Oscar Party Hopping
Slumming It on the Post-Show Circuit
With a multitude of celebrations to cram in on Oscar night in Los Angeles—from real-time viewing parties to Vanity Fair's "scaled back" but no less starry shindig—Sunset Strip was as jammed as the stage after Slumdog Millionaire's Best Picture win. A safe distance from the madness, Mercedes-Benz threw a to-do at the Montage Beverly Hills. Lindsay Lohan jumped up and down when Sean Penn took Best Actor, and Weinstein friends and family rejoiced when Vicky Cristina Barcelona and The Reader snapped up both actress awards. "Do you think Harvey will be happy he got two?" asked the Hollywood mogul's mother-in-law, Caroline Wonfor.
At the Pacific Design Center, Elton John's AIDS Foundation party drew the likes of Kate Beckinsale, Victoria Beckham, and Elle Macpherson. The host joined the Sean Penn bandwagon, declaring himself thoroughly won over by the Milk actor's "amazing speech." John performed with Raphael Saadiq for a post-ceremony crowd that included Ryan Seacrest and Sir Ben Kingsley, ultimately raising a cool $4 million for charity. Juliette Lewis, dancing up a storm in the emptying dining room, proved she had stronger party legs than anyone.
For some it was on to the Vanity Fair party at its new location in the Sunset Tower Hotel, where Penélope Cruz had swapped her red-carpet vintage Balmain for a slit-to-there white dress and Mickey Rourke cowboyed up after his loss to Penn in a white Stetson and printed silk jacket. The night's happiest celebration, though, may have been the one Fox Searchlight held for the Slumdog clan at One Sunset. A good many of the crew soaked up the love (and cocktails) into the wee hours—but it was VitaminWater and early to bed for the movie's adorable cast of kids. They had a field trip to Disneyland the next day.
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