Maxim is not a magazine known for doing things subtly or quietly. So when the pub took its “Hot 100” party—which celebrates 100 women recognized in the magazine’s June issue—from New York to Los Angeles, Alpha Media Group’s corporate events director, Amanda Civitello, made sure the move was purposeful and publicized, starting with a lenticular invitation that showed images of a palm tree juxtaposed with the Empire State Building. Then, there was last night’s party for close to 2,000 (according to security personnel estimates), which took over the New York street at Paramount Pictures. “I was in L.A. looking at venues, and when I went to Paramount, I was like, ‘This has to happen here. It’s the perfect place for it.’”
Why the move? “We wanted to change it up, and celebrity events are a lot easier to execute in L.A. because everyone’s here," Civitello said. "We knew we’d have access to the most important celebrities on the list. It’s something that the entertainment community gets really excited about.”The New York street is a theatrical venue in itself, but Civitello and her team, including David Rodgers, brought in a lot of production pieces unique to the party and its key sponsors. Palm trees advanced the L.A. look in the midst of the New York-style atmosphere, and catering mixed cuisines from both coasts—like mini veggie burgers and mini reubens. Rentals had a guy-style appeal, with clustered seating groups including pieces in dark brown leathers, reminiscent of a gentleman’s club.
Sponsor Pontiac placed one of its cars on the party’s red carpet, and DJ Vice spun from a version of the “Pontiac Garage,” a stage setup used to promote the brand in the real New York’s Times Square. Sponsor Hennessy promoted its “Flaunt Your Taste” ad campaign (which runs in Maxim’s June issue) by way of a lounge set up in one of the venue’s storefronts, which featured servers from Beautiful Bartenders offering signature cocktails.
Beer partner Anheuser-Busch, which has a partnership with the new movie Agent 99, passed its Bud Select beers by way of costumed servers dressed in red trench coats meant to evoke the movie's costumes. And Edge shaving gel made its appearance in the form of a barbershop—complete with vintage barbershop chairs.
A brief fireworks display—appropriate ahead of the long Memorial Day weekend, summer’s traditional kickoff—rounded out the evening’s splashy offerings on a busy night in town, which also included American Idol's finale and the Lakers winning the first game of the Western Conference finals downtown.
Why the move? “We wanted to change it up, and celebrity events are a lot easier to execute in L.A. because everyone’s here," Civitello said. "We knew we’d have access to the most important celebrities on the list. It’s something that the entertainment community gets really excited about.”The New York street is a theatrical venue in itself, but Civitello and her team, including David Rodgers, brought in a lot of production pieces unique to the party and its key sponsors. Palm trees advanced the L.A. look in the midst of the New York-style atmosphere, and catering mixed cuisines from both coasts—like mini veggie burgers and mini reubens. Rentals had a guy-style appeal, with clustered seating groups including pieces in dark brown leathers, reminiscent of a gentleman’s club.
Sponsor Pontiac placed one of its cars on the party’s red carpet, and DJ Vice spun from a version of the “Pontiac Garage,” a stage setup used to promote the brand in the real New York’s Times Square. Sponsor Hennessy promoted its “Flaunt Your Taste” ad campaign (which runs in Maxim’s June issue) by way of a lounge set up in one of the venue’s storefronts, which featured servers from Beautiful Bartenders offering signature cocktails.
Beer partner Anheuser-Busch, which has a partnership with the new movie Agent 99, passed its Bud Select beers by way of costumed servers dressed in red trench coats meant to evoke the movie's costumes. And Edge shaving gel made its appearance in the form of a barbershop—complete with vintage barbershop chairs.
A brief fireworks display—appropriate ahead of the long Memorial Day weekend, summer’s traditional kickoff—rounded out the evening’s splashy offerings on a busy night in town, which also included American Idol's finale and the Lakers winning the first game of the Western Conference finals downtown.
Sponsor Edge made its presence known by way of a barbershop setup, complete with logoed barbershop chairs.
Photo: Dale Wilcox for BizBash
Catering included nods to both the East and West Coasts, with desserts including mini cheesecakes.
Photo: Dale Wilcox for BizBash
![“One of the harder installs was at Drees Pavilion [in Covington, Kentucky]. It was only a day apart from another filming. We re-carpeted the entire space and set everything up in 12 hours,” Bruner said.](https://img.bizbash.com/files/base/bizbash/bzb/image/2020/08/IMG_6734.5f34173fa6723.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=2&fit=crop&h=167&q=70&w=250)