Tag archives: Gwyneth Paltrow

Prince Harry, 38, was this close to hosting the iconic NBC show Saturday Night Live as part of the promotional tour for his bestselling memoir, Spare. But talks reportedly stalled at the final hurdle and he went on to appear on other high-profile shows, including 60 Minutes with Anderson Cooper and The Late Show with […]

After tying the knot 15 years ago, former TV talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres, 65, and actress wife Portia de Rossi, 50, renewed their wedding vows at their $70 million Montecito estate. The dynamic duo’s good friend, Kris Jenner, matriarch of the Kardashian clan, officiated at the intimate ceremony with guests including near neighbor Prince Harry […]

Santa Barbara Beautiful, which focuses on the built, green, and cultural environment, has elected a new slate of officers for 2023 led by president Kerry Methner, editor and publisher of VOICE magazine for the last 20 years, and a gifted sculptor. She has been on the board since the early 2000s and was president in […]

The late Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin was a larger-than-life character with vocal talents to match. The singer, songwriter, and pianist, the daughter of a Detroit Baptist church preacher who died in 2018 aged 76, was admirably brought to life again in the American Theatre Guild’s electrifying Broadway production R.E.S.P.E.C.T. at the Granada with four […]

Milt and Arlene Larsen opened the doors of their former club, the Magic Castle, to let the public know that the space by the Bird Refuge is now available for rental. Sarah Anticouni’s Groovy Vintage Clothing is already leasing space in the property, the former Cafe del Sol, so guests, including Alan and Lisa Parsons, […]

Santa Barbara Choral Society, under veteran conductor Jo Anne Wasserman, was in fine form with its eighth annual Hallelujah Project at the Lobero, which also included Sing! program choral students from the Music Academy and pajama-clad president Scott Reed in a rocking chair reciting ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas. Accompanied by an orchestra, the enthusiastic […]

Jeanette Fantone, a Japanese Filipino animator from Carpinteria, has won a 2022 Princess Grace Award. Her work largely stems from cultural nostalgia and gravitas towards the manipulation of textures and tactility as a way of invoking impressions of memory. Fantone received her BFA in Experimental Animation from CalArts this year and competed three films in […]

Evelyn “Evie” Sullivan is the recipient of the 2022 Dorothy Shea Award from the Breast Cancer Resource Center of Santa Barbara, the greatest recognition by the organizationof a volunteer. The award is named for Dorothy Shea, who was a founding mother and gave the BCRC its start by providing a home rent free for several […]

After an almost three-year hiatus, Santa Barbara’s renowned music director Heiichiro Ohyama flew in from Japan to return to the Lobero for an evening by an artfully created ensemble in the Chamber Music Project’s season premiere. Ohyama, who led the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra for 35 years until it played its final concert in 2017 […]

The Scottish bagpipes sounded loud and clear at the University Club when Susan Keller’s Santa Barbara Revels celebrated its seventh annual Equinox concert celebrating the changing seasons. The al fresco evening on the Sola Patio combined selections from three centuries of Spanish and Mexican music of the New World, in an echo of the Revels […]

Billionaire Rick Caruso’s Rosewood Miramar went to the dogs when dozens of canines invaded the tony hostelry’s Great Lawn to celebrate International Dog Day. With pet owners paying $250 to enter, all proceeds benefited the local animal shelter, Santa Barbara Humane – which has two campuses in Goleta and Santa Maria – with judges looking […]

Montecito globetrotting accountant Frank McGinity has just published his latest 246-page work chronicling nearly 40 years of the California branch of the American Irish Historical Society from its creation in 1983 through the first quarter of the 21st century. Riven Rock-based founder Frank says his work serves not only as a historical document of the […]

A sea of colorful hats proliferated in the stands at the Santa Barbara Polo Club when, for the 15th consecutive year, I had the onerous task of judging the mélange of magnificent millinery. Sorting out the torrent of tony tête toppers and choosing three winners was not the easiest of jobs given the sheer number […]

As its 75th anniversary season winds down, the Music Academy’s Academy Festival Orchestra under conductor Stéphane Denève was in fine form at the Granada. The entertaining concert featured Ravel’s masterpiece “Daphnis et Chloe Suite No. 2” and Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 3.” Frenchman Denève, music director of the St. Louis Symphony and the Brussels Philharmonic, was […]

We were all clearly in the right aria when the Music Academy staged Tchaikovsky’s classic Eugene Onegin at the Granada, directed by Peter Kazaras, head of Opera UCLA. With the orchestra under Slovenian-born conductor Daniela Candillari, Yale-educated baritone Samuel Kidd as Onegin, and soprano Johanna Will as his lover, they were absolutely superb in the […]

It was a double celebration when Santa Barbara Historical Museum celebrated First Thursday with its new signature exhibition Project Fiesta: History of Old Spanish Days. The latest installation celebrates the pageantry, fashion, and traditions of our Eden by the Beach’s most cherished cultural festival event, which marks its centenary in two years’ time. Highlights of […]

To the Rockwood Woman’s Club to hear former British Beefeater Steve McMenamy talk about his life in the notorious fortress The Tower of London built by William the Conqueror. McMenamy served 23 years in the Royal Armored Corps before becoming a Yeoman of the Guard, founded in 1485 by King Henry VII, in 2010. They […]

It was certainly a hands-on performance when Berlin-based piano twosome Sivan Silver and Gil Garburg sharing the keyboard performed the world premiere of 62-year-old Austrian Richard Dunser’s composition derived from the work of Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms with the Santa Barbara Symphony for Romance in a New Key at the Granada. Dunser dedicated his […]

The flagship Ranger, which is familiar to many for leading the annual Parade of Lights at Yuletide, has rejoined the Classic Yacht Association’s Southern California fleet. Originally the vessel was readmitted to the association in 2020, in time for the 20th anniversary of the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum, but the pandemic delayed her rededication ceremony. […]

CAMA – Community Arts Music Association of Santa Barbara – hosted the first concert of its Masterseries at the Lobero with international Grammy winning string player Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations. For Spaniard Savall it was his fourth appearance in our Eden by the Beach having performed in 2008, 2010, and 2016. Playing […]