An Event Taylor-Made for the Earth

The scene: James Taylor’s opening Tuesday at the Universal Amphitheatre, one leg of a tour in support of the National Resources Defense Council, a 22-year-old environmental advocacy group whose board Taylor has just joined. A private supper party followed in the northern lobby.

Who was there: Warren Beatty and Annette Bening; Bob Daly and Carole Bayer Sager; Norman Lear; Rob Reiner; Richard Baskin; NRDC board member and Castle Rock Entertainment executive Alan Horn; Wendy Stark; Camp Beverly Hills’ Jeff Stein; Philippa Calnan; Peter Strauss and his wife, Susan, who chaired the event; event co-chairs Allyn Stewart and Nancy Vreeland.

Quoted: “I feel very strongly about the environmental crisis and that the NRDC is doing good,” explained the bespectacled Taylor. “They’re lawyers and scientists, and they get things done.”

The buzz: People couldn’t believe how physically fit Taylor is, based on how much hopping around he does on stage. (He says he works out doing “the usual stuff.”) Nor could they believe how happy he seems. His middle-aged rock ‘n’ roll fans remember listening to his records in the ‘70s when they were depressed and Taylor was depressed. “He was the symbol of depression,” reminisced one fan.

The mishap: Rob Reiner with a hairline fracture on one heel negotiated the party on a single crutch. How did the injury occur? He was at Tom Cruise’s 30th birthday party-cum-basketball tournament. “I looked around before we started playing and thought, ‘There’s no way I’m not going to get hurt.’ And then I played for a good solid three minutes before it happened.”

The finances . . . not: The event was yet another “friend-raiser,” where VIPs are invited for a minimum ticket price that just covers costs or for free (as in this case) in order to raise awareness for a cause and to attract big names who will lend credibility. Alan Horn calls it a “long-term cultivation process” to help establish a presence. “We don’t have great visibility in L.A.,” allowed Susan Strauss.

The fashion statement: Bening’s platform shoes.