A Tasty Birthday Bash for COMBO

Bob Arnhym always has thought that, among local fund-raisers, his annual COMBO Gala and Auction takes the cake.

Saturday, he and a committee that included co-chairs Virginia Monday, Audrey Geisel and Nancy Hester put Arnhym’s thoughts into action by mounting a spiffy 21st birthday party for COMBO that revolved around cakes of all sizes, descriptions and--most importantly--flavors. It was a tasty tribute to the arts-supporting foundation, and one that left its 350 patrons feeling as if, for once, they had been able to have their cake and eat it, too.

The COMBO (Combined Arts and Education Council of San Diego County) auction always has been a kind of giant clearance sale of luxe items, especially jewels, fabulous trips and antique cars, all donated by local individuals and businesses. This year, it maintained that persona but took on a couple of additional guises as well: a campy children’s party for decidedly adult kids and an old-fashioned church bake sale. The difference between this amiable little bash and your average Saturday cake walk was that instead of sporting gingham and aprons, the women brought out their choicest gowns and furs.

Arnhym chose one of the unlikeliest party sites imaginable, Balboa Park’s Conference Building, a utilitarian hall so grim and dingy that its sheer ugliness worked as an inspiration for those who shouldered the task of decorating it (Arnhym said that the use of the building was free, “which accounted for 90% of its charm”). But the committee, aided in its labors by the gala’s 21st birthday theme, wrought a minor miracle on the premises by filling it with mountains of brightly wrapped packages, a triple-tiered stage painted to look like a birthday cake and so many helium balloons that, had they been massed together, they just might have been able to lift a stretch limo right off the ground.

The balloons doubtless were the product of Audrey Geisel’s famous “ballunacy”--her birthday parties always feature hundreds of them. But the overall theme, which provoked Nancy Hester to remark that she felt as if she should have worn patent-leather Mary Janes and a Florence Eiseman party dress, arose from the simple fact of COMBO’s symbolic coming of age.

Virginia Monday politely acquiesced when a guest suggested that mounting the party must have been a piece of cake, when she actually had been busy finishing the decorations until moments before the first guests arrived. But to arriving party goers, the merriment did seem to have been spun effortlessly. A crowd of clowns lined the entrance (if one can have a gaggle of geese, can one also have a buffoonery of Bozos?), juggling, miming and generally acting up while a hidden machine sprayed clouds of bubbles from overhead.

Inside, the scene looked like a remarkable birthday fete given for an immensely spoiled child by indulgent, nouveau Vanderbilt parents. Cakes abounded, including a Brobdignagian number whipped up by Marine Corps bakers that said, in the forthright manner of the USMC, “Happy Birthday COMBO.” Over in the silent auction area, a broad-shouldered table bravely bore up under the weight of 21 cakes, most of them contributed by local restaurants and bakers, and all about as fanciful as pastry can get. Naturally, and like almost everything else at this party, the cakes were for sale to the highest bidder and can be expected to grace local Thanksgiving tables--if they last that long.

Judi Strada put the cake auction together, and among those bidding with energy for the stylish confections were Sally and Lee Weston, Athena and Charles May, Lee and Peter Maturo, Kate and Rick Adams, Carol and Bob Tuggey, and Anne and Abe Ratner.

Money is the name of the COMBO game, and this party attempted to raise plenty of it for the benefit of the 27 fine and performing arts organizations that share in the COMBO treasure chest. Arnhym said that he expected this year’s take to exceed last year’s $300,000 tally, particularly because the live auction items (these are the real money-makers) were even more attractive than those offered in past years.

Included were a party with the Old Globe’s Jack O’Brien, a Chinese feast cooked under the supervision of actor George Takei (“Star Trek’s” Mr. Sulu), and the always-popular “millionaire’s weekend” in New York, which features first-class air fare, accommodations at the Waldorf-Astoria and a pre-trip shopping extravaganza at Robinson’s. This last, after a brief but heated burst of bidding, was captured by Phil and Catherine Blair.

But before Arnhym hoisted the auctioneer’s microphone, the guests were invited to tackle an interesting menu catered by The Culinary Company. The meal closed after a parade of waiters carried out trays of (what else?) individual birthday cakes, an act that was greeted by a mass sing-along as everyone wished COMBO the happiest of birthdays. The cakes consumed, Arnhym swept into action, pacing the auction faster than has been the case at previous galas. As a special feature, Steve Garvey of the Padres took over as pinch-auctioneer for a while and hammered down some impressive prices in no time at all. When the auction concluded, guests retreated to the dance floor to take a few turns to Bill Green and his band.

Honorary chairman Deborah Szekely attended with her son, Alex, and current COMBO president Skip Starkey with his wife, Nancy. Among others in the crowd were Junko and Larry Cushman, Amy and Brute Krulak, Detty June and Phil Klauber, Joy and Jim Furby, Lael and Jay Kovtun, Mary and Bob Allan, Coolley and Don Carley, Dixie and Ken Unruh, Darlene and Don Shiley, Tommi and Bob Adelizzi, Diane and Jim Bashor, Mac and Tim Canty, Dorene and John Whitney, and Mary and Jim Berglund.

Also present were Dottie and David Garfield, Ingrid and Joe Hibben (Ingrid stitched the Bozo-style bow ties worn by valets and waiters alike), Anne and Michael Ibs Gonzalez, Jeanne Jones with Dick Duffy, Cheryl Ayers with Don McVay, Linda and Mel Katz, Loraine and Jack MacDonald, Kay and Bill Rippee, Lynn and Frank Silva, Carol and Mike Alessio, Monette and Adam Kupiec, Gail and Leni Arnhym, Desiree and Leonard Simpson, and Beverly and Bill Muchnic.