Breakfast at Tiffany's at the Hollywood Forever cemetery

It sounds macabre, I know, but for those of you not from L.A., watching films in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a great pastime of ours. Every weekend during the summer, we confab with picnic blankets, lawn chairs and even air mattresses to eat, drink, and watch a classic film under the stars. (Yes, even we have a few stars in the sky.)

This year is the tenth anniversary of Cinespia, the organization that screens the films, and they asked for our requests. I wrote in "Anything Audrey Hepburn!" and they listened. The most well-known and beloved of Audrey's films, Breakfast at Tiffany's, will be screened this Saturday August 6th at 8 pm. This year is the first time you can pre-order tickets online, and as someone who goes quite regularly, I highly recommend doing this. And queueing up very early, because this place fills up rather fast! But even sitting on the front lawn waiting to be let in can be fun, with people starting their picnics (and wine drinking) early. And this is where you make friends.

If you are in the area, please try to make this. It's a really fun and memorable way to spend a night in L.A., and the most unique way to see Audrey.

Charmed by Audrey: Life on the Set of Sabrina

As you may have read, the gallery exhibit opening/book signing for the new picture book Charmed by Audrey: Life on the Set of Sabrina was last night. It was held in a pretty little Swedish furniture shop in Los Angeles near Hollywood, and there was quite a crowd packed in between the end tables and sleek armchairs! The photographer's son, David Shaw, was onhand to sign copies of the book and he was kind enough to field my questions for a few minutes about discovering what were thought to be long-lost negatives of his dad Mark Shaw's work with Audrey for Life Magazine.

Here's the story: Mark Shaw was assigned to photograph a new starlet, Audrey Hepburn, on set and around the Paramount Studios lot for a spread in Life Magazine. We all know the pictures now, including the shots of Audrey wearing a large man's dress shirt and little else, which thoroughly scandalized her mum. David said that while Life's records showed that the original film negatives had been returned to his father Mark, Life was notoriously bad at recordkeeping and it was supposed that the negatives had just been lost forever. David had begun to scan prints of his father's pictures when Mark's first wife died, and as the estate were going through her things, they stumbled across a box in her basement with all these wonderful film negatives in it. They scanned the negatives for beautiful, crisp pictures for the book, and printed a select few to be available as prints to purchase at the exhibit. While it was quite crowded and there was a lot going on, I do believe I overheard quite a few orders for prints, which made me very happy. And David said that he was under the impression that Audrey was still as popular as ever and would always be that way, which made me happy. In fact, he said that after going through all these photos: "It was impossible to take a bad picture of her. Even first thing in the morning, no makeup, hair a mess, she was great!"

Here's some pictures from around the shop:









Many, many thanks to the lovely Beth for letting me know about this fun event, for letting me show up, and for letting me take all the pictures I wanted. You're the best! Thanks as well go to David Shaw for putting this book together and listening to me ramble; Caroline Bloxsom, the director of licensing for Audrey's estate, for also listening to me ramble and answering my questions; and George Takei for being so lovely and talking to me. He and his husband are the sweetest people. :)

Okay then! If you can't wait, you just neeeeed this book, then your local retailer should have some copies. If they don't, then there's always good ol' Amazon to do the trick. Their price is really good, too! If you're feeling a bit broke and pinched right now but really wish you could have an Audrey fix to take your mean reds away, well then... I'll just have to give a copy or two away in a contest once I'm back from traveling, won't I? It's been so long since I've given something away, it seems only fair. In celebration of Audrey's upcoming 80th birthday and a beautiful new book, it only seems right. Stay tuned.

Something for the L.A. fans

Whew, it's been hectic around here lately! I think things may settle down around September or October, but until then, be prepared for more sporadic -- yet cool -- updates. :) Just a short while ago I received a letter about a new gallery exhibit opening at the end of the month in Los Angeles, and it coincides with a new book on Audrey. Double the goodies!

The book is called Charmed By Audrey: Life on the Set of Sabrina, and from what I can tell it's mainly a picture book featuring loads of snaps from photographer Mark Shaw. Have a gander at the cover of the book (left), I know you know his work.

Anyway, the grand opening is Tuesday April 28th from 6-8 PM, and Mark Shaw's son David will be onhand to sign copies of the book, which will be for sale. There will also be prints available on display, and if you can't make it to opening night, don't fret. The exhibit will stay on the walls until June 26th, and can be found at Svenska Mõbler, 154 N. La Brea Ave in Los Angeles.

I'm planning on being there, taking a bullet for all you fans scattered throughout the world who can't make it. I know, it's such a difficult job, but someone must do it. ;) If you can come, leave a comment and let me know! I'll keep an eye out for you.

