun began to go down and the Manhattan skyline looked even more striking as the late afternoon turned to early evening.
About halfway through the gathering a buzz commenced and we anticipated that Kristin Davis might be making an appearance (it was said she was eating downstairs when we first got to the party). Soon enough, she was being introduced and she wafted through the corridor and took her place at the podium. Lynn was struck by how pretty she was (Lynn was so moved that she cried). Indeed, she had on a swee orange chiffon dress and she exuded a lovely spirit when adressing the gathering.
After her brief speech, Ms. Davis stood there for a few minutes for "photo ops" while photogs snapped away. Lynn and I are the veterans of a thousand such events and the time lapse between an actor/celebrity being accessible and whisked away is razor thin. Lynn, sensing this, finnessed her way into Ms. Davis' area and made eye contact with her. Ms. Davis warmly recieved Lynn when Lynn asked for a picture. The actress asked Lynn "Is that your friend?" (meaning yours truly) and complemented us on being a "cute couple." A couple of publcists tried to whisk the actress away (as it is publicists job to limit, not maximize their clent's exposure), but Lynn and I had made a favorable impression on the charming actress and she was happy to accomadate us. I, not known as a photographer, took a very great picture under considerable pressure (we weren't going to get another shot so to speak). Lynn and Kristin Davis both looked great. I rose to the occasssion, Lynn rose to the occassion and Ms. Davis rose to the occassion. We left shortly thereafter, happy with a great memory intact...
The Weather Room at Top of the Rock
30 Rockefeller Plaza
(Entrance on 50th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue)
New York, New York
