Hell no, we won't go! (Photo via Buzzfeed)

One of the protest's organizers, Buzzfeed's Matthew Stopera, commented to The New York Observer: "2011 was clearly the year of Ryan Gosling and it's extremely disrespectful to Ryan Gosling and his fans everywhere that he wasn't chosen. We hope people with realize their mistake and give Ryan his own cover. He deserves it!"

The last we heard, no arrests were made, and the dozen or so protesters disassembled peacefully later in the afternoon.

First there was People's Sandra Bullock adoption exclusive and then this week's country star coming-out cover story. And to top it all off, yesterday Mr. Hackett was elected president of the American Society of Magazine Editors.

"It's an exciting, challenging time for the magazine industry," said Mr. Hackett in the release. "I look forward to working with the ASME board as an advocate for editorial excellence and independence."

Mr. Hackett takes over for Runner's World editor David Willey and is joined by seven newly elected board members:

Chris Anderson, Editor-in-Chief of Wired; James Bennet, Editor of The Atlantic; Harriette Cole, Acting Editor-in-Chief of Ebony; Ariel Foxman, Managing Editor of InStyle; Chris Johns, Editor-in-Chief of National Geographic; Kaitlin Quistgaard, Editor-in-Chief of Yoga Journal; and Mimi Valdes, Editor-in-Chief of Kidult.com.

Here's the release:

New York, New York (May 4, 2010)-Larry Hackett, Managing Editor of People, was elected president of the American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME) at the annual meeting of the organization on Tuesday, April 20, 2010. Mr. Hackett succeeds David Willey, Editor-in-Chief of Runner's World, as president.

"It's an exciting, challenging time for the magazine industry, and I look forward to working with the ASME board as an advocate for editorial excellence and independence," said Mr. Hackett. "I also want to thank David Willey for his superb stewardship these past two years."

Peggy Northrop, VP and Global Editor-in-Chief of Reader's Digest, continues as vice-president of ASME. Lucy Danziger, Editor-in-Chief of Self, was elected secretary, and Rosemary Ellis, Editor-in-Chief of Good Housekeeping, was elected treasurer. ASME officers serve one-year terms and are eligible for reelection to a second term.

Seven new members were chosen for two-year terms on the ASME board: Chris Anderson, Editor-in-Chief of Wired; James Bennet, Editor of The Atlantic; Harriette Cole, Acting Editor-in-Chief of Ebony; Ariel Foxman, Managing Editor of InStyle; Chris Johns, Editor-in-Chief of National Geographic; Kaitlin Quistgaard, Editor-in-Chief of Yoga Journal; and Mimi Valdes, Editor-in-Chief of Kidult.com.

The annual meeting also reelected James B. Meigs, Editor-in-Chief of Popular Mechanics, to his second term on the board and elected Mark Jannot, Editor-in Chief of Popular Science, who was appointed to the board earlier to fill a vacancy, to a full term. A complete list of board members can be seen on the ASME website.

The release contained this statement from Office Pirate-turned-People.com editor Mark Golin: "Patrick’s intelligence, sharp editing instincts and level-headed guidance will be put to good use as the website is faced with increased competition in the category."

Full release below:

(NEW YORK, August 25, 2008) – PEOPLE managing editor Larry Hackett and People.com editor Mark Golin announced today that Patrick Rogers has been named executive news director, overseeing all aspects of news as it pertains to People.com, from the daily story flow to managing the ongoing print/dotcom integration and developing engaging news products for the site.

A PEOPLE veteran, Rogers was previously a senior editor at the magazine, in charge of politics, medicine, education, family issues and the arts. He joined the magazine in 1996 as a writer in the news and human interest sections and has travelled throughout the world writing and reporting on a wide range of subjects.

“Patrick’s intelligence, sharp editing instincts and level-headed guidance will be put to good use as the website is faced with increased competition in the category,” said People.com editor Mark Golin.

Rogers graduated from Yale and currently lives in Manhattan. He begins his new role on September 10.

According to a chart presented by Portfolio's Jeff Bercovici, the magazines that faired the best were those aimed at older readers: AARP Bulletin, AARP The Magazine (whose Web site boasts it's the "World's Largest Circulation Magazine"), and Reader's Digest.

AP reports that two magazine's that actually saw increases were Time Inc.'s People, which has a 5.2 percent newsstand increase (thanks a million, Knox and Vivienne) and In Style.

