Yesterday evening at the Four Seasons, scores of well-dressed Manhattan women gathered to chat and mingle at the fifth annual Dinner & Dis(course) cocktail and dinner party. The event, organized by MediaBistro.com, drew together an array of female leaders in the magazine industry, along with one visibly uncomfortable male, Media Bistro associate editor Noah Davis. "At least I have good odds," he quipped.
Laurel Touby, the evening’s hostess and the founder of MediaBistro.com, donned a chic Pucci dress, a white feather boa (apparently its been her signature party piece for years) and those quirky-cute glasses. "I just thought we needed to get the girls together to bitch and brag and brawl in the face of ever-increasing stupidity in the marketplace!" she explained. "But really, I know how lonely it can be for people in the industry, how isolating it can be, and I just thought it would be a great chance for us all to get together and mingle with one another,"
"She’s Freaking Fabulous!" gushed Pink magazine columnist Jessica Siegel of Touby. "I mean, she’s genuinely interested in bringing people together,"
The ladies dined on a three-course meal of lamb barley soup, tuna tartare, grilled salmon and veggies, and crisp farmhouse duck with baked apples. Dessert was butterscotch pudding, bourbon truffles, crème fraiche, and upside down mousse cake. As they sipped Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, the women mused on their proudest professional achievements, then sat for a panel discussion on "What nobody tells you about being editor in chief." Revealing the secrets of the job were Janice Min of Us Weekly, Glamour‘s Cindi Leive, Susan Schulz of CosmoGIRL, Real Simple‘s Kristin Van Ogtrop, and Marie Claire deputy editor Abigail Pesta (who had presumably been clued in on the special knowledge beforehand).
"Touby used to throw parties once a month years ago. The idea then was to meet guys," explained one guest. Changing the subject, Ms. Touby chimed in: "Last year I swore I’d get cats and dawgs at this thing……Meeeeeowwwwww! But I couldn’t get my act together! Maybe next year!"
