White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

Archives for April 2013

Darren Criss Took Over Bloomberg/Vanity Fair Afterparty In True Glee Fashion

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Daily Beast Bipartisan Brunch
Every year after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, folks wait around at their various after-parties for ‘that’ to happen. Sometimes it’s a wardrobe malfunction, other times griping about long lines or how traffic slows to a crawl between the Hilton and Embassy Row. But this year during the Bloomberg/Vanity Fair soiree at the French ambassador’s residence it involved “Glee,” a piano and a collection of A-list musical talent standing nearby.

As the party went on with guests like Barbra Streisand, Katy Perry, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the cast of House of Cards and Morena Baccarin we’re told people noticed a piano off to the side. Soon Glee’s Darren Criss sat down and played an impromtu and acoustic set of whatever happened to tickle his fancy on the ivories. Guests standing around joined him on a few tunes and it established the sort of urban legends that the White House Correspondents Weekend is famous for having.

Rounding Up The Day After White House Correspondents' Dinner: Spielberg's Obama, House of Nerds

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Now that everyone is waking up from their late nights after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and After Parties, we can reflect on the best things from yesterday aside from the Garden Brunch.

Then again, now that Corey Stoll may no longer be allowed inside the Beltway, maybe you should go back to nursing your hangover. The “House of Cards” star, among others including Morena Baccarin from “Homeland,” had some choice words about D.C. folks on the driveway of Beall-Washington yesterday.

The Daily Mail were on hand at the Hilton to get shots of “Downton Abbey” star Michelle Dockery and “The Newsroom”‘s Emily Mortimer. But it was the pre-roll tapes from last night’s dinner that almost overshadowed Conan O’Brien including the cameo from Daniel Day-Lewis in the ‘upcoming’ Steven Spielberg film “Obama:”

The best video of the night may come from the media-studded afair that was “House of Nerds,” a crossover between “House of Cards” and the White House Correspondents Association complete with White House cameos like Valerie Jarrett, Senator John McCain and especially the retweeting power of Buzzfeed’s Ben Smith.

When Scandal and White House Correspondents' Presidents Collide at The 20th Annual Garden Brunch

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President Fitzgerald Grant (better known as Tony Goldwyn) met White House Correspondents Association President Ed Henry today at The 20th Annual Garden Brunch. The ‘legendary’ meeting that crossed two universes went out earlier through a livestream that culminated (at the 2:37 mark) with remarks from co-hosts honoring the White House Correspondents’ Association, CURE Epilepsy and The Miss America Foundation. Taking place at the historic Beall-Washington House, where else would you expect the perfect blend of Washington media, Hollywood and tech influences like Uber’s Travis Kalanick, Revolution’s Steve Case or even a gold medalist like Gabby Douglas?

Attendees rounded through R Street into the horseshoe to be greeted with CURE iPhone covers and #STEM branded protractors to give a hint at why Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathmatics are being so vetted by the Miss America Foundation to strengthen education for young women. And it’s true, the Garden Brunch is full of “Things Beltway People Like.”

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At the brunch alone you could find Downton Abbey’s Michelle Dockery posing with “Homeland”‘s Morena Baccarin or Kevin Spacey shaking hands with Navid Negahban and MC Hammer.Then there were the entire cast of Netflix’s “House of Cards” while Gerard Butler of “Olympus Has Fallen” came to lift the spirits of the brunch patrons.

Greta Van Susteren and husband John Coale, whose announcement that she would not attend the WHCA dinner made headlines, was dragged over to the red carpet by Kevin Spacey. For those around it felt like a House of Cards moment when he commanded Greta to “Stand next to me.”

There were even appearences from White House officials like Valerie Jarrett, Gene Sperling, Alan Krueger Tina Tchen (and daughter Emma), FLOTUS chief of staff and her Communications Director Kristina Schake and Reggie Love. House Leader Eric Cantor came to present the CURE Heroes Award to Pat and Patty Horan, an Iraqi war veteran who suffers from seisures. Senator Joe Manchin and Representative Darrell Issa mingled in the crowd with media heavies Joanna Coles, Editor of Cosmopolitian Magazine, David Carr and Jeremy Peters of the New York Times, Chris Hughes of The New Republic, Patty Rockenwagner, from Conde Nast, Alex Korson and Louis Bergholz, of Morning Joe, Toure And during the remarks given by Brunch co-hosts Tammy Haddad and Hilary Rosen, Google’s Eric Schmidt and Internet Investor and Fundamental Physics Prize Founder Yuri Milner happened to be near stage right.