Of course, magazines could be in worse shape: They could be newspapers.

The Margaret star—who is also the father of a one-year-old daughter with his wife, Luciana Bozan—also flexed his funny muscle in his letter to People. “Unfortunately, after all those years out on the trail, the meet and greets, the fundraiser, the stump speeches, I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that this is a mantle I wasn’t meant to hold,” he wrote. The “sexiest man alive” issue will hit newsstands on Friday.

Damon named People’s ‘sexiest man alive’ [AP via Yahoo]

To: Time Inc. Employees
From: Ann Moore and John Huey
Re: Teen People

We regret to inform you that we are suspending publication of Teen People magazine, effective with the September 2006 issue. We will continue to invest in the brand through TeenPeople.com which shows promise and growth. Teen People's groundbreaking launch in 1998 as a magazine and website was an industry first, and one that we remain proud of.

This decision was a difficult one because of the hard work of the magazine's talented staff and the support of its many loyal readers. We are taking immediate steps to place as many Teen People magazine employees as possible within Time Inc.

A. M. J. H.

In the wake of the announcement, the following happened:

Fox News released the results of a Fox News poll touting a five point rise in Bush's approval ratings.

White House spokesperson Tony Snow responded to reporters' questions about the death toll with the opening line, "It's a number. And every time there's one of these 500 benchmarks, people want something."

House Republicans and Democrats went head to head over a Republican-proposed resolution that says, among other things, that an "arbitrary date for the withdrawal or redeployment" of troops is not in the national interest.

And People magazine reported that Jessica Simpson likes to kiss with her eyes open.

-- Lizzy Ratner

Read all about it in People magazine. (Seriously.)

"Oh, how horrible this conversation is," said Mr. Dalal, who will turn 23 in July. He was discussing being named one of People magazine's 50 most beautiful human beings last year. He is 5 feet 8 inches tall, a slight 130 pounds with dark wavy hair that he cut to chin length for the summer. Every few minutes, he brushed it behind his ears. His eyes have been described as "celadon" and "emerald." His arms were covered with notes he had written to himself in Magic Marker. He wore jeans, a blue T-shirt that said "Hugh O'Brian Foundation Youth Leadership Seminar," which he got from his cousin, and Jil Sander shoes that he bought in Hong Kong.

"We declined to do it at first," he said of the People interview. Last year, Mr. Dalal became the youngest designer to be given the Perry Ellis men's wear award. He consults his parents-who with other friends and family represent his entire financial backing-on everything from how to run a business to whom to invite to this year's American Fashion Awards afterparty (which he co-hosted with designer Narciso Rodriguez and model Kate Moss, though she never showed) to what's for dinner and what time he'll be home. He is still living with them near Union Square, where the family moved after his childhood home on Central Park South became the offices of Sandy Dalal Limited in 1997.

"At a certain point in time you are going on such a tangent, you are losing what the fuck you are supposed to be doing. But the reality of it is that the exposure level is ridiculous. It's insane. If my company folds today, if there is one thing I will be known for, it's [being on the People magazine list]," he said, shaking his head. "That is the weird part of it."

Two years ago, four credits shy of a degree from the University of Pennsylvania, Mr. Dalal dropped out and started his own design company. His parents were pissed, but they still gave him his senior year tuition for start-up money.

He had spent years fooling around with fabric at his mom's office and traveling with her to mills; she's a freelance fabric scout. During his junior year, he and his parents showed his designs to Loving and Weintraub, a fashion publicity company, which agreed to organize a show for him in July 1997 during the spring 1998 men's wear collections.

"The collection was coming together … We had hired one person and I was mooching off my mom's staff a bit. It was really fun." The show was held across the street from Bryant Park; they wheeled up the clothes on racks.

"I walk out, there are like 700 or 800 people sitting in this steaming little room," recalled Mr. Dalal. "And I thought I walked out on the wrong runway. Everyone is clapping and screaming. You see a huge crowd dotted with friends everywhere, but the rest of it is, like, all of these people I had never seen before, like your Liz Saltzmans and all of these other people, and it is, like, 'Why are you all here? I don't know any of you, you don't know any of me.' It is just weird. Weird that the clothes themselves and the idea of coming to a fashion show attracts so many people."

The collection was made up of clean-cut, splashily patterned clothes. Color! It blended street gear, like T-shirts and sneakers, with sleek suits. His mom is a fabric consultant to the company; his dad, a C.P.A. with his own business, does the books. A friend of his mom, Manjit Johan, 27, is the marketing director. "Everyone pooled their resources together," said Mr. Dalal. "Family, friends, everything."

