Blessed Be the Tie-erWhen Billy Crystal hosts...

Blessed Be the Tie-er

When Billy Crystal hosts the 31st annual Grammy Awards on TV Wednesday night, take a close look at his tux--or rather, tuxes . He’ll wear four styles, all designed by Milanese menswear king Giorgio Armani. Crystal will wear double-breasted formal tails; a white dinner jacket with peak lapels; a shawl-collar, black, double-breasted tuxedo, and Armani’s classic single-breasted style, which comes from Crystal’s own closet. Our Beverly Hills correspondent says Crystal’s been in and out of the Armani shop on Rodeo Drive for fittings on the three suits and for an agonizing, half-hour, bow-tie tying lesson. But the actor/comedian just couldn’t get it right enough--so an Armani representative will accompany him backstage on Grammy night to make sure the ties are correctly tied and don’t look tipsy.

His Funny Valentine?

Do you care what Phyllis Diller wore when she had a date with Malcolm Forbes? We got a phone call and a fax on Valentine’s Day informing us that Forbes took Diller to Maxim’s in New York for cocktails, then to the Broadway musical “Legs Diamond” and then to a restaurant called Au Bar. We were also told that Diller wore a “smashing white Valentino suit with a multicolored scarf, custom-made pumps and a Fendi blond fur coat” for the event. More happy valentine news: The couple must have hit it off. Our informant told us Forbes took Diller out again the next night, this time to see “Steel Magnolias” in Greenwich Village. The comedienne wore an ecru Bill Blass dress with sable trim, topped by a sable coat from I. Magnin.

Trendy Togs for Tots

During the film industry’s 1988 writer’s strike, costume designer Enid Harris went looking for something to occupy her time. “One fateful night,” she tells Listen, she had dinner with a friend. He suggested she design clothing, and when Harris said she didn’t know where to start, he asked, “Why not start small?” So Harris did, with children’s clothing. Her “funky, sophisticated” line is carried by the two Fred Segal stores and at Maxfield on Melrose Avenue. Harris was in Maxfield when Kitty Hawks bought something from the line for Chloe Malle, daughter of Candice Bergen and Louis Malle. And she was also there, she tells us, when Christie Brinkley bought three outfits for her daughter, Alexa. She didn’t actually see producer Joel Silver (“Die Hard”) spend more than $800 on her trendy-tot designs, but he called to tell her all about it. One of his purchases was on its way to Rumer Willis, daughter of Demi Moore and Bruce Willis.

Pretty in the Pink

Barbie, the nation’s most famous fashion doll, celebrated her 30th birthday with a Pink Jubilee bash given by Los Angeles-based Mattel toys at New York’s Lincoln Center this week. Mattel Chairman and CEO John Amerman and President Bob Sansone were on hand to keep guests in the pink with pink corsages and boutonnieres, pink champagne, and pink sweets in the pink-draped promenade of the New York State Theatre. Also present to congratulate Barbie was “Kate and Allie” star Allison Smith, 19, who said her two older sisters have kept her in Barbie dolls since she was born. “Queen of the Soaps” Eileen Fulton, another guest, admitted she was grown before Barbie debuted. And singer Melba Moore said: “Barbie is my inspiration. She has almost as many pretty dresses as I do.” Each guest received the special edition Pink Jubilee Barbie, clad in a silver lame gown, fitted through the hips and flaring to the floor. Listen thought the dress resembled the gala look that New York designer Arnold Scaasi likes to whip up for social types when he’s not designing for Barbara Bush. We couldn’t get confirmation on who designed Barbie’s gown.

Return of the First Lady

Speaking of Barbara Bush, Listen has learned that the new First Lady again visited the clothing salon of Arnold Scaasi, who designed some of her inaugural clothes, this time for a more somber event. She tried on a black wool princess-line coat and black silk dress with pleated skirt, which she may wear at the funeral of Emperor Hirohito in Japan.

The Eyes Have It

It will be two firsts for Victoria Principal on Feb. 26, when the actress stars in the first film she has produced--and wears eyeglasses for the first time on TV. Principal is billed as producer of “Naked Lie,” in which she plays a myopic district attorney who intermittently sports round-frame specs by Milanese designer Giorgio Armani, whose clothes she often wears in real life. The frames are from Armani’s premiere eyewear collection, much of which is inspired by the small, round frames popular in the 1920s and 1930s. Armani’s ’89 versions are in tortoise, marbleized and metal finishes.

Mayoral Campaign in Gear

A newspaper photo earlier this month--it shows Mayor Tom Bradley on his campaign-kickoff day wearing an L.A. Gear jacket--has stuck in our mind. So we called the company to ask how it all came to pass. Executive Vice President Sandy Saeman tells us Bradley got the garment as a thank-you gift a year ago after he had officially thanked L.A. Gear for their trade show booth, which features a 35-foot model of City Hall. In the same vein, the back of the jacket features a replica of City Hall sandwiched between two palm trees along with the L.A. Gear logo. “We share a common mascot,” Saeman notes. Originally used as promotion pieces, the denim tributes will soon be sold in stores for around $70. Will L.A. Gear call the style “The Bradley”? “We hadn’t thought of it,” Saeman responds, “but it’s a good idea.”