Angel Investor Ron Conway led the giving with a pledge of $5,000 to each of the causes as Mayor Ed Lee and Mayor Villaraigosa talking to Steve Case and other tech leaders including Joe Green who is leading Mark Zuckerberg’s new political efforts in Washington.

Check out some of our photos in the slideshow below:

Celebrating 20 Years: 2010 Garden Brunch

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2010 WHC GARDEN BRUNCH

The 17th Annual White House Correspondents’ Association Garden Brunch was a historic one in that it marked the last year it was held at the home of longtime Washington TV executive and CEO of Haddad Media–Tammy Haddad.

Attendees mingled outdoors in a Palisades location overlooking the Potomac, meeting old friends and connecting with new ones before the main event in the Hilton ballroom that evening.

2010 WHC Garden Brunch for MDED and CURE Epilepsy from whcinsider on Vimeo.

Guests included entertainment luminaries like Chevy Chase, Patricia Arquette, Kim Kardashian, Dana Delaney, Cheryl Hines, the Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato, Joe Mazzello, Omar EppsAdrien Grenier.

The Fourth Estate was well represented with guests such as Fox’s Rupert Murdoch, Wolf Blitzer, Arianna Huffington, David Gregory, Andrea Mitchell, Bret Baier and Gayle King.

And the event once again honored two important causes – ending maternal mortality through Mothers Day Every Day (a partnership of the White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood and CARE), and supporting research for epilepsy through CURE Epilepsy.

2010 WHC Garden Brunch for MDED and CURE Epilepsy from whcinsider on Vimeo.

Celebrating 20 Years: 2011 Garden Brunch

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David and Susan Axelrod (middle) and Rupert Murdoch (right)

2011 represented a remarkable year of change for the Garden Brunch. The event moved from its historic location in the Palisades of Washington, D.C. to a new location: the historic Georgetown Beall-Washington House, the residence of Washington Post publisher Katherine Graham. Co-presented by the residence’s current owner, Mark Ein, the Garden Brunch spread itself out into yet another staple of Washington’s architectural history.

Hollywood guests included Academy Award winner Dustin Lance Black, “Glee” star Matthew Morrison, “Gossip Girl’s” Chase Crawford, The Social Network’s Joe Mazzello, Jeremy Piven and Modern Family’s Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Also representing the entertainment industry were Joan Rivers, Morgan Fairchild and Rosario Dawson among others.

Attending their first Brunch, Sarah and Todd Palin made a huge impression. Seen mingling with President Obama’s political strategist David Axelrod, CURE epilepsy’s Susan Axelrod and many other Washington correspondents–both White House and political.

Olympic snowboarder phenom Shaun White was visible among the crowd, as were media moguls like Sean Parker, David Carr and Twitter co-founder Evan Williams.

The brunch happeneda week before Mother’s Day, which let co-chairs Wendi Murdoch and Susan Axelrod take the opportunity to honor all mothers by honoring The White Ribbon Alliance for Safe Motherhood and CURE: Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy at the reception. Take a look at the video below:

2011 White House Correspondents’ Garden Brunch from whcinsider on Vimeo.

Celebrating 20 Years: 2012 Garden Brunch

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Special Guests Tweet for a Cause

The 20th Annual Garden Brunch will kick off White House Correspondents Association’s weekend today. So we figured to honor our age–and wish the WHCA a happy 99th birthday–we’d look back at the last three years that lead up to where we are today.

Last year the gathering was once again held at the historic Beall-Washington House in Georgetown, graciously provided by Mark Ein. The brunch provided a bright spot to an otherwise cloudy day made better with the glittering collection of celebrities from Hollywood and Washington.

Lindsay Lohan’s arrival garnered special attention, as well as Elle Macpherson and Kerry Washington of the newly premiered show “Scandal.” Other special guests included Rosario Dawson, Kris Jenner, Johnny Galecki (“The Big Bang Theory”),
Chace Crawford and Matthew Morrison.

There was also a special appearance from Woody Harrelson, fresh off the HBO political drama “Game Change.” See below for video highlights:

Fox News and their White House Correspondents' Dinner Friends

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Bret & Amy Baier with Susan Axelrod

A day before the festivites, the official line-up of Fox News’ table at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner has been unveiled.