Barneys, Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale's all ordered part of the line and it is now also carried in boutiques across the United States and all over Japan. A T-shirt costs $80, a suit between $900 and $2,000, and a shearling coat, $3,000. He has dressed Beck, Ricky Martin, Wyclef Jean, Ash Sood (Mr. Sarah McLachlan) and members of Tribe Called Quest.

After he won the Perry Ellis award in February 1998, he received a note from Ralph Lauren congratulating him. "It was weird to get a note from Ralph Lauren," Mr. Dalal said. "It was basically, like, my first day as a designer. Now maybe it would be a little different because we all have our heads up our asses a bit."

Now he has a William Morris agent, and it has been estimated that his company will do $1 million in sales in 1999.

A place on Atlantic Avenue agreed to fix up an antiquetubhehad found on MyrtleAvenue-bringing the tab to $700." Ciao , ciao ," said Mr. Dalal on his way out, which is the way he ends most conversations, even with the tub reglazing guy.

Hisparents,MaheshandLoma Agashiwala moved to the Bronx from India in 1970. He was born in 1976. (His name is Sangiv.) He attended the Browning School, an all-boys school on the Upper East Side, starting in the second grade. He and his brother Raj, 16, walked to school. He said he liked Browning, but it made it hard to meet girls. Raj just finished his sophomore year at Choate Rosemary Hall in Connecticut.

Mr. Dalal remembers playdates with kids who lived in town houses complete with butlers and internal elevators. But his family lived a fairly modest upper-middle-class life in a two-bedroom apartment on Central Park South. His parents were very protective.

"You would not go [to the East Village] or were not supposed to go there … Fourteen and 15 were the hugest years of discovery for me. That is the time I finally somehow ended up in SoHo or ended up in TriBeCa."

Mr. Dalal made B grades at Browning and his extracurricular life consisted of fencing lessons at the New York Athletic Club. "When I got into college, it was like I had gotten lucky," he said. "I should just cut my losses. I should just try to get through school."

His freshman year at Penn, he lost 60 pounds from his "gut, ass and arms" by not eating red meat for a year. "I hated the food at college. I never went to the dining hall," he said.

He majored in Asian studies, took economics classes and followed the Wharton School of Business core curriculum. "Freshman year I kind of had an idea … I wanted to do business and trading and traveling in Southeast Asia. It had nothing to do with clothes."

He worked for his mom during vacations. "I started getting involved in the factory stuff and enjoying it. I started to try to make things seriously and some half-decent stuff came out."

His sophomore year he made a deal with his dad to pay for part of his tuition. "You just don't feel comfortable after a while taking that from your parents." He had invested some money from doing construction work during high school. "I got a little lucky in the stock market," he said.

By his junior year, he had decided he wanted to design clothes.Hestartedusing Dalal, his mother's maiden name, and took extra classes to try to graduate a year early. At the end of the spring semester, he had one A-minus and four incompletes.

"The fashion thing just looked cool," he said. "At the beginning, it was more of a stepping-stone idea. I became gung-ho on it when the first awesome-looking stuff came out. The idea of putting it all together as a presentation, that idea alone was fascinating."

He went to visit the dean of undergraduate students to tell her that he was launching his own men's wear label and was going to put off graduating. "They were really nice about it. The deal is, if I finish the work I have left over … this is the weird thing, the dean walked me into this little office and she was like, unofficially it shouldn't go out of this room, but files at Penn are never closed … Whatever. Through all the shit that I say, Penn gets so much publicity, anyway."

Mr. Dalal attended about half of the six-hour American Fashion Awards ceremony on June 2. At 10 P.M., before the torch was passed to another young men's wear designer, he bolted for Club Ohm in Chelsea, where his afterparty was under way. He had invited an entire crew from Penn; his family; his doormen-"They used to wipe my ass, we moved in there so young!"-and the guy who parks his car at the garage.

He hadn't even voted on the new men's wear designer award-or any others-claiming that he didn't know the clothes of any of the nominees: Matt Nye (the winner), Tony Melillo and Cynthia Rowley. (His business manager filled out the ballot for him.) He even claims to have never laid eyes on Gwyneth Paltrow's Oscar dress.

