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The Scene: Monday night’s premiere of “Scenes...

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The Scene: Monday night’s premiere of “Scenes From the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills,” the new comedy from Cinecom and director Paul Bartel, held at the new Directors Guild Theatre in West Hollywood. Perhaps best described as an “amorality play,” the film suggests that the idle rich of Beverly Hills are much more interested in boudoir hopping than boutique shopping.

The Buzz: At the reception after the screening, guests were wondering how a sophisticated comedy about the sex life styles of the rich and famous would go over in the cineplexes of the Bible Belt. “I like the film,” said Sneak Preview’s critic Michael Medved. “And Ed Begley Jr. was certainly better in this film than he was in ‘Transylvania 65000.’ ”

For the record:

12:00 a.m. June 9, 1989 For the Record
Los Angeles Times Friday June 9, 1989 Home Edition View Part 5 Page 11 Column 4 View Desk 1 inches; 32 words Type of Material: Correction
In early editions on Thursday, in the Into the Night article about the premiere of “Scenes From the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills,” a photograph of “Struggle” star Robert Beltran was incorrectly identified as Michael Medved.

Who Was There: “Struggle” director/actor Bartel; producer James C. Katz; screenwriter Bruce Wagner; “Struggle” stars Edith Diaz, Robert Beltran, Arnetia Walker, and Barret Oliver; and actors Corbin Bernsen, Richard Dean Anderson, Adam Horovitz, Jennifer and Meg Tilly (the latter sporting bright red hair), Sally Kirkland, Ione Skye, Donovan Leitch, JoBeth Williams, Mary Crosby, Esther Williams, and a zillion publicists.

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Dress Code: 1989 screening attire, it seems, ranges from suits and ties to T-shirts and Levi’s. Women who want their pictures taken by the paparazzi wear low-cut gowns.

Chow: Billed as “Beverly Hills food” were caviar on toast points, tortes, petits fours, strawberries and champagne. (Real Beverly Hills people, of course, would rather die than ingest so many calories.)

Entertainment: A pianist in a dinner jacket played Gershwin. As the party wound down, Walker sang a song or two with him.

Triumphs: The DGA’s new screening room. Clear sound, comfortable seats with leg room and an unobstructed view of the screen made watching the film a pleasure.

Glitches: The immense impersonal DGA lobby gave the party all the ambience of a small informal gathering in the middle of San Francisco International Airport.

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