BLOCK HEADS
Ralph Lauren and Sir Elton John didn’t make it to the benefit auction the designer sponsored at Christie’s in London for Lighthouse, the AIDS charity — but their presences were certainly felt.
Of course, most of the crowd wore black-and-white Ralph. And John, even at a distance, was a major player once the bidding began.
Determined to land one of the evening’s prize lots — a portrait by photographer Terence Donovan of England’s legendary actors Sir Ralph Richardson, Lord Lawrence Olivier and Sir Alec Guinness — John asked David Furnish, his partner, to keep him informed of the bidding via mobile phone.
But even high-flying rock stars who collect 20th-century photography have their limits. Furnish eventually dropped out and the print went for $19,100.
Back in Park City, Utah, the Sundance Film Festival was slowly drawing to a close — and this year’s crowd had every intention of going out with a bang. On Thursday night, Courtney Love stormed the VH-1 party at the Stag Lodge and took over the turntables, lavishing the crowd with a continuous medley of her own songs.
On the other side of Main Street, Rosanna Arquette staged a less hostile takeover of E!’s party for Rita Wilson, Zooey Deschanel and Patricia Arquette.
“Rosanna’s the best deejay in the world,” Patricia Arquette boasted as her sister jumped behind the deejay booth.
Over at the New Line party, “Girlfight” star Michelle Rodriguez, sporting press-on gold teeth, cut loose on the dance floor in a last effort to stave off the serious business of returning to work in Los Angeles.
“I’m already feeling that vibe of things winding down,” she said sadly. “But I’m always ready for another party.”