"I enjoy what I do, but when it becomes trivial, it is a pain in the ass," he said, still driving. "That is why the fashion part of what I do sometimes wigs me out."

Watching Isaac Mizrahi babble about his sources of inspiration in Unzipped "grossed me out," he said. "Well, that is a movie. That is supposed to be funny and ridiculous. He is acting. I have no beef with that. It's when people actually say, 'This collection is inspired by the blue hues of the Caribbean …'" he shook his head.

"But going to a factory and learning all kinds of shit! When I am at the factory"-near Union Square, where his suits are made-"at 5 in the morning, with all of these old guys in jackets and ties, every one is up and cranking, working, spiffily dressed, at 5 in the morning!" He stopped short at a red light.

"It is a different world. It is such a good feeling to wake up in the morning and pick up a coffee and walk around Seventh Avenue a little bit. You just stand in the middle of the street and you can see all the way downtown and you feel like you-actually you're standing in the middle of everything-and you can do anything you want at that point in time."

His afternoons are spent in his studio-the apartment where he was raised, which he has given a sleek renovation. Black cement floors in the bathroom, a gray wash on the ceilings, a mixture of cement and vegetable oil. He and his staff made a cutting table, a couple of benches, the bulletin boards, a desk and shelves. "We buy the wood and cut it, finish it and screw it together."

Mr. Dalal doesn't draw sketches. He takes a piece of fabric, drapes it on a form and snips and folds it until it works. "This morning, we were working on a jacket," he said. "It is long. It has a biker jacket collar. We say it should be this long, look kind of squarish. Then you chop here and there and change the collar so many times it comes out like shit. We were about to scrap a jacket this afternoon. It just looked really bad."

The $700 tub was scheduled to be repaired and delivered to his new apartment in a couple of weeks. He is annoyed with everyone asking him why he is spending so much time on his new apartment. "It is the most important place in my life," he said, "Everything important in my life will happen in that space."

He had crossed the Manhattan Bridge and was cruising Elizabeth Street, eyeing all the new boutiques. His life has been very "businessy" lately, he said; that is why. He is preparing for "intense growth": launching a women's line and opening his own store.

In May, Mr. Dalal went to Salt Cay, an island near the Bahamas, with a friend who is a reporter at Newsweek . She read about it on the Internet.

"We started talking about ambition," said Mr. Dalal about the trip. "Ambition seems to be the driving force behind everything, how much ambition you actually have to do all what you want to do. It just seems that it is such a weird thing. It will make you do crazy, things, like all kinds of stuff. It will make you work hard, it will make you work 24 hours a day.

"This island is full of people who have dropped out of civilization. They don't use money, they don't do anything. You build a wall and they buy you a Budweiser. It is as simple as that. It is just a different culture. And it shows that you don't really need money. It is as bad as you want it. They didn't want it, so they didn't have it."

In February, his female friend is going to South Africa for a year on a Fulbright scholarship. "She is really smart, really fun. She's a good girl."

Her looming departure makes him uneasy. "It's not worth it. I feel … it is weird, my life is in a stage where, um, shit has to last more than … anything has to last more than, like, five minutes, you know? Serious things. You know? She and I are friends."

He drove uptown. On East 29th Street, he bounded out of the car after an old, classic sink in a dumpster. But his slight frame could not budge it.

Wednesday, December 10

Dateline NBC The Dateline cult-i.e., the roughly 400 employees who put this NBC cash cow on your TV set four nights a week-finally get to lay their eyes on their gods, anchors Jane Pauley and Stone Phillips, and executive producer Neal Shapiro, who is referred to around the offices simply as "he"-at what is billed on the invitation as an "evening of holiday cheer." How about, "a cauldron of paranoia"? Have you ever partied with Jane Pauley? Can't be done.

[New York Palace Hotel, 455 Madison Avenue, 6 P.M. to 9 P.M.]

The Village Voice "We always end up hanging from the chandeliers," said columnist Michael Musto. "I used to come, like, in these outfits-I had this one Christmas ensemble, a body suit with red Christmas balls hanging from it." But balls or no balls, Mr. Musto, who gave downtown society a scare recently when he collapsed in convulsions at a function, is planning to attend. "I feel great," he said. Will people bring dates? "I don't got one," said Mr. Musto. "I guess I'll just bring my gerbil."

[S.O.B.'s, 204 Varick Street, 6 P.M. to 10 P.M.]

