A Few Friends Over For Dinner

On a memorable autumn evening in 1977, Halston extended a gracious invitation to my husband, Bill (Halston's esteemed executive design assistant from 1972 to 1984), and me for an intimate dinner gathering at his exquisite townhome, nestled at 101 East 63rd Street.

Upon our arrival, we were welcomed into the elegant modern residence by Mohammed Sumaya, Halston's devoted houseman, originally hailing from Morocco but now a fixture of New York.

Stepping into the living room, we exchanged air kisses with the fabulous DDRyan, who served as Halston's in-house  maestro for crafting the perfect cocktails and  her inner-circle views on  taste and style.

Halston's residence, a creation of the renowned architect Paul Rudolf, was celebrated for its unique austere design, featuring multi-levels of stairs without railings, connecting each of the four floors. The living room itself was adorned with a floor-to-ceiling terrarium, lushly populated with bamboo trees. The furniture exuded mastery of simplicity and sophistication, upholstered in a sleek gray limousine cloth, complemented by matching gray carpeting. The color palette was an all-encompassing elegant gray. Even Halston's canine companion, Lindo, embodied a complimentary shade.

Every surface was illuminated by the soft glow of votive candles, and the rooms were adorned with an abundance of delicate phalaenopsis orchids thoughtfully placed throughout the space. It was an experience that truly embodied the essence of opulent New York living at its finest.

Mohammed, with his customary poise, gracefully took our drink orders, setting the stage for an evening of conviviality as the four of us settled into an animated discussion about the day. An hour swept by, buoyed by a generous pour of Stolichnaya vodkas in a variety of captivating guises. Amidst this chatter, the prospect of a  meal seemed almost incidental.

Yet, with impeccable timing, Mohammed unveiled a sumptuous spread upon the dining table, an opulent assembly of steak, baked potato, toasts with sour cream kissed with caviar, and tender asparagus. In a whimsical turn, Halston, the maestro of our gathering, declared, "Well here's dinner why don't you grab a plate and we'll just sit around the coffee table and eat!"

Naturally, we embraced his suggestion with eagerness. And, in a delightful twist of fate, we received word that the luminous Liza Minelli, Halston's most illustrious celebrity client of the 1970s, was poised to grace us with her presence. She was then in the midst of filming the iconic musical masterpiece, "New York, New York."

As the doorbell  chimed and in swept Liza, an enchanting vision of charisma, accompanied by none other than the luminaries of cinema: Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, and Christopher Walken. It was an enchanting tableau of star-studded allure, a night forever etched in the annals of the inimitable Halston's legendary gatherings.

We exchanged greetings and Liza promptly sat in a big armchair curled up alongside Halston.   

The room's atmosphere crackled with an electric energy, all while maintaining an air of nonchalance—this gathering, although extraordinary, seemed to effortlessly blend into the rhythm of everyday life. While surreal, this had become a semi-frequent occurrence, rubbing shoulders with both the international elite and New York's glitterati. But this particular soirée, well, this was next-level.
I had just seen Deerhunter a few years earlier and  was a big fan of De Niro and Walken.   

Now Christopher Walken decided to explore the house solo.  I could see the first guests coming to life and watched my husband's face lit up. De Niro stayed close to  Scorsese and Keitel.  I remember Martin Scorsese was doing  much of the talking and was so grateful for it because I could feel myself get tongue tied.  It was hard to see these movie stars as real people they were larger than life.  

I went into the kitchen to pour myself another drink.   Harvey Keitel was right behind me.  “Are you a Model, from ”, “Where do you live?  You know Brooklyn? I replied by saying how much I loved his onscreen work. At this time De Niro was also in the kitchen and he reiterated  to Keitel,   "Hey She likes your work!" He was smirking and the two men were kind of teasing  me.  I could feel that in spite of the attention a  red crimson color coming up to my face.  I don't even know if I responded to those remarks but returned to my seat.   Now I was yearning for the evening to end… or maybe not to end because a hot movie star was flirting with me. And of course I needed to run to my husband for safety.

Well Liza's group finally left.  And of  De Niro and Keitel both said to Halston, “Hey thanks Halston- yeah, yeah thanks Halston_uh, uh, uh (sort of grunting there goodbyes in New York streetalk ).  Everyone took a deep breath.   Of course none of us had ever met any of those people before with the exception of Liza.  So before we left for our home, Halston said to us, 'Don't you just love Bobby!  I love Bobby".

After this evening, Robert De Niro was forever one of Halston's dearest friends.