Per Deadline, “X-Men: Days of Future Past” director Bryan Singer and writer/producer Simon Kinberg will attend with Bill O’Reilly, Geraldo Rivera, Bret Baier and “Milk” writer Dustin Lance Black.

Previously announced were Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen (“X-Men”), Tim Daly (“Private Practice”), Kevin McHale and Colton Haynes (“Glee”), Joesph Mazzello (“G.I. Joe: Retaliation”), Ryan Kwanten (“True Blood”) and JC Chasez (“So You Think You Can Dance”).

The dinner takes place tomorrow night at the historic Hilton in Dupont Circle and will be presided over by Conan O’Brien–who, by the way, is already at the gates of the White House.

Barbra Streisand Honored At Lincoln Center Before Correspondents Weekend

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Barbra Streisand ,Broadway star and second daughter to Washington, is on her way back to Washington. But first, she was honored earlier this week by the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s 40th annual gala awarding her the Chaplin Award.

On the New York Times‘ Arts Beat, Streisand was honored by a selection of New York, Washington and Hollywood at the annual gala. Introduced by her longtime friend and former President Bill Clinton, Steisand’s ceremony featured performances from Tony Bennett and Liza Minnelli recreating some of the Funny Girl’s greatest hits.

Of course, the ceremony was a precursor to the bigger news of the week–that she’ll be headed down to Washington as a guest of Bloomberg during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.The Post quotes itself from 1993 when it reminds us why Steisand is such an iconic figure:

“Now, where is Barbra Streisand?” asked Wolf Blitzer, CNN’s senior White House reporter. “I mean, let’s get our priorities straight.”

Passing by Cabinet secretaries and administration officials, Blitzer beelined for the center of the room, where Streisand was conferring with Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, about homosexuals in the military. “I’ve been a great fan of yours all my life,” offered Blitzer, who then found himself in an intense political discussion with the diva.

And why not? Streisand, elegant in an off-the-shoulder cream gown, pearls and diamonds, has impressive political credentials: Let’s see … she’s played an activist in more than one movie, raised a bunch of money for Bill Clinton and, she remembered, “I sang for President Kennedy 30 years ago” at this very event. “That’s why I was so excited to come as a guest tonight.” Streisand, escorted by producer Richard Baskin, was a guest of Newsweek.

As for what the Chaplin Award means, Lincoln Center explained in a previous statement:

“The Film Society’s Annual Gala began in 1972 and honored Charlie Chaplin – who returned to the US from exile to accept the commendation. Other honorees include many of the film industry’s most notable talents, including Alfred Hitchcock, Billy Wilder, Laurence Olivier, Federico Fellini, Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Davis, James Stewart, Robert Altman, Martin Scorsese, Diane Keaton, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Michael Douglas, Sidney Poitier, and most recently Catherine Deneuve.”

Celebrating the 20th Annual White House Garden Brunch

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This year marks the 99th Anniversary of the White House Correspondents Association’s Annual Dinner, which means our Annual Garden Brunch is 20 years old! Our brunch goes back to a time when White House Correspondents Weekend meant only a dinner and no time for old friends to meet with new ones before convening at the Washington Hilton.

Originally held at the Palisades home of Haddad Media CEO and veteran Washington TV executive Tammy Haddad, the brunch has since moved to the historic Beall-Washington House in Georgetown. Over the years the brunch has been co-presented and honored such prestigious organizations like CURE epilepsy, The White Ribbon Foundation and this year The Miss America Foundation. Co-hosts include a bi-partisan list of media and political notables including Hilary Rosen, Alex Castellanos, Steve McMahon, Kevin Sheekey, Anita Dunn, Bill Knapp, David Adler, Mark Ein, Franco Nuschese and now Steve and Jean Case. The Brunch provides the first time that many new faces for Correspondents’ Weekend meet their dinner sponsors.

Barbra Streisand attended the first brunch along with Tim Russert, former Bush 41 White House aide Anna Perez and a bunch of reporters. There are too many famous friends who have attended to list here. Take a look at last year’s video below:

The Brunch is an essential kick-off for the day’s festivities, which will continue into the night when Conan O’Brien introduced President Barack Obama at the dinner.