Showbiz speaks out for speaker

The candlelight in the foyer of the Italian Embassy glittered like stars on the glass domed ceiling. Below, many of the nation’s brightest Democratic political lights and their friends and supporters gathered to celebrate Nancy Pelosi’s ascent this week to House speaker.

The guests sat at round tables that were covered in crisp white linens and decorated with peach-colored roses and lilies, ringed with tea lights. The occasion Wednesday night was designed to be warm, and it further affirmed a carefully drawn portrait of a woman simultaneously at home with feminine elegance, her Italian heritage and her family’s political legacy.

It was a very California package with an eclectic crowd of well-connected politicians, socialites and, of course, the Hollywood glitterati on hand for the fete, attended by more than 500 supporters. Tony Bennett and James Taylor -- both friends of Pelosi -- provided an intimate concert amid the clink of fine china, crystal and silver at the embassy on Washington’s historic Whitehaven Street.

“It’s a delight, a pleasure and an honor to be here tonight,” Taylor told the crowd. “We thought we might turn things around. We are now on the edge of seeing government become more responsible.”

He paused and began to sing familiar lyrics: “Don’t let me be lonely tonight.”

The show, along with a number of other events held in honor of the newly elected, re-elected and elevated politicians here this week, has become an example of how closely politically active Hollywood is connected to this Democratic resurgence. Hollywood had come to herald not only the political shift but also its part in helping Democrats regain control of Congress. (The entertainment industry raised nearly $11 million for Democratic politicians during the 2006 election.)

The state’s political elite attended the embassy event as well, including Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and former gubernatorial nominee Phil Angelides.

“This is a really historic time,” said former Paramount head Sherry Lansing, who attended the ceremonies in Washington this week with her director husband, William Friedkin. “It’s been so long since we were able to celebrate like this. We couldn’t miss it.”

“Pulp Fiction” producer Lawrence Bender, who held more than a dozen fundraisers for Democrats at his art-filled Bel-Air house last year, took a red-eye from Los Angeles to be in Washington in time for Pelosi’s inaugural-day brunch.

“I’ve been a supporter of hers for a long time,” said Bender, who was also a producer on former Vice President Al Gore’s global-warming documentary, “An Inconvenient Truth.” “She is a true leader because she acts on what she believes in rather than picking only fights that she thinks she can win. She is a great role model for young women because she has shown that you can be a powerful and successful woman and at the same time be a mother of five and a grandmother of six.”

And there’s no doubt that Pelosi is proud of her celebrity backers. (She mentioned from the dais that Bennett was sitting alongside her brother at her swearing-in Thursday.) Along with Bennett, director Jim Brooks, actor Joe Pantoliano and former Pelosi staffer-turned-Hollywood producer Brian Quintana also attended the morning festivities.

Actress Amy Brenneman, rapper Wyclef Jean, Bennett and Taylor signed up to attend another concert in Pelosi’s honor on Thursday night. Uber-fundraiser Sim Farar, who coordinated much of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s Hollywood support last year, hopscotched to various gatherings for the New York senator.

Lansing said she and Friedkin were trying to get to as many events as possible, including celebrations for their friend Jim Webb, newly elected Democratic senator from Virginia. They flew in from the Caribbean on Wednesday evening and immediately started hitting the parties.

Documentary producer Rick Jacobs hired a driver to shuttle him and filmmaker Shaun Kadlec to a half-dozen events for Democratic politicians on Wednesday evening and were hoping to go to twice as many on Thursday.

“It’s been great to see the people you’re involved with win,” Jacobs said. “This is the first time in more than a decade we’ve had this opportunity.”

tina.daunt@latimes.com