Thursday, December 11

Tudor Investment Corporation Paul Tudor Jones, the wacky, brash Master of the Universe who's made gazillions on Wall Street, threw toga parties in the 80's. But tonight, he, his employees and their spouses put on black tie for a night of casino fun at the New York Public Library. Last year, each guest got $1,000 in fake money for the craps, blackjack and poker tables. First prize was a trip to Roswell, N.M. (the place where the aliens supposedly landed in the 1950's), but like any smart trader, the guy who won cashed out and exchanged the trip for $10,000.

[New York Public Library, 455 Fifth Avenue, 7 P.M.]

Condé Nast Sports for Women The ladies who luge will be setting up pins at the bowling alley at Chelsea Piers-even though Condé Nast editors threw tantrums during fashion week when they had to trek way out west to the piers. Crash strategy: Wear a sports bra over your chemise. After the last bowling ball has guttered, a select few of the staff repairs to the James Danziger Gallery on Prince Street, where Sports for Women editor Lucy Danziger and husband James Danziger throw a small dinner.

[Chelsea Piers, West 23rd Street and the West Side highway, 6:30 to 9:30 P.M.]

Rolling Stone Editor and publisher Jann Wenner used to rent out the Harkness House mansion on East 75th Street and throw the best darn Christmas parties around. But that was some time ago, and the recent parties have had very little bacchanal to them. This year, Rolling Stone tries out the new China Club, which one hopes will have cleaned up the swill from the B-list celebrity-packed opening of the night before.

[China Club, 268 West 47th Street, 6 P.M. to 10 P.M.]

Hearst Magazines What happens when you invite more than 1,200 employees from Hearst Corporation's magazine division to Tavern on the Green for some holiday cheer? We asked a Cosmopolitan magazine staff member: "It's no fun," she said, "it's too crowded, the food is decent-but it's not worth the trouble for a few free drinks. I do my drinking at home." Now there's a party!

[Tavern on the Green, Central Park West at 67th Street, 5 P.M. to 9 P.M.]

Friday, December 12

Sports Illustrated Last year, the staff didn't get a party. Instead, Time Warner sent them to the Summer Olympics in Atlanta. This year, Sports Illustrated went nuts and rented out four floors of the Madison, a club. About 300 people will be doing the "white man's overbite" to a real live deejay!

[Madison, 29 East 32nd Street, 7 P.M. to 1 A.M.]

Monday, December 15

The New York Times Magazine The glossy magazine of the paper of record swoops in where the Walt Disney Company's Lion King roars, and invites 150 people to swell the New Amsterdam Theater on a night when the stage is dark. Free wine and beer-but, hey, this is The Times , which means if you want a real drink, you'll have to reach for your wallet.

[New Amsterdam Theater, 214 West 42nd Street, 6:30 P.M. to 8:30 P.M.]

J.P. Morgan asset management services Last year's party took up eight or nine rooms at the Pierre hotel-attendees can number in the thousands-so don't expect to see managing directors spinning yarns to young financial types around the fireplace. And don't be fooled by the dainty finger food: Afterward, the boys go out to get smashed at bars. Crash strategy: a pocketful of Dunhills. Maybe they'll buy you a lap dance at Scores.

[Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers, 811 Seventh Avenue, Imperial Ballroom, 5:30 P.M. to 7:30 P.M.]

Women's Media Group Who are they? A cadre of high-powered New York ladies (agent Virginia Barber, photographer Jill Krementz, Cosmopolitan editor Myra Appleton, etc.). What's on the menu? "Fruit Plate" or "Vegetable Plate." W.M.G. members must fork over $47.50. But don't those food options sound kind of lame? "I agree," said one W.M.G. member. "The menu is pretty funny, but look at it this way: It's the '21' Club, so even a fruit plate is pretty good."

["21" Club, 21 West 52nd Street, noon.]

Tuesday, December 16

The New Yorker The magazine used to have separate but equal holiday soirees for its editorial and advertising departments-but under Tina Brown, commerce and art are one big happy family, so this year the wall comes tumbling down: one party for all!

[Balthazar, 80 Spring Street, 6 P.M. to 9 P.M.]

GQ, part 1 If you're an ambitious media hack, you probably got a nice invitation to GQ' s in-office Christmas party [See: Thursday, Dec. 18]. But unless you work for the magazine, you weren't asked to this swishy event: Editor Art Cooper, staff and contributors dine by candlelight in a sumptuous loft overlooking the West Side Highway and, in the distance, the twinkling lights of New Jersey. In a cheapo move that seems confined to media Christmas parties-unlike, say, those of banks or law firms-no husbands, wives or playmates are allowed.

