When Bon Appétit magazine editor in chief Barbara Fairchild is the event's chairwoman, the food better be extraordinary. At this annual fund-raiser for UCLA's Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation (JCCF) held in the Regent Beverly Wilshire's main ballroom, she personally selected chefs who met her standards.Guests noshed on hors d'oeuvres prepared by Cindy Pawlcyn (from Napa's Mustards Grill and Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen) and sipped Napa Valley wines before taking their seats in the main ballroom. There, purple.phparagus terrine with white truffles and napa cabbage, created by chef Eric Torralba from Napa's E.T. Kitchen, awaited guests at their tables. Ken Frank of Rutherford's La Toque restaurant prepared beef tenderloin with cabernet foie gras sauce and Keen's cheddar tapioca for the main course, and the hotel's executive chef, Conny Andersson, created a roasted pear and almond tart for dessert.
"The event has always had a culinary theme, but the organization wanted to do something new for the fund-raiser," said JCCF director of special events Penny Amescua. Fairchild and the dinner committee came up with the Napa Valley theme to celebrate Gil Nickel, the former proprietor of Napa's Far Niente, Nickel & Nickel, and Dolce wineries (the JCCF honors someone with a humanitarian award in Nickel's name every year).
This year the benefit also moved from the Four Seasons to the Regent Beverly Wilshire, which offered more space and more details to manage, so Amescua worked with an outside event producer—Judy Levy of Levy, Pazanti & Associates—for the first time. One of the first things Levy did was talk with this year's Gil Nickel award recipient, Alex Wallau, ABC's president of network operations and administration, to help secure some of the ceremony's special guests. With Wallau's participation and Disney's sponsorship, the foundation was able to attract a crowd of attendees from the entertainment world, including Sarah Silverman, Jimmy Smits, Al Michaels, live auctioneer Jimmy Kimmel, and Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland of Coldplay, who performed a few songs for the nearly 700 guests. Wallau also got an ABC production staff to take care of all the lighting, sound, and video needs.
Tammy Julian of Julian Designs, the hotel's in-house florist, created a towering floral arrangement of red globe grapes, tulips, roses, wildflowers, and vines that centered the reception and silent auction area. Rustic floral arrangements and live camphor trees in terra cotta pots gave the room a lovely wine country feel.
—Lesley Balla
Photos: David Livingston/Getty Images (Martin), Courtesy of Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation at UCLA (Flowers)
Posted 06.01.06
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"The event has always had a culinary theme, but the organization wanted to do something new for the fund-raiser," said JCCF director of special events Penny Amescua. Fairchild and the dinner committee came up with the Napa Valley theme to celebrate Gil Nickel, the former proprietor of Napa's Far Niente, Nickel & Nickel, and Dolce wineries (the JCCF honors someone with a humanitarian award in Nickel's name every year).
This year the benefit also moved from the Four Seasons to the Regent Beverly Wilshire, which offered more space and more details to manage, so Amescua worked with an outside event producer—Judy Levy of Levy, Pazanti & Associates—for the first time. One of the first things Levy did was talk with this year's Gil Nickel award recipient, Alex Wallau, ABC's president of network operations and administration, to help secure some of the ceremony's special guests. With Wallau's participation and Disney's sponsorship, the foundation was able to attract a crowd of attendees from the entertainment world, including Sarah Silverman, Jimmy Smits, Al Michaels, live auctioneer Jimmy Kimmel, and Chris Martin and Jonny Buckland of Coldplay, who performed a few songs for the nearly 700 guests. Wallau also got an ABC production staff to take care of all the lighting, sound, and video needs.
Tammy Julian of Julian Designs, the hotel's in-house florist, created a towering floral arrangement of red globe grapes, tulips, roses, wildflowers, and vines that centered the reception and silent auction area. Rustic floral arrangements and live camphor trees in terra cotta pots gave the room a lovely wine country feel.
—Lesley Balla
Photos: David Livingston/Getty Images (Martin), Courtesy of Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation at UCLA (Flowers)
Posted 06.01.06
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Benefit Has Stand-Up Comedy, Sit-Down Dinner
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At the Regent Beverly Wilshire for the Taste of Napa fund-raiser benefiting UCLA's Jonsson Cancer Center Foundation, plated purple asparagus terrine with white truffles and napa cabbage awaited guests at their tables.
A production team from ABC created dramatic stage lighting for the main ballroom.
Representatives from Napa Valley's Nickel & Nickel winery poured its chardonnay in the reception area.
Tammy Julian's floral arrangements added a rustic, wine country ambience to the reception and silent auction area.
Coldplay's Chris Martin performed.
