It’s All a Matter of Perspective

Kelley Tuthill, David Brown and Elisha Daniels at A Taste and A Toast

With proper instruction, most of us could probably twist a balloon into a dachshund, but that’s a far cry from the Willy Wonka-worthy creations made by Janice Lee Kelly, of balloon-art biz Float, for A Taste and A Toast—a benefit for Forsyth, a research institute focused on oral health.

Guests were greeted by an elaborate triumphal arch and then partied beneath a giant replica of DNA, all made from balloons, which prompted one incorrigible attendee to mutter, “Good thing I don’t have a pin.”

Meanwhile, the city’s top restaurants served up light bites from chefs such as Ming Tsai, Tiffani Faison, Will Gilson and Louis DiBiccari, while TV anchor Kelley Tuthill battled the bad acoustics like a champ to recognize the evening’s honorees: Dr. Anthony Volpe and Flour power chick Joanne Chang. The crowd included the always upbeat Bob Gertsen, silver fox Shawn Patrick O’Neill, the statuesque Liz Page, Dover socialites Alan and Patricia Martinovich, former Miss Illinois Liz Brunner and her handsome husband, Craig Stockmal, and one person who said, “Knowing my luck, this is the party where I’ll be walking around with something stuck in my teeth.”

Not content with the wine, another attendee said, “They should have pumped in some laughing gas.” But the evening’s funniest remark went to the person who described a now-defunct gay bar by saying, “It was great. The crowd there would make even a shriveled old thing like me feel pretty.”

Paging Crockett and Tubbs

Jeff Merselis and Gina Morda at the MFA Summer Party

There was a distinct Miami Vice vibe to the Museum of Fine Arts’ Summer Party, which transformed the Shapiro Family Courtyard into a slice of South Beach with tented VIP cabanas, celebrity DJs AndrewAndrew and a crowd turned out in their tropical best.

Prominent among the throng of 700 were co-chairs Jeff Merselis, Elizabeth Marcoulier and Gina Morda, genetic lottery winners Alix and Ollie Childs, brunette bombshell J.C. Monahan and her handsome other half, Jim Farrell, New York power publicist Jack Yeaton, the incomparable Doris Yaffe, soon-to-be L.A. dwellers Aaron Pike and Steve Sukman, the ever-stylish Shane Merriweather, Beacon Hillion Jason Winmill, artists Adrienne Schlow and Jaybo Monk, bespectacled hipster Bilvox Neidlinger, the über-suave Jas Bhogal, Patriot Julian Edelman, arts patrons Paul and Pia Miller, the hale and hearty Robert White, saucy socialite Sabra Katz, international man of mystery Christian Bailey, force of nature Laura Baldini (leaving a trail of sequins behind her) and one man who said, “I thought this party was trousers-optional.”

It’s hard to imagine a better-looking or better-dressed crowd, which prompted one woman to counsel her friend: “I think there’s good husband-hunting here. Just make sure he’s only artsy, and not gay.”

Hello Muddah, hello Fadduh

Bob Kraft and Ricki Noel Lander at the Camp Harbor View Beach Ball

There are worse fates than sipping cocktails, enjoying an elegant tented dinner and watching the sun set over the city skyline from the Harbor Islands, so not surprisingly, it was a high-octane crowd that gathered on Long Island for the seventh annual Camp Harbor View Beach Ball.

Among the power players who helped to raise more than $4 million to send inner-city kids to  the camp: co-founder Jack Connors and board member John Fish, co-chair Roberta Weiner and her dashing husband, Steve, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, Hizzoner Marty Walsh, über-philanthropists Holly and David Bruce, the amazingly named Renuka and Dartagnan Brown, banking bigwig Bernie Fulp and the flawless Carol, the soignée Barbara Greenwald, impossibly pretty pair Nicole and Jeff Bellows, Patriots grand pooh-bah Bob Kraft and the fetching Ricki Noel Lander and others of an equally sparkly ilk.  “I wear sunglasses so I don’t have to worry about eye makeup,” said a woman of a certain age, but shades did come in handy. As Connors put it: “There’s going to be a $5,000 surcharge for the sunset.”

The view, in fact, provoked numerous comments, including the following: “The only thing worth looking at at my summer camp was the counselors removing leeches after we went water skiing.”