How to Celebrate?

My congratulations to my near neighbor Prince Harry, who celebrated his 40th birthday at his $14 million Riven Rock estate, on Sunday.

Needless to say, the phone at Maison Mineards Montecito was ringing off the hook with innumerable enquires from the British media, including the Daily Telegraph and The Sun, asking how he planned to celebrate the major milestone.

Having heard nothing from the major caterers in our Eden by the Beach as to a birthday mega-bash, I postulated the Duke of Sussex would probably celebrate quietly with his family and attend a dinner party with friends at the San Ysidro Ranch’s Stone House, where he has been a frequent diner, or even Caruso’s at the Rosewood Miramar.

Or TV talk show friends Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres might host King Charles III’s youngest son.

London’s Daily Mail even suggested he might hike into the back of beyond locally with friends to mark the occasion. 

We’ll no doubt hear in due course.

In the meantime, Harry and his actress wife Meghan Markle are reportedly planning a third quasi royal tour before the end of the year with a return to Africa under consideration.

The tony twosome received mostly positive receptions earlier this year in Nigeria and then Colombia last month.

Likely locations, according to Hello! magazine, include Lesotho and Botswana where Harry’s charity Sentebale operates. He last visited the countries in 2019.

Harry is also set to embark on a packed solo trip to New York later this month to “address a number of his patronages and philanthropic ministries,” his team says.

The visit is set to take place during the U.N. General Assembly High Level Week on Sept. 23 to 27, and Climate Week between Sept. 22 and 29.

Reflections

on the ‘Horizon’

Carpinteria actor Kevin Costner has admitted his Horizon film didn’t have “overwhelming success.”

The Yellowstone actor, 69, invested a huge chunk of his own funds making the first of a series of epic Westerns. which is being followed up by Horizon: An American Saga, Chapter 2.

The Oscar winner says after the first installment – which received mixed reviews with an opening weekend box office of $11 million on a $100 million budget – he still remains optimistic.

“I’ve had a lot of movies that way that have stood the test of time.”

We’ll see…

Four Seasons Manhattan Set to Open

Beanie Baby billionaire Ty Warner is poised to finally re-open his Four Seasons Hotel in Manhattan in early November, ending a shutdown that began when the pandemic started four years ago because of an epic contract dispute.

Warner, who also owns the Four Seasons Biltmore and the 500-acre San Ysidro Ranch, fought over fees with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, the Toronto-based management company of the ritzy chain.

The 52-story hotel on East 58th Street, designed by I. M. Pei, was once known as Manhattan’s most expensive hotel.

The reopening coincides with the start of the Big Apple’s holiday tourism season, according to the New York Post.

Warner scooped up the building in 1999 for $275 million, a sharp discount on the $475 million that was reportedly spent on the 368-room tower in 1993.

House on the Market

Montecito actor Rob Lowe has listed his Beverly Hills home for $6.25 million.

The contemporary four bedroom, 4.5 bath residence located in Franklin Canyon emanates tranquility.

Built in the 1950s and since renovated, the house boasts 2,940 square feet and has a generous backyard offering multiple spots for al fresco dining and lounge areas with canyon vistas.

Adieu La Grenouille

On a personal note, I lament the closure of La Grenouille after decades in business, just a tiara’s toss from Cartier on Fifth Avenue.

One of the last great French restaurants from the ‘60s, run by Charles and Gisèle Masson.

The three-story carriage house on East 52nd Street, festooned with myriad flowers, attracted the likes of Truman Capote, Jacqueline Kenny Onassis, Sidney Poitier, Henry Kissinger, and an old friend, Della Koenig, widow of Erich Koenig, dubbed the Sugar King of Mexico, who had homes on New York’s Fifth Avenue, as well as in Las Brisas, Acapulco, and Beverly Hills.

Della, who adored the pike quenelles, would often invite me to dine with her at the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel – given that her estate on North Crescent Drive was just 400 yards from the eatery.

But no walking in her Ferragamo’s for Della, who would alert Frank her chauffeur to rev up the Rolls Royce and drop us across the way!

Fortunately, Charles Masson, who was kicked out of his post at La Grenouille by his mother Gisèle, a few months before her death in 2014, has opened Majorelle at the Lowell Hotel on East 63rd Street, named after the late fashion designer Yves St. Laurent’s glorious gardens in Marrakesh, Morocco. I’m told Majorelle has been attracting many of the former Grenouille crowd.

My late friend Cat Pollon became a regular, taking a suite at the hostelry on her Manhattan visits.

Sadly, because of COVID, we never got the chance to dine there together.

Sightings

Summerland racketeer Maria Sharapova at the U.S. Open men’s final… Katy Perry receiving a VMA Video Award from her British actor fiancé Orlando Bloom… Former TV newswoman Maria Shriver at Pierre Lafond.

Pip! Pip!