California First Lady Will Honor Philanthropist at Century Plaza

One of California’s great philanthropists, Dr. Arnold O. Beckman, will receive the Center for Excellence in Education’s Achievement Award for Excellence on his 91st birthday April 13. It’s for his contribution to science education. California First Lady Gayle Wilson, 1989 recipient, will present the honor at a gala at the Century Plaza.

The Wilsons are making an impact on the social scene. Gov. Pete Wilson, a former U. S. Marine officer, has been named recipient of the 1991 Semper Fidelis Award by the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation of Southern California.

He will accept the award at the 10th annual Marine Scholarship Ball April 6 at the Century Plaza. Kent Kresa, CEO of Northrop, is ball chairman; Music Center president Esther Wachtell chairs the ball’s Scarlet and Gold Committee for ball sponsors.

The goal for the fund-raiser is $150,000 for the education of Marines’ children.

PLAUDITS: Janice Carpenter, president of Las Madrinas, reports that the major support group for Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles has contributed $561,347.67 to the hospital for 1990. The group so far has funded 63% of the $3-million pledge it made three years ago for the molecular pathology program.

Most of the money is from the Christmas debutante ball, but $80,000 came from merchandise donated by members to the hospital thrift shop. Now Cynthia Baise takes over the presidency.

FABULOUS FLIGHT: Harvard (for boys) and Westlake (for girls) independent schools merged, and the social follow-up was a Harvard-Westlake Spring Celebration.

At the Santa Monica Air Center, parents took over a hangar, splashed the new school colors--black, red and white--everywhere, collected boarding passes and lifted off, as instructed on the invitation, in “aero-casual” and “aero-chic” garb for a maiden voyage. Provost Nat Reynolds and his wife, Sally, wore flight suits. Decorations chair Frances Umlauf was in a feather cape ready for the promised fantasy in fight.

Event chairs Christine Cohen, Connie Fishbach, Caryl Golden and Murphy Litvack displayed two figures dressed in original Harvard and Westlake uniforms. Headmaster Thomas C. Hudnut was auctioneer.

Sold out at 750 people, the event raised $100,000 from its tribute book and $90,000 from the live auction and raffle. Among guests: Peggy and Tom Pollock, Helen and Peter Bing, Norman and Marianne Sprague, Abby and Alan Levy, Brooke and Jim Young and Virginia and Michael Kazanjian.

A photo retrospective of the former single-sex schools showed Candace Bergen as May Queen at Westlake.

VERY BLACK-TIE: At the Dinosaur Ball for the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, guests were photographed in the museum’s prize 1932 Duesenberg before dining on noisettes of salmon and rack of lamb. For party favors, each couple received a bottle stopper decorated with a pewter antique car. Museum trustees chairman Stephen Onderdonk and his wife, Kay, were at the forefront, along with Ray and Nancy McCullough and Carla and Rudy Rehm. The Rehms co-chaired.

SUPPER CLUB: Prominent socialites dined and danced at the Beverly Wilshire at the Los Angeles Supper Club annual spring fete. Chairman Maggie Russell and her husband, Earl, greeted. A quartet of chairmen--Julie Prewitt, Susie Armistead, Gretchen Schumacher and Carol Inman--staged the elegance.

ON HIGH: The miraculous Flying Cranes of the Moscow Circus defied gravity with their aerial ballets at the Forum, creating plenty of gasps over their high-speed flips and somersaults off the flying trapeze.

Cotton candy was keeping everyone happy, too, at the League for Children’s benefit headed by Eileen Eamer and supported with exuberance by her husband, Richard, CEO of National Medical Enterprises. Believing that corporate America needs to help solve the nation’s social ills, he used his clout to provide tickets for 5,300 Children’s Bureau kids, disabled Boy Scouts and senior citizens.

They joined the 600 League guests, who partied earlier under a tent. Proceeds estimate: $500,000. In the crowd: Millie and Fred O’Green, Bill and Gay Banowsky, Betty and Kenneth Morgan, Don and Tamra Dickerson and lots of children clapping for the bears when they danced and hopped from foot to foot to Russian music.

PRIME: Bank of America chairman Richard M. Rosenberg was in the spotlight as speaker for the UCLA Business Economics Council dinner at UCLA. Also the university has announced the establishment by Chancellor Charles E. Young of a major support group--the UCLA Board of Visitors.

It will serve a consulting and advisory role. The 36-member board includes attorney Lawrence Irell, founding chair, and John E. Anderson, Ruth P. Bermudez, Sam F. Iacobellis, James A. Collins, Robert F. Maguire III, Vilma S. Martinez, Dr. Franklin D. Murphy, Andrea Van De Kamp, Phillip L. Williams.

‘TIS SPRING: Invitations printed with white dogwood and green leaves are out to 3,500 friends of the San Marino League for its 18th biennial Art Walk Saturday and Sunday.

The homes of P. James and Betty Kirby, Kee Whan and Kyunghee Ha, Edward and Patti Turrentine and Arthur and Julie Pizzinat have been booked by Art Walk Committee president Holly Davis, chairman Katy Benton and co-chair Nancy Eckerman.

Proceeds will go to the Huntington Library for its Japanese Gardens and to the Art Center College of Design.

FOUNDERS CIRCLE: Archbishop Roger Mahony and television’s Stan Chambers were among those in the forefront at the Founders Circle Dinner of the Right to Life League of Southern California at the California Club.

Among supporters dining: Dorothy and John Shea, Peter and Joan Eichler, Diane and Peter Vogelsang, Nicholas and Patty Weber, Gloria and Paul Griffin and Hubert and Shirley Laugharn.