[Studio 450, penthouse, 450 West 31st Street, 6:30 P.M.]

Slotnick, Shapiro & Crocker Barry Slotnick may be feeling a bit out of the tabloid spotlight, what with his most recent media moment (representing the priapic Anthony Quinn) decidedly trumped by the boisterous Tawana Brawley antics of Alton H. Maddox Jr. and C. Vernon Mason-so his law firm's holiday party should be just the thing to cheer him up.

[Slotnick, Shapiro & Crocker, 100 Park Avenue, 5 P.M. to 9 P.M.]

Simon & Schuster "Many years ago, under Paramount, there was a no Christmas party policy," said Jack Romanos, president of Simon & Schuster's consumer publishing group. "It came back to life after we were acquired by Viacom. It's at the Plaza-there will be close to 500 people there … It's not a dressy affair."

[Plaza Hotel, 768 Fifth Avenue, 5:30 P.M.]

Wednesday, December 17

Vogue Surprise, surprise: Vogue magazine's holiday shindig, like that of sister publication The New Yorker , is going down at Balthazar. We called a top editor to find out what time the party started, and she snipped, "Why? You want an invitation?" Most anticipated moment: Someone actually takes a bite of a food item.

[Balthazar, 80 Spring Street, 6-ish to 8-ish.]

Katie Ford and André Balazs This handsome society couple (she's chief executive of Ford Models, he's a hip hotelier) are known for their frolicking fun-and what fun it will be to sip cocktails in their enormous Greene Street loft! Said one previous attendee: "It's less of a literary crowd than Bret Easton Ellis' party. [ See : Thursday, Dec. 18.] There are a lot of major fashion people and lot of journalists-but only chic journalists. A smattering of models. You see kids playing in front of what is reputed to be a fake Francis Bacon painting."

[Somewhere on Greene Street, 7 to 10 P.M.]

People "The problem with this party," according to one People magazine source, "is that it's always during the middle of a very stressful week. For most people, it's one of the few times they allow themselves to get drunk. Everybody comes in the next day hung over and remarkably unhappy." Entertainment in years past has included an Ivy League a cappella group and the antics of a certain staff member who, according to our source, "always collapses during the party. I was just standing there, and she just slumped on the ground."

[China Club, 268 West 47th Street, 6 P.M. to 10 P.M.]

Thursday, December 18

Late Night With Conan O'Brien The party's in the Late Night studio, but be glad it's not televised-for some reason, it's a lot less fun than the show. Conan invites staff and some of his old writer friends from Saturday Night Live , like Rob Smigel (who's now producing David Letterman's show on CBS). If you're lucky, SNL funnyman Norm MacDonald will show.

[Studio 6-A, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, 8 P.M.]

New York Chances are this party wouldn't make one of New York's "Best of …" lists-and not just because it's on the desperately unhip Upper West Side. One previous attendee described the magazine's Christmas party as being like "Sunday buffet at the Ramada." Writers and editors stand on one side, everyone else stands on the other. But this year's party may be the exception, since the staff is simply giddy over its great moral victory over the Giuliani administration regarding those bus ads. Most anticipated moment: With this year's "Southwestern theme," will the editorial assistants bust out the fringe?

[Citrus, 320 Amsterdam Avenue, 6 P.M. to 9 P.M.]

The Dakota Each year, the famous building brings in carolers to serenade tenants like Lauren Bacall and Yoko Ono; if it's not too cold, the brave descend into the courtyard for steaming hot cocoa around a decorated Christmas tree. Those whose apartments face the courtyard put lighted candles in their windows.

[Dakota, 1 West 72nd Street, 6:30 P.M.]

GQ , part 2 This is editor Art Cooper's party for the masses. He sent out an invitation with a "photo" of him sitting next to Sharon Stone and Ernest Hemingway at the Stork Club, and we must say Mr. Cooper looks very daring and dangerous! The party's in his office-but will he be ho-ho-hoing, now that his ex-protégé David Granger is landing Esquire in the tabloids [ See : "outing" of Kevin Spacey, etc.]? Plus, tonight at least, Esquire is serving better food (see below).

[GQ, 350 Madison Avenue, sixth floor, "4 P.M. until the sun also rises"(ugh-ed.).]

