Stars Shine on Search’s Garden Gala

The Search Foundation hosted a weekend full of events--both under the stars and with stars--to set off a new phase of fund-raising efforts for their anti-drug abuse campaign.

Since February, foundation president Beverly Thompson-Coil and the 200-member group have raised more than $100,000 for a film to let children know there is little glamour in taking drugs.

And after striking a deal with Arnold Shapiro--the man in Hollywood who produced the docudrama “Scared Straight”--(designed to deter teen-agers from committing crimes)--the Search Foundation will be looking everywhere for the estimated $4.6 million it will take to produce an anti-drug movie and distribute it to schools across the nation.

Close to 200 guests, including actor Larry Anderson (he will be appearing on the new “Life With Lucy” show this fall), Byron Scott of the Los Angeles Lakers--and some well-know figures from closer to home, including Emma Jean Riley, wife of Orange County Supervisor Thomas F. Riley, gathered at the Newporter Resort on Friday evening for a gourmet gala garden party at the resort’s poolside terrace.

Television personality Pat Michaels read a letter from Nancy Reagan commending the Search Foundation’s efforts in conjunction with her own campaign from the White House against substance abuse.

After dining on veal and sipping two fine wines, partygoers danced the night away to the beat of Otis Day and the Knights.

The garden gala--just in time to catch the end of summer fashions and a glimpse of what’s ahead for fall--came in the middle of the Jim Slemons Pro Celebrity Tennis Tournament at the Newport Beach Tennis Club, which began Thursday and wound down Sunday afternoon.

Bobby Riggs--America’s favorite male chauvinist (who won the men’s over-65 singles)--and former Rams running back John Cappelletti were among the entertainment and sports celebrities on hand at the garden party and the Newport Beach Tennis Club throughout the weekend, lending their support to the efforts which benefited both the Search Foundation and USC athletic programs.

And by Monday morning, Stan Pickering, a vice president with Hunt Wesson Foods, was still in the dark about having won the Slemons/Search Foundation’s raffle prize: a black Mercedes-Benz 190E, valued at more than $28,000.

The Orange County American Italian Renaissance Foundation (OCAIRF) presented una bella festa at its second annual Grand Ball for members of the local Italian-American community and Italian dignitaries Saturday night at the Anaheim Hilton.

Michelangelo’s David was there (or perhaps that was a copy, on a pedestal), and a few larger than life figures from the local Italian and Italian-American communities were also seen--including Italy’s Consul General for the southwestern United States, Alberto Bonevir, and his wife Susie and Alitalia chief Giovanni Colao with his wife Gabriella--all looking glamorous.

Also on the scene were Santa Ana Mayor Dan Griset and Robert Hoyt, former mayor of the City of Orange.

Guests with un buon apetito were treated to Italian delicacies such as luscious tortellini alla panna --and for dessert a sweet concoction of fragole con zabaglione --which are strawberries with cream and such--all prepared by the Hilton under the watchful eye of restaurateur and OCAIRF ball co-chairman Armando (Jay) Mastroianni.

Actor Frank Manza (aka Paldo Salvatore Manza)--the Sicilian best known to American audiences as a crusty old gent on the television show “Barney Miller” (and this fall to be appearing in the “Bob Newhart Show”) introduced many of the guests in an impeccable Italian accent and made a pitch for the group’s continuing pledge campaign--emphasizing the importance of creating a feeling of pride and buon gusto among all of Orange County’s many Italian-American amici . A poster with a conceptual plan for a proposed Italian-American cultural center was on view in one corner of the ballroom and OCAIRF president Frank J. DeSantis announced that with more than $120,000 in the bank the cultural arts center in Orange County is a “possible dream” and that the site selection process is rolling forward.