Whoever said models don’t dance? The Transom collected quite a bit of evidence to the contrary on Thursday evening, at the much hyped Kenmare-the restaurant Paul Sevigny opened in March with an appropriately raucous lounge downstairs. It was there that the models gathered to celebrate the birthday of Scott Lipps, the entertainment impresario and founder of One Management. (His roster includes Claudia Schiffer, Sports Illustrated cover girl Bar Refaeli, Helena Christensen and Byrdie Bell.)
“I don’t have ugly friends,” Mr. Lipps said when the Transom remarked on the company he keeps. The birthday boy looked well rested and content despite being another year older-though, it must be said, we never quite figured out how old. “They always say that when you’re older, you get a little wiser, so I hope I’m a little wiser,” Mr. Lipps said. “You sort of understand what’s right and wrong, and I’ve always been very ethical, so I think I’m going to stick to that path in life.”
We asked Mr. Lipps, who began his career as a heavy-metal drummer, what he’s been listening to lately. “I spend way too much time downloading music. They’re not even work hours. It’s like 5:30 in the morning and 2:30 in the morning. The times I should be sleeping is when I’m downloading music,” he said.
Specifically? “The new Arcade Fire-which is not out yet. My friends are in a rock band called Buckcherry,” he added, which immediately transported the Transom back about a decade. “So I like their new record. Good friends of mine.”
He is well stocked in this kind of casual association: Later, he mentioned that another friend present at the party wrote for Entourage. “Some of my best friends from childhood, [their] names were written into the show.” And him? “I wasn’t, because my last name is Lipps, and Lipps as a last name is hard to write into anything.”
After wishing Mr. Lipps many happy returns, we bumped into the Honorable Daphne Guinness-artist, heiress, writer, muse and socialite. Though Ms. Guinness was pleased to celebrate the anniversary of her friend’s naissance, she’s not much of a birthday girl herself, she said. She prefers Halloween, to the extent that she celebrates it year-round. “Every day is Halloween for me!” We should have seen that one coming.
Of late, Ms. Guinness has been traveling-so much, in fact, that she couldn’t quite name where. “I was in Tel Aviv with David LaChappelle,” she said, “And what did I do after that? I can’t remember-I was in Paris!” Lucky gal!
We also said hello to photographer and controversy magnet Terry Richardson and fashion man-about-town Derek Blasberg, both of whom were feeling a little print-shy. “I’m just kind of here for my friend’s birthday,” Mr. Richardson said, in a rare show of modesty. Mr. Blasberg said he had lately become wary of talking about himself, but assured us that he is an Observer subscriber.
Hearty congratulations to Nur Khan, the nightlife magnate known for Sway, Hiro and Rose Bar-and, most recently, for Kenmare itself, which he co-founded with Mr. Sevigny. “It’s a little bit of a different direction for us with the restaurant,” Mr. Khan said. “We’re superexcited; we’ve been packed since day one. I couldn’t be happier, really.” The Transom remarked that so far, it seemed that the upstairs restaurant and the downstairs lounge had been able to peacefully coexist. “The timing actually worked out nicely,” Mr. Khan agreed. “After dinner ends, there’s not really a conflict.”
Mr. Khan wore a black T-shirt with a heavy-metal design that looked vintage, which we learned he had designed himself. “I design a lot of my own clothes. It’s a label that a friend of mine and I made,” he said. “I do everything!”
In the spirit of Mr. Lipps’ celebration, we asked Mr. Khan whether he had any particularly notable birthday tales to share. “I’ve never remembered a birthday in my life,” he replied. “That means they’re all good!”