Esquire Like their pals at GQ, Esquire, under the guidance of party-happy editor David Granger, throws a bash in its sleek offices (the ones that resemble offices in those Michael Douglas sexual harassment movies.) The Soup Nazi, of Seinfeld fame, is catering the event. Likely no-show: Kevin Spacey. Likely humiliating moment: emotive speech by Mr. Granger, guru of touchy-feely journalism.

[ Esquire , 250 West 55th Street, eighth floor, 5 P.M. to 8 P.M.]

Scores You can bet that plenty of investment bankers will be blowing their record Christmas bonuses at this skin joint, but today the staff bolts the doors to have its own merry little Christmas. "It's a tremendous bonding thing for the everyone," said Lonnie Hanover, the flack for Scores. "It's the greatest party of all time: 250 strippers and 50 guys. This is one the guys never miss. Even Dennis Rodman can't crash this party, although he tried last year, and he's got a girlfriend working there. The Crystale Champagne will be flowing. Normally, it's the customers who drink the champagne and eat the lobster, but this is for us. It's a $200,000 party! Some of our girls are flying in all the way from Texas."

[Scores, 333 East 60th Street, afternoon.]

Details Editor Michael Caruso better be careful: First, The New York Times declared he has "teeth too white to trust"; then he let e-mail go out to Details employees, inviting them to a holiday party tonight at an abandoned synagogue in the East Village-but those plans fell through, which means that with only two weeks till Christmas, the magazine is scrambling for a new locale.

[Call Details switchboard at 420-0689 for hourly updates.]

Bret Easton Ellis You know him as the "American Psycho"-but every year at Christmastime, his friends know him as the cuddliest Santa in town as he opens his East Village loft to more than 100 of New York's literati, approximating that party scene from Breakfast at Tiffany's . Mr. Ellis treats his guests to catered food, rivers of booze and the sight of Joan Didion chatting with, say, Lauren Hutton, while pretty waiters and waitresses (one year they wore togas) try to avoid spilling red wine on Jay McInerney's Armani duds. "You go in and put your coat on a rack, then go upstairs and can't move at all," said one past partygoer. "They pass around the most incredible food; it's so odd to be having such fabulous food with this rat-fuck mix of guests." After the party-which by 1 A.M. will be spilling into the stairwell-Mr. Ellis jets out to Los Angeles for a while because he hates cold weather and, well, after seeing all of Manhattan's tweedy strivers crammed into his apartment at once, he probably needs a little nap. Be warned: A no-nonsense guy with the invite list is stationed at the front door to the building.

[Somewhere on East 13th Street, 6:30 P.M. to 10:30 P.M.]

Friday, December 19

Daily News At last year's holiday party, deputy managing editor Rich Rosen and managing editor Arthur Browne mortified everyone by leading each other around the dance floor (by their ties) in an attempted bunny hop. But that was just the beginning: Now that publisher Mort Zuckerman has installed that Brit trickster Harry Evans as his editorial poohbah, who knows what will happen? Most anticipated moment : Debby Krenek, editor, chats with Mr. Evans-if he shows-around the punchbowl. Might not show: former editor (of everything) Pete Hamill-at his farewell party this fall, ex-staff member Wendy Henry, a British tabloid veteran whose nickname is "The Badger," showed up uninvited and threw a drink in Mr. Hamill's face.

[Studio 450 (just two blocks from the office!), 450 West 31st Street, 7 P.M. to 11:30 P.M.]

Price Waterhouse Gloating after their big $13 billion merger with Coopers & Lybrand, the accountants at Price Waterhouse are treated to a special showing of A Christmas Carol. The invite reads: "The theme of this magical show is about good will towards man, and it is intended for all ages and religious beliefs." A Price Waterhouse spokesman explained, "That line about the Christian stuff was just to make it nondenominational, so anyone who isn't Christian wouldn't be offended."

[Theater at Madison Square Garden, Seventh Avenue and West 32nd Street, 6 P.M.]

Wednesday, December 24

Han Feng The rapidly rising fashion designer is strapping on an apron and cooking a traditional Chinese lunch at her infamously minimalist garment district loft and serving it to staff, some fashion editors and buyers. Most anticipated moment: Will her pal, actor Tim Robbins, stop by?

[Somewhere on West 29th Street, noon.]

Reported by William Berlind, Nicholas Corman, Kate Kelly and Alexandra Zissu.