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Jasmine Lombardi

By Jasmine Lombardi 8/15/12 3:15pm

As Seen in SCENE

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photographed by Juan Algarin, styled by Cricket Burns

Who’s That Guy on Olivia Palermo’s Arm? Johannes Huebl!

Who is the mysterious man-about-town who won the heart of America’s favorite “It” Girl/style icon/TV starlet Olivia Palermo? Meet the devastatingly dashing and handsome Johannes Huebl, who ditched a career in business, moved to New York to model for mega-labels like Cole Haan, Hugo Boss and Hogan, and quickly became a society favorite. We talk to Huebl about his low-key life with Palermo in Brooklyn (where paparazzi regularly snap the couple and their neighbor Anne Hathaway), his favorite New York hangouts and his next career move. Read More

By Jasmine Lombardi 6/06/12 9:15am

As Seen in SCENE

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Time Traveler: The Surf Club

At one time, a unique ‘80s dance club kept limousines lined up at an unlikely spot: the corner of 91st Street and York Avenue. Still, the infamous hot spot the Surf Club was, for a brief but brilliant moment, arguably one of the hottest clubs in the city.

The Surf Club made waves on Christmas Eve in 1984, during the heyday of New York nightlife (perhaps a testament to the flourishing economy and the plethora of post-collegiates who flooded the city and brought with them a welcoming naïveté toward drugs). Though fondly remembered, today the Surf Club’s legacy may be one of self-destruction; it was a place where people went to have fun—sometimes too much—losing jobs (and credibility) along the way. As most clubs at the time catered to the downtown crowd, many also made their mark on specific demographics (faux-Victorian at Nell’s, gay disco at The Saint and the art elite at Area), the Surf Club was undeniably a palace for preps. Adorned with striped umbrellas and white lattice reminiscent of the private beach clubs of Southampton or Edgartown, it became a home away from home to trust fund-toting blue bloods. The club may have courted a yuppie crowd, alumnus of Andover and Amherst who went on to become investment bankers, but by no means was it buttoned up.  Read More

By Jasmine Lombardi 4/05/12 12:00pm

As Seen in SCENE

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Morellet surrounded by guests inside his namesake diner. Paul Szynol

Seen in NY: Florent

In 1985—before McCartney, McQueen and Louboutin took hub, Florent Morellet took a risk on a neighborhood that was, at the time, laden with streetwalkers and meathackers. Six years after moving to New York, the ostentatious Frenchman took over R & L diner at 69 Ganesevoort Street but did little to its interior, keeping the original Read More

By Jasmine Lombardi 4/05/12 10:45am

As Seen in SCENE

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Graff

Hilary Rhoda Rocks On

SCENE: What is your favorite New York neighborhood?
Hilary Rhoda: Nolita has the cutest restaurants and boutiques. I love to walk around at night after a meal when it’s quiet and window shop—it’s one of the most charming neighborhoods in the city.

S: What are some of your favorite New York spots?
h: ABC Carpet & Home to shop and get inspiration for my apartment; Rubirosa for vodka pizza; El Parador Café for the best mexican and margaritas in the world; Ten Degrees to enjoy a glass of wine with friends; and Super Linda’s sexy downstairs lounge to see all the beautiful people! Read More

By Jasmine Lombardi and Delphine Barguirdjian 4/05/12 10:00am

As Seen in SCENE

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Getty images

The Royal Coming of The Casiraghis

The Grimaldi dynasty is one of the most troubled royal households in Europe—with a blemished reputation fostered by marital woes and adversity. Some may say the lives of Caroline, Albert and Stéphanie have been eclipsed by the tragic death of their mother, Hitchcock favorite Grace Kelly, who is credited for bringing the tiny tax haven on the Mediterranean coast worldwide attention. And for the first time since the dark days after the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the tumultuous tabloid fodder surrounding the finances of Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, it seems that the curses surrounding royal families can, in fact, be lifted—proven by the significant improvements experienced by the British monarchy in recent years. The time is now for a crusade in Monaco—brought to us by the Casiraghis. Read More

By Peter Davis 4/05/12 8:15am

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illustration by Camille Shimshak

School Daze: Peeping Charlie

When my successful numbers racket was busted and disbanded in fifth grade at Barclay school, I needed another way to feed my addiction to video games, gummy bears and smoke bombs. After my cool 500 clams a day (fixed lottery drawings and my spinning toy roulette wheel) dried up, I felt like my quaint Upper East Side ‘hood had become my own personal skid row. Read More

By Tatiana Boncompagni 4/05/12 8:00am

As Seen in SCENE

Good Days by Unruly Heir

Tattle Tales: Tinsley’s Tell-All Tome

There are a few things you don’t expect to see on the cover of a novel. Socialite Tinsley Mortimer’s name is probably one of them. And yet next month, Mortimer, the “It” girl-turned-handbag designer-turned-reality star, will publish her first novel, Southern Charm, about a “Southern Belle thrust into the frenzied world of high society in New York City.” In other words, it’s a roman à clef, and not a very veiled one at that. The book’s plot couldn’t any more closely mirror Mortimer’s real life (or that which she is somewhat public about) without having to be marketed as a memoir. Read More

By Cricket Burns 4/05/12 7:00am

As Seen in SCENE

Jay Zuckerkorn, Marek and associates

Cricket Craves: Union Jack Wellies

Here are some things I love the most:
The Rolling Stones; a sultry, warm rainstorm; a cozy pair of rubber wellies; and, “God save the Queen,” the Union Jack flag. Leave it to the eponymous producer of the original Balmoral-stomping boots to unite my not-so-secret desires and, ta-dah, here you have it! Jagger may Read More

By Daniel Edward Rosen 4/04/12 2:00pm

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Mr. Meister

Mr. Meister and The Misfit

New York’s popular and rich social suitor Todd Meister dated boldfacers like Samantha Boardman Rosen and Jamie Tisch before his name was thrown into the spotlight when a quickie marriage to celebutante Nicky Hilton made headlines in 2004. But media-shy Meister is in the news again with a woman, unlike Hilton, he wished he never met: his personal assistant Renata Shamrakova, who allegedly stole more than one million dollars when she worked for him. We discover Shamrakova’s secret lovers, her penchant for living as large as Meister and why her taste for the good life might land her behind bars.

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Of all the identities that could have been stolen in this town, it had to have been the one belonging to the broad-shouldered, balding man standing in front of the Sherry-Netherland Hotel one warm Sunday afternoon. That man—who despite his secret protestations to friends and despite his best efforts to maintain a respectable career in finance, will forever be known as the ex-husband of socialite Nicky Hilton—is Todd Meister.

Meister was standing by his BMW SUV, sporting a sharp pair of Persol sunglasses and a tweed jacket while tapping out a message on his iPhone. To have stood there with no fanfare or recognition was surprising. His face had made it back to the newspapers after becoming the unwitting victim of a massive swindle perpetrated (allegedly) at the hands of his trusted assistant. It was a story that had the perfect headline, the perfect subject matter, and perhaps the perfect combination of characters: Read More