P.S. You can see some prints online by clicking here, if you're impatient. There's also a lot of Jackie Kennedy, some early pre-Velvet Underground Nico and some amazing behind the scenes Balmain, for all you fashionistas.

P.P.S. There's also a great photo exhibit coming to London soon, but I'm waiting on some more information before I post about it. Stay tuned!

Update: if you can't make it to opening night and don't find the book in your local bookshop, it is available on Amazon. And thanks to the lovely Beth for all the info!

attention all L.A. area do-gooders!

Hey all you Los Angeles area Audrey fans, are you looking to do some good deeds but don't have a lot of time or money (or either)? UNICEF can still use you! I recently received this email and thought I'd share, in case anyone wanted to pitch in and channel their inner Audrey:

Dear Volunteer:

You are receiving this email because you are a registered volunteer in the greater Los Angeles area and we have a special opportunity in which we need your help!

The U.S. Fund for UNICEF will be hosting The Beverly Hills UNICEF Snowflake lighting! It’s a wonderful opportunity for Los Angeles residents to come together to do whatever it takes to save a child’s life and spread a little holiday cheer! We are looking for volunteers to help us pass out UNICEF fact cards, goodies and simply spread the message of UNICEF. We need approximately 20 volunteers to help us from 5 to 8 pm on Saturday, November 22nd, 2008 at 2 Rodeo Drive, corner of Wilshire Blvd. So if you are interested and are at least 18-years-old come join us.

Volunteers will be chosen on a first come, first serve basis, so if you are interested please email bmazin@unicefusa.org.

Regards,
Volunteer and Community Partnerships Department

P.S. For more information about the UNICEF Snowflake, please visit our website at unicefsnowflake.org

If you go to the Snowflake link just above, you can find more information about the snowflakes in LA and New York. I recently received another letter from UNICEF going into more detail about LA's ceremony, and it seems that Ambassador Joel Madden and Nicole Richie will be the ones lighting the snowflake. (I had no idea Joel was a UNICEF Ambassador!) There will also be performances by The 88 and Kreesha Turner, so even if you can't volunteer, you could stop by for some pretty lights and free entertainment.

yet another Audrey Hepburn auction

Are you in the market for a small piece of Audrey Hepburn memorabilia, maybe one that isn't instantly recognizable? Then I may have the auction for you! Bonhams & Butterfields is having an auction in Los Angeles on December 9th full of film and animation memorabilia. One of their lots, which they are making quite a big deal about, is the inkwell from Professor Henry Higgins's desk in My Fair Lady. What's odd is that they're marketing this as Audrey Hepburn memorabilia, as opposed to tying it in with Rex Harrison, and as far as I know Audrey never even touched the thing. It's lovely, though, being Victorian-style cut glass. The press release even charmingly points out two scenes in the film where the inkwell is clearly visible. If I had ever gotten around to doing screengrabs of My Fair Lady, I could possibly find it for you, but I haven't (I'm waiting to get the two-disc special edition to screengrab).

Anyway, it's an entertaining read altogether. You can read the full press release here, and read more about the auction as a whole through the Bonhams website here. No lot information is up yet, but there are viewing times scheduled, so for any L.A. fans out there, it might be worth it to stop in and take some pictures. Oh, and the inkwell is expected to sell for $1,000-1,500.

The Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund is rewarded; what are you doing this weekend?

Designs of Hope, a specialized set of fundraisers that take place across America to benefit UNICEF, has come in ahead of schedule in their goal to raise $5 million for orphans with AIDS in five years. This year they held a series of galas which featured the finest in food and fashion, finishing on a high note in Houston, Texas, with a fashion tribute to Audrey Hepburn. Honored at the June 8 event was actress Jane Seymour, for her ongoing humanitarian efforts, and the Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund, for their work with women and children affected by AIDS. There was an Audrey-inspired fashion show, as well. You can read more about the Designs of Hope events here, since this was sadly their last year.

So . . . what are you doing tomorrow? If you're in the Los Angeles area, I highly recommend heading down to the Hollywood Forever Cemetery and catching Roman Holiday on the side of a mausoleum. It may sound a little creepy to you, but have you ever been to a film screening in a cemetery? More importantly, have you been to a film at Hollywood Forever? It's amazing, to put it simply. If you can, please go! Though I highly recommend getting there early, as the line forms quickly and they do allow only a certain number of people in to a screening. Tickets are $10 and only available on entry, and you're highly recommended to bring a picnic blanket and some good food to go with your great movie.