In New York I can take my dog Lucky almost anywhere. Lucky has been to Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and even Madison Square Garden to see Barbara Streisand (she's a huge fan)yet strangely enough my week began without Lucky at the 132nd Annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show where dogs that aren't competing are strictly prohibited (sorry Lucky)! There were 2,500 dogs representing the 169 breeds and the Best in Show winner of the two day competition was a charming Beagle named Uno. Whether the Beagle was named after the infamous card game or the number one in Spanish, this dog certainly became a winner in a big way. Sadly little Lucky will never know what it is like to earn such an honor because rescued dogs are not allowed to compete at Westminster. Maybe one day we will see a Westminster Kennel Club Dog show for rescues. The next night Lucky and I organized a Valentine's Day Eve Yappy Hour that welcomed all dogs both rescue and show-worthy. The Yappy Hour was at the temporary Pedigree Dogstore in Times Square, the same one that Kate Walsh had opened last week. Lucky and I later learned that Walsh ended up adopting an adorable dog named Flower from the store because the two had instant chemistry. Guests at the Yappy Hour got to mingle with the adoptable dogs, check out the Pedigree signed merchandise from stars like Mary Tyler Moore, Kelly Ripa, Courtney Cox, and Bernadette Peters and just hang out, relax and have fun with their dogs! Because the Yappy Hour was so close to Valentines Day we wanted to make sure that everyone would find puppy love. Of course when we did an interview with Amanda Bynes earlier that week, we learned that she had found puppy love in time for Valentines Day from her Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Charlie. Charlie and Lucky hit it off when they first met, it was a lifelong friendship at first sniff. Bynes told us she "would rather be seen with Charlie on the red carpet than any other guy."
Later that week Some Irish Wolfhounds (I mean friends) invited me to attend The (RED) Auction to Benefit AIDS in Africa hosted by Bono and world renown artist Damien Hirst. Hirst is famous for his animal related artwork, most notably whole or parts of animals preserved in formaldehyde. Hirst has worked with sharks, sheep, cows, bulls, doves, and butterflies and guaranteed me that no animals are harmed in the creation artwork. Hirst holds the record for the highest earning living artist after one of his pieces, Lullaby Spring, topped that of Jasper Johns. Another of Hirst's projects, a diamond encrusted human skull entitled For The Love of God is rumored to have sold for $100 million. I wasn't quite sure if Sotheby's was pet-friendly so I left Lucky at home, but I told Hirst about her and he drew me a picture of her and needless to say it quickly became my favorite picture of her ever... I have to call my insurance broker, as my little Lucky is priceless, but this sketch of Lucky signed by Damien may be worth millions. While I was there I chatted with Bono and his wife Ali Hewson about their dogs Shanti and Helena, who'snamed after supermodel Helena Christensen because, as Hewson told me "the mongrel was so beautiful we had to name her after Helena!" Incidentally Christensen also happened to be there. They told me both dogs are mongrels joking that mongrel is Irish for mutt. The two will be designing for our 9th annual Paws for Style benefit fashion show through their clothing company Edun, so expect some rockin' outfits! At the after party for the event at the rooftop of the Gramercy Park Hotel, I ran into Dennis and Victoria Hopper, who told me about their German Sheppard, Otto. I also chatted with Prince Andrew, Queen Noor and Hirst's best friend Ant (a very animal friendly named lead singer of the UK group, The Hours). I also spotted Christy Turlington, Ed Burns, Ziyi Zhang, and Martha Stewart (Stewart was at the auction, but I didn't see her at the after-party, she must have had Valentines Day plans). I had such a good time that by the end of the night I had forgotten it was Valentine's Day altogether but I remembered just in time to get a little kiss from Lucky right before bed.
Post a Comment