January 23, 2017: Anti-Trump Women’s Marches Attract More Than One Million, Inaugural Ball Cake Was Made to Copy Obama’s, Sundance Experiences Cyber Attack and Power Outage

1. ANTI-TRUMP WOMEN’S MARCHES ATTRACT MORE THAN ONE MILLION: More than one million people across the globe participated in women’s marches in protest of President Donald Trump on Saturday. Associated Press: “Many of the women came wearing pink, pointy-eared ‘pussyhats’ to mock the new president. Plenty of men joined in, too, contributing to surprising numbers everywhere from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago and Los Angeles to Mexico City, Paris, Berlin, London, Prague and Sydney. The Washington rally alone attracted over 500,000 people according to city officials - apparently more than Trump's inauguration drew on Friday. It was easily one of the biggest demonstrations in the city's history, and as night fell, not a single arrest was reported. Turnout in the capital was so heavy that the designated march route alongside the National Mall was impassable. Protesters were told to make their way to the Ellipse near the White House by way of other streets, triggering a chaotic scene that snarled downtown Washington. Long after the program had ended, groups of demonstrators were still marching and chanting in different parts of the city. … In Chicago, organizers canceled the march portion of their event for safety reasons because of an overflow crowd that reached an estimated 250,000. People made their way through the streets on their own anyway. In New York, well over 100,000 marched past Trump's home at glittering Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue. More than 100,000 also gathered on Boston Common, and a similar number demonstrated in Los Angeles.” http://apne.ws/2jJyYhS

2. INAUGURAL BALL CAKE WAS MADE TO COPY OBAMA’S: Shortly after President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence cut a massive patriotic inauguration cake on Friday, pastry chef Duff Goldman posted a side-by-side image of the cake he created for Barack Obama’s inaugural ball in 2013. It was later revealed that cake was made to resemble Goldman’s. Washington Post: “Neither Goldman nor representatives from Trump’s transition and inauguration teams responded to requests for comment Saturday morning. Late Saturday afternoon, a member of Trump’s inauguration team redirected questions to planners of the inaugural ball with the Department of the Defense. Spokespeople for the department did not respond to emails late Saturday or Sunday. On Saturday morning, Tiffany MacIsaac, owner of Washington’s Buttercream Bakeshop, stepped forward to say she had been the one to create the much-talked-about cake. She said that the order came in while she was out of town, and that the client had brought in a photo of the cake from Obama’s inauguration asking her to re-create it. … MacIsaac did not want to state her political affiliation, but said her bakery began planning how it would donate its proceeds from the Trump inaugural cake to charity. The baker and her staff chose the Human Rights Campaign, a nonprofit group that advocates for equal treatment of the LGBT community—and that has declared Trump ‘unfit for the presidency.’" http://wapo.st/2khaaPs

3. SUNDANCE EXPERIENCES CYBER ATTACK AND POWER OUTAGE: The Sundance Film Festival suffered a cyber attack on its ticketing system and a power outage at its Redstone theater, which postponed three screenings this past weekend. The Hollywood Reporter: "While not one of the major venues, Redstone is a theater that frequently hosts press-and-industry screenings for films that are up for sale. Landline, which is being sold by UTA, is one of the more in-demand titles being shopped at this year's festival. Landline director Gillian Robespierre, co-screenwriter Elisabeth Holm and star Abby Quinn were preparing to leave a party for the film at the Rand Luxury Lounge in the St. Regis Deer Valley to attend the screening when they found out about the cancelation. The Park City, Utah, area was experiencing particularly windy and snowy conditions on Sunday. It's the second technical glitch to hit the festival in as many days. The power outage comes a day after the festival's ticketing system was hacked, leading to the box office being shut down for a brief period before Sundance was able to get its computers back online. There still is no word on who was responsible for Saturday's hack." http://bit.ly/2joyw5N

* LOCAL NEWS *

CHICAGO:  Baconfest Chicago will take place March 31-April 1 at U.I.C. Forum. The event benefits the Greater Chicago Food Depository. 

HOUSTON:  Keegan-Michael Key will host this year's N.F.L. Honors on February 4, a day before the Super Bowl. Vanity Fair: http://bit.ly/2kiSO0r

LOS ANGELES:  Real estate developer Michael Rosenfeld and Next Century Partner hosted the unveiling party of the $2.5 billion mixed-use development Century Plaza. The event announced that Fairmont Hotel and Resorts will manage the property's new hotel.

On January 18, Dream Hotel Group, together with the Tao Group and owners/developers Richard Heyman and Grant King of Relevant Group, hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to commemorate the opening of Dream Hollywood and its dining and nightlife venues. It’s scheduled for completion in February.

For information on upcoming events in Los Angeles, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

NEW YORK:  The 69th annual Parsons Benefit will take place May 22 at Pier 60 at Chelsea Piers. Presented by Maybelline New York, the event will honor Rihanna, Eileen Fisher, and Neiman Marcus Group. 

For information on upcoming events in New York, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

ORLANDO/CENTRAL FLORIDA:  The Astronauts Memorial Foundation’s annual NASA Day of Remembrance on January 31 will  commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 1 tragedy. The ceremony will be held at the Astronauts Memorial Foundation hall, located in the Center for Space Education Building at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. The ceremony will also honor the crews of the Challenger and Colombia missions, as well as all astronauts who have sacrificed their lives furthering the cause of space exploration and discovery.

Surf Expo will take place January 26-28 at the Orange County Convention Center. 

PHILADELPHIA:  This year's Garces Foundation Benefit will take place March 24 at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel. 

TAMPA:  The Wyndham Grand Clearwater Beach is now open. The hotel has 343 rooms and 22,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor event space.

TORONTO:  The city's inaugural cat festival KittyCatCon is slated to take place April 8-9 at the Warehouse Venue in Downsview Park. 

YOUR NEWS: What are you doing? Tell us: [email protected]. 

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With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin and Claire Hoffman in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

BizBash Daily is the must-read digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.

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