Touch of Savoir-Faire at Spinsters Ball

The artists in party-giving should take a lesson from Sonja Ledergerber. She and her select committee masterminded the “An American in Paris” 62nd annual Spinsters Ball at the Beverly Wilshire with the utmost consideration for detail.

We all know that most Americans bungle French, but who else would have thought of providing miniature English-French dictionaries on the tables. And who would have thought of including tidbits of conversational French in the table programs. Only a sensitive Spinster.

Around the room, filled with the handsome young crowd--in their 20s and a few above--there was no lack of conversation. The crowd simply consulted the program: “My name is. . . .” Je m’appelle . . . “Haven’t I seen you someplace before?” Il me semble que je mis ai vous rencontre autrefois? “Aren’t you a famous actress?” Etes-vous une actrice fameuse? “You have beautiful eyes!” Vous avez des yeux merveilleux! “What is your phone number?” Pourrais-je avoir votre numero de telephone? “Get your hand off my knee!” Enlevez votre main de mon genou! “Let’s do lunch sometime.” Pourrions-nous prendre le dejeuner ensemble un jour? And the ultimate, “I love you!” Je t’aime! (The only phrase lacking: “Would you like to slow-dance?”)

Best Ingredients

With an Eiffel Tower in the center of the ballroom; cuisine par excellence; Bernard Miyet, French consul general, and his wife, Dominique, in attendance; Chanel perfumes for favors; cognac and Grand Marnier truffles from Joachim A. J. Caula de Hortoneda (he was with Nancy Archibald); the ideas of Debbie Karrenbrock and Steve Miedecke of Los Angeles Party Designs; Gregg Elliott’s orchestra; a silly can-can routine; remembrance photos by Bill Youngblood--well, it was divine.

The crowd seemed to adore it all. The band played till 2:30 a.m.; some thought they had danced till 3.

Sonja (escorted by the Bachelors’ member Grant Ivy) and assistant chairmen Marti Brock and Renee Suzanne Lawler admitted to several 3 a.m. nights the week before the ball, spent scripting place cards, bundling favors into shiny pink bags, sampling le menu ( Poulet a l’Orange, Bombe Norvegienne avec Sauce aux Fraises (baked Alaska) and les vins ( L’Epayrie blanc de blanc and L’Epayrie Cabernet Sauvignon ) and the Tour Eiffel Champagne.

President’s Party

But youth endures. Elegant in pink taffeta, Pamela Kerns, president, with escort Randy Robinson exuded charm, along with first vice president Davon Anderson and her escort Don Carlson, Teresa Hoffman and Steve Hanson and Ann Cramblit and her fiance, Stan Olson (they met at a previous Spinsters Hero party).

Kerns hosted the president’s party for the board, and it was a merry band: Allison Ream with William Bogle, Angelica Kusar and Randall Hicks; Loretta Seyer and George Jaegels; Sandra Davis and Stephen Dietrich; Joan Borawick and William Heffner; Helen Heglund and Brian Reed; Madalyn Seyer and Carlos La Madrid (down from San Francisco), Letitia Quinn and Eric Lawton; Melina Eversole Montoya and her husband, Phil Montoya (had she not married, she would have been ball chairman); Susan Ramos and Tim Wilde; Nancy Townsend and Art Morganstein; Katherine Farrand and Jack Anastasia.

To avoid gate crashers, guests arrived with “passports” that had been hand-delivered by Spinsters hostesses. They were visa-stamped by Mady Phelouzat, head of the visa office in the French consulate (using a defunct stamp).

Among the Older Crowd

Bachelors member Chip Stuart was with Julie Johnson, Solteros member John Burke with Jeannine Dalis. Clunie Holt, wearing her mother’s white kid gloves, and her date, Steve Brown, danced around the Eiffel Tower. Not far away, Scott Brittingham, who had graduated from USC with an MBA the day before, was with Cynthia Eastman; Ashley Brittingham with John Hunter; Hugh Evans with Elana O’Brien. The older crowd, among them Sonja’s parents, Dr. Charles and Mirjam Ledergerber, and their friends, including Carole Curb and Dr. Jean Francois Watteau, wearing his Legion of Honor medal, looked on with amazement.

Then there were the post parties: indefatigable Kathleen McCarthy and Mollie Shea joined forces to entertain a coterie. Mollie was probably up at 6 a.m. for tennis.

WILHELMINA COLE HOLLADAY: The Music Center’s Club 100 has pulled a neat trick. It has Wilhelmina Cole Holladay, president of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, as featured speaker at a breakfast Friday at the Regency Club.

The museum, which officially opened in the spring of 1987, was founded to promote knowledge and appreciation of women artists through exhibitions, publications, special events and research. We’re told Mrs. Holladay and her husband, Wallace, began the collection after discovering that women were not included in the art history textbooks.

The event begins with a 9 a.m. reception. Those attending will include Diane Morton of Encino, Iris Pofsky, Connie Abell, Shirley Levine, Eunice Forester, Carol Sapin-Gold, Wilhelmina Doiener, Phyllis Hennigan and Donna Wolff.

SPECIAL NIGHT: The board of trustees of Occidental College and the executive committee of the President’s Circle will honor Richard C. Gilman, retiring president of Occidental, at an appreciation dinner next Sunday at the Sheraton Grand.

About 200 guests are expected, including Susan and Fred Christie, Sallie and Harry Colmery, Ilene and Stanley Gold, Roberta and Stafford Grady, Katherine and John Gurash, Dona and Dwight Kendall, Carolyn and Charles Miller, Donn and Peggy Miller, Gayle and Ted Saenger, Roy and Patty Disney, Carol and Bob Finch and Peter and Pam Mullin.

Disneyland Productions will put on a show and Bob Bovinette, headmaster at the Albuquerque Academy and former vice president at Occidental, will review highlights of his 17-year association with Gilman.