Fog blurred the view on the roads and in the sky above the Hamptons on Saturday, and a number of celebs managed to duck the limelight in VIP tents and at a $3,000-a-ticket concert and even far more private events.
At the Mercedes-Benz Bridgehampton Polo Challenge at JetOne Jets field, Hamptons magazine was the host and Rachel Hunter and Mischa Barton were the guests.
The two stars who looked terrific, hid from press in a relatively calm VIP tent.
Hunter, a Slimfast spokesperson, looked shapely thin, and said that she was staying with lawyer Mike Heller but said that, fog or no fog, she was driving back that night at high speed (but not driving herself).
Barton, who was also hiding in the VIP tent at Polo, said she was staying for the Tom Petty concert at Hamptons Social.
Barton, who attempted to elude photogs when possible, said she has been filming with Bruce Willis in New Jersey and that he is "so funny."
She was wearing a bright sundress from C by Chloe. And that night at the Petty show at Hamptons Social at the Ross School ($3,000 a ticket, although we met someone who claimed that a friend had nabbed 80 tickets for just $2,000 each; a mere $160,000), Barton was wearing a sequined gown by the same designer. She also wore a headband and looked like the hippie version of a flapper.
Paul McCartney was also there hanging out with a male buddy. Petty really rocked the house, which was more packed than usual.
Calvin Klein's entourage included his daughter, Marci, and Renee Zellweger who ended up hiding in the swarm of Petty fans up by the stage.
Howard Stern was also in the audience, as was Jon Bon Jovi and his wife.
And Christy Turlington and Ed Burns - at the concert - mentioned being wowed by Donna Karan's compound the night before. Turlington loved all the yoga equipment, and she said that Donna has a similar setup in Manhattan and on an Island called Parrot Cay, where Donna and Bruce Willis both have houses. Turlington and Burns said that they have stayed at Donna's house there.
Richard Gere was dressed down at the concert (he came with his wife), and they rushed the stage, avoiding press. There, she literally bumped into Christie Brinkley.
Later, at Pink Elephant, John Legend was spotted in a white coat hiding in a cabana in the outdoor area. And he said that he had stopped by Petty's show but couldn't stay for the concert because he had a Missoni fashion show at the secret W retreat on Millstone Road that night where he was the honored guest. John looked "tired." Long day.
Al Reynolds also stopped, with four male friends, just after 2 a.m., as did Karolina Kurkova. She said that she was looking for a girlfriend she had lost.
Star Jones Reynolds, who said she wasn't doing interviews - "I have talked enough" - had been with Reynolds earlier in the day at Polo where she was carrying a little white pooch.
And, by the way, at a $750-per-ticket diabetes fund-raiser at SUNY Southampton College that same night, Diana Ross (no interviews, no pics except for first minute of the first song) did three costume changes. Count 'em. She belted out "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and the theme song from "Mahogany" and as usual gave the crowd what they wanted -vintage Diana Ross. She's still got it. The event took place in a massive tent on the lawn in front of the campus. The crowd wasn't exciting, but Ross definitely was.
Meanwhile, fog stopped Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's original flight plan to the Hamptons. They did manage to attend a fund-raiser near the Polo fields at Jane Rosenthal's house. But they had to land their chopper in Westhampton (forty minutes away by car).
And, apparently, they fooled all the paparazzi out front by showing up in a taxi. Not one photog got that shot.
The very, very private, very, very expensive fundraiser was to pitch in for Hurricane victims.
Yup, this weekend while the big names ducked the press, they also managed to do good.
- JEFFREY SLONIM
