Salman Rushdie turns 62 today. Buffed-up gym owner David Barton is 45. Money manager Mario Gabelli is turning 67. Model May Andersen turns 27. The Insider's Lara Spencer is 40. Joseph McShane, the president of Fordham University, is turning 60. Phylicia Rashad is turning 61. Actress Kathleen Turner turns 55. Attorney Helene Kaplan is 76. Interior designer David Netto is turning 40. Former financier and deputy mayor Ken Lipper is 68. Hugh Dancy, the actor and fiancé of Claire Danes, is turning 34. Zoe Saldana turns 31. Sadie Frost, the actress and ex-wife of Jude Law, is 44. And Paula Abdul is turning 47. Weekend birthdays after the jump!

Vanity Fair and USA Network celebrated the launch of "The Character Project" photo exhibit at Stephen Weiss Studio last night. Editor Graydon Carter, the mag's publisher Edward Menicheschi, and NBC Cable Entertainment president Bonnie Hammer were on hand to welcome Mena Suvari, Christian Siriano (left), Lucy Liu, Donna Karan and daughter Gabby De Felice, Katie Lee Joel, Rachel Roy, Rosie Perez, Jeff Goldblum, Peggy Siegal, Rose McGowan, Sylvia Plachy, Michael Musto, Gigi Stone, Lisa Anastos, Caryn and Jeff Zucker, Paz de la Huerta, Sky Nellor, Jeremy Kost, Josh Bernstein, Yigal Azrouël, Elise Overland, Bettina Prentice, Sarah Sophie Flicker, Kipton Cronkite, Liam McMullan, Izzy Gold, and Gossip Girl's Amanda Setton and Dreama Walker. [PMc, Wireimage, Getty, VF, NYO]

Publishing vet Ed Menicheschi is the vice president and publisher of Vanity Fair, the Condé Nast title edited by Graydon Carter.