Last night former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne threw on a pair of overalls, printed up some lyrics, and performed a charming cover of the Biz Markie classic, "Just a Friend".
• Musician David Byrne has picked up a new condo in Chelsea. The former frontman of the Talking Heads paid $3.875 million for a four-bedroom penthouse at 231 Tenth Avenue, which first went on the market for $5.2 million back in 2008. [Cityfile]
• After more than a year and a half of price cuts, Karen and David Fleiss have finally unloaded their apartment at 1030 Fifth Avenue. Part of it, at least. The couple first listed the duplex for $47.5 million in June of 2008 before deciding to list the lower floor on its own for $15 million. The price was reduced to $9.95 million back in June. Now they've managed to find a buyer for it. The third-floor apartment was sold for $8.898 million to Richard Duke Buchan III and his wife, Hannah. [NYC Co-op]
Writer/director Sofia Coppola is 38 today. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is 25. David Byrne turns 57. Cate Blanchett is turning 40. George Lucas is officially a senior citizen: He's turning 65. Actress Amber Tamblyn is turning 26. Director Robert Zemeckis is 57. Actor Tim Roth is 48. ESPN's Suzy Kolber turns 45. Poison guitarist C.C. DeVille is turning 47. And Danny Wood of New Kids on the Block is hardly a kid anymore: He turns 40 today.
Last night was the social event of the year for the finance community: It was the annual gala of the Robin Hood Foundation, the poverty-battling non-profit backed by banking heavyweights. The usual suspects from the worlds of hedge funds and private equity were in attendance, as were a smattering of celebs too classy for the Sex and the City premiere, including Jay-Z, Conan O'Brien, Russell Simmons, Tom Brokaw, David Byrne, and Cindy Sherman. Performances by Shakira, Sheryl Crow, and John Legend had noted hoofers like Henry Kravis, Steve Cohen, and Art Samberg tapping their feet underneath their tables.
The lead singer of Talking Heads, Byrne has been a fixture of the New York punk and indie scenes for the past 35 years.
· "A blotto Brian Dennehy pawing some 20-something
looking girl throughout a set at the Village Vanguard Sunday night. Staggered out mid-set with his lady friend..."
· Kentucky Derby sighting: "I pushed right past Aidan from Sex in City John Corbett coming out of the Brown Hotel in Louisville on Sunday around 2ish. He is super tall and super cool. I didn't notice him until my friend pointed him out. This is such a shame as I have been in love with him since Northern Exposure. He is godlike in his beauty."
· "5:25pm on Sunday, corner of W. Bway and Spring. Saw Mike Meyers horrified as two jersey types hassled him for a photo op. He complied although very shy. And short."
Choire Sicha speculates on what the celebrities in New York are doing right now: "Isaac Mizrahi is scooping Harry's shit off Fifth Avenue, using only a green plastic bag. Adam Yauch is eating day-old half-off vegan corn muffins from the Rastafarian Bakery on Lorimer Street. Jon Stewart is in Fort Lee, New Jersey, in a rent-by-the-hour Pink Pussycat motel with a 19-year-old Cuban-Korean transgender prostitute, and he is having the time of his life. Sandy Weill is shuffling on his marble-floored bathroom to a hot Missy Elliott remix. David Byrne is staring down a Norwegian subway accordian player, stealing music with his mind. Megan Mullally is having a lemon-ginger tea in her sunny-yellow kitchen nook, talking to a girlfriend about their first abortions and how much she didn't like Madonna."
Celebrity [Choire Sicha]
