Fashionable S.D. Weekend for Mackie

As befits an event associated with the Old Globe Theatre, moments of high drama and low comedy alternated at the “Fashion Gala ‘89” double-header given last week by the Globe Guilders.

Fashion guru Bob Mackie starred both nights in a role that, given the degree to which he was lionized by the crowds, made him seem rather the early Christian of designers. Mackie bowed first at a private reception at a La Jolla estate given for the 200 top-ticket patrons and reprised his performance at the dramatic presentation of his fall collection on the Old Globe stage. His presence seemed diversion enough for most of the 500 who attended one or both events, but there were other extras, such as the sexiest ramp show ever given on a legitimate stage in San Diego and the back-stage scene that followed, during which several noted fashion plates tore through the racks of gowns in a race to stake the first claim on a particular number.

Both evenings were declared very black tie in honor of Mackie, who--despite his reputation as the designer of outrageous outfits for actress Cher, which he will wear forever as either crown or yoke--contented himself with nothing more daring than a tuxedo with wide lapels and a polka dot tie. The sandy-haired couturier to the rich, the famous and the heavily mortgaged smiled endlessly, perhaps not least because so many women paid him the tribute of tripping up to him in, as they say, “a Mackie.”

One of these was Dottie Haggerty, who with her husband, Patrick, lent the use of their Chateau de Lorraine in La Jolla for the patrons’ party. Dottie said the couple had carefully delineated chores to perform in preparation for the designer’s arrival.

“Pat spread Miracle Grow on the grass. Lots of Miracle Grow,” she said. “My job was to lose 10 pounds, and you don’t do that just for the postman.”

The Haggertys and the Guilders also provided their guests with a lavish cocktail spread, floral arrangements that included more than 600 exotic lavanda roses and a dance band called Tuxedo, but most guests danced attendance on Mackie. At one point, the designer turned to his hostess, gave her a generous hug and crooned, “Thanks so much for doing this. This is so nice!”

Saks Fifth Avenue sponsored Mackie’s presence and turned the tables somewhat by staging a show of men’s furs, modeled by Globe principals and board members, at the patrons’ reception. Among those pressed into perspiring service were Joe Jessop, Dr. Edgar Canada, Don McVay and Globe artistic director Jack O’Brien, who cheerfully admitted that his wide-lapeled tux was not a Mackie. “It’s a Mickie,” he teased.

The evening ended on a doubly anticipatory note, not only for those who looked forward to the following night’s show and gala dinner, but for those on the lookout for the airplane hired to buzz the Haggertys’ gardens as a special salute to the patrons. It never arrived, although the pilot called later to explain that he had circled Pacific Beach for two hours looking for the house. Wrong neighborhood--he should have let himself be guided by the glow of all those sequins reflecting in the setting sun.

Mackie wore the same bow tie the following evening at the Globe, where he submitted to more mass adulation during the champagne reception before heading inside for the show. Among those singing his praises was event chair Anne Rifat.

“You don’t always expect someone of Mackie’s artistic temperament to be delightful, but he’s been a joy to work with. He’s really a charming, cordial person.” Rifat added after the show that organizing the event had cost her “a few tears,” but said the result was worth it. “The show was so gorgeous. It was drama, it was theatre!”

The show was in fact as theatrical as its setting, and at the end the audience leaped more readily to its feet than it has at some Globe productions. An unintentionally amusing moment came along during a segment that featured Zodiac-inspired creations, when the speakers burst out with “When You Wish Upon a Star”--some of the clothes are priced in five figures, after all--but the models also created racy moments when they shimmied in the shimmering gowns. Later, a model who travels the country working in Mackie presentations confided that “tonight was the night. Even in New York, we’ve never put on so exciting a show.”

Dinner at Museum

The production set the mood for the following supper, which raced along at an unsuppressed pace at the San Diego Museum’s Art Sculpture Garden. Arrangements of pampas grass waved in the light breeze like plumes on a Mackie headdress, and museum in-house caterer Barbara Mann was widely praised for serving an exceptional menu of lobster in gin-flavored mayonnaise, cold roast tenderloin with sauce raifort and purse-like pastries of meringue and mousse wrapped in white chocolate.

Mackie remained the center of attention to the end. A Globe staffer reported that immediately upon the conclusion of the show, several women had raced backstage to “attack” the clothes. “I’m sure Mackie sold a fortune’s worth,” said the staffer.

The designer, meanwhile, just kept on smiling.

Guilders president Yvonne Lindroth attended with her husband, Cliff; others were Katy and Michael Dessent, Jacque Powell, Evelyn Truitt, Alan and Gerri Fegarsky, Dolly and Jim Poet, Annette and Dick Ford, Martha and George Gafford, Audrey Geisel, Barbara Iredale, Sheri and Ben Kelts, Yvonne and Borys Orlowsky, Laurie and Dick Blackington, Lynn Townsend, and Elizabeth and Mark Kalish.

The Society Club, the singles group that parties regularly in support of the American Cancer Society, evidently has come to the conclusion that bigger is better.

The group staged its sixth annual “Chardonnay by the Bay” Saturday at the Kona Kai Club and attracted some 1,500 guests. Net proceeds were expected to exceed $45,000, or considerably in excess of the $4,400 netted by the 1984 inaugural event, which drew a crowd of 360.

“We have more wineries, more restaurants, more donations--we have more of everything than we’ve ever had before,” crowed co-chair Paige Booth, who added that “Our guests should feel marvelous in the ambiance. This is a chance for them to wander through 55 wineries under San Diego skies.”

The setting included not just tables at which such wineries as Hart, Acacia and Rutherford Hill poured tastes of their best, but buffets loaded with snacks donated by more than 20 local restaurants and a nautical ambiance reinforced by the 14-foot Hobie sailboat that the committee launched in the pool.

After six years, the party has its theme down pat, which is to say wine, women and men and song, more or less in that order. As always, guests were provided with “ice breakers” (wine labels printed with arcane vintages) which when matched by members of the opposite sex earned the couples door prizes.

Guests also were given a sheet of wine tasting tips, which included such gems of information as “It is bad form to pour out a vintner’s wine in front of him” (yes, indeed), and “Take a sip, and try to cover your tongue with the wine. You probably don’t need to work it like mouthwash.”

Booth’s co-chair, Craig Miles, said that proceeds are earmarked for cancer detection and education programs, and for the support of several East County camps that offer programs for cancer patients.

The guest list included Joyce Almond, Ward Bennett, Mark Weisner, Barbara Kramer, Noel Meadows, Richard Krantzman, Susan Clifton, Joe Harmon, Theresa Castagneto, Laurie Lehman, Mario Ingrasci, Gail Gardner and Jim Hissong.