Golden Globe parties
Let’s hope the Beverly Hilton Hotel is reinforced in steel come Golden Globes Sunday — each year the awards telecast brings crushing star power to Beverly Hills as film and television celebrate their best and brightest, and this year is no exception. As the telecast emanates from the Hilton, studios and media tend to also focus their parties there, making for a wild power vortex. The lineups are still evolving, but here’s a guide to the best parties this weekend, from pre-game to the main event.
Awards appetizers: Friday and Saturday bring a surprisingly hefty lineup of pre-Globes celebrations, as Hollywood’s top companies and agencies toasting their nominees and praying with other fabulous entities riding the wave.
For The Record: A Friday Calendar nightlife story on the Golden Globes erroneously described producer-director Nigel Lythgoe as the president of the L.A Chapter of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Lythgoe is actually the chairman of the L.A. Chapter.
BAFTA tea party: For partying during waking hours, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts will host their annual, tres civilized award season tea party on Saturday. Saucers and sandwiches will be had by Darren Aronofsky, Helena Bonham Carter, Kathy Griffin, Jane Lynch, Helen Mirren, Tilda Swinton and more at the swanky Four Seasons Hotel. The event is hosted by British producer-director Nigel Lythgoe, president of the L.A. BAFTA chapter.
W Magazine: The fashion-society mag will ring in its “Best Performances” issue with a Golden Globes penthouse soiree at the Chateau Marmont on Friday. Editor in chief Stefano Tonchi will welcome Matt Damon, Natalie Portman, Christian Bale, Scarlett Johansson, Mila Kunis, Melissa Leo, the Coen brothers, Jennifer Lawrence, Darren Starr, Claire Danes and many more. Glimpses of the action on the famed patio may be had from Sunset Boulevard.
CAA: Later on Friday, power agency CAA will welcome their star clients for an exclusive cocktail party at West Hollywood’s private members club, SoHo House. Agency honchos like Kevin Huvane and Bryan Lourd count among their clients Nicole Kidman (nominated for her performance in “Rabbit Hole”) and James Franco. We’re sure they’re on the “just-drop-by” list.
Art of Elysium Heaven Gala: The folks at Art of Elysium, dedicated to pairing artistic mentors with children battling illness, will honor Franco at their annual black tie fete. Nabbing the Spirit award, Franco will be joined by luminaries like Nicole Richie and Joel Madden, Ben Silverman, Jeffrey Dietch, Kristen Bell, Rachel Bilson, new mom Ali Larter, Cameron Silver, Elijah Wood, Gerard Butler and Joy Bryant. The bunch will congregate at the California Science Center for the bash, where Vogue magazine will put on a fashion show after dinner.
Paramount: Saturday will see a private party from the peeps at Paramount. They’ve been very tight with info on this, but it is to be held on the patio at the Chateau Marmont. Sophia Coppola’s “Somewhere” is so on the nose, with all this Chateau action.
Main event: Pool deck to plush banquettes, subterranean sushi spaces to the rooftop — on Golden Globes Sunday, the Hilton is saturated in soiree.
InStyle / Warner Bros: The fashion magazine and studio partner up for what promises to be fierce fashion and major Hollywood players in the Hilton’s Oasis Courtyard. Expected attendees include the casts of “Inception” and “The Big Bang Theory.”:The Weinstein Co. / Relativity Media: Mogul Harvey Weinstein and Hollywood mega-financier Ryan Kavanaugh host. Need we say more? French fashion mag Marie Claire also lends some invitation power. This party takes over Bar 210 and should feature Weinstein darlings like Jennifer Lawrence and Colin Firth, as well as casts from “The Fighter” and “Blue Valentine.”
HBO: Counting a ton of nominations for original film and television this year, Home Box Office is bringing in a whole load of talent to party in the Hilton’s poolside area. One would expect red-hot ensembles like the flesh-baring folks of “True Blood” as well as “Temple Grandin” sweetheart Claire Danes.
NBC Universal: The major entertainment conglomerate returns once again to the heights above Wilshire Boulevard for back-patting and toasting on the Hilton rooftop. Their party should draw deep from their comedy stronghold with folks like Tina Fey and her merry band of “30 Rock” gems, including pregnant Jane Krakowski and Senate hopeful Alec Baldwin.
Fox: This crowd is tenting up the parking structure in the rear garage (the old Robinson’s May structure) adjacent to the Hilton to make beautiful music with its stable of bold names. Nothing like staking out your own territory, especially when hosting the bright young things of “Glee,” repping the television side, and the cast from Fox Searchlight’s big bragging-rights film, “Black Swan.”
