All Smiles at Betty White’s Zoo Book Signing

Posted by Lindsey Leake / Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012

Yes, the celebrated actress is just as sweet as she appears on TV! 

By Lindsey Leake

White smiles for the press before the book signing. | Photo by Lindsey Leake

On Friday, May 18, the Smithsonian National Zoological Park played host to television and film veteran Betty White during a public book signing. White, a lifelong animal lover and advocate of animal welfare, seemed right at home in a cozy nook of the park called Zoo In Your Backyard. Roughly 200 guests—from infants to oldsters—wove their way through a lush, green garden pathway up to the wooden canopy where White sat, happily signing copies of “Betty & Friends: My Life at the Zoo” and “If You Ask Me (And of Course You Won’t).” 

The early afternoon affair felt less like a publicity stunt featuring a timeless Hollywood figure and more like the homecoming of a dear old friend. There was excitement for sure, but no drama—just loyal, affable fans waiting patiently in the springtime sun for the chance to share a few moments with the woman who brought Sue Ann Nivens, Rose Nylund, Elka Ostrovsky and countless other memorable characters to life. It was as though White, 90, had leapt directly from the small screen into our presence, her wisdom and kindness radiating throughout the crowd. 

White signed up to two books per guest. | Photo by Lindsey Leake

White genuinely seemed just as eager to meet each of her fans as they were to greet her. She took the time to sign two books for and briefly chat with each pre-registered guest, but was especially pleased to meet the park’s many zookeepers. White’s passion for animals shone through as she asked each zoo employee about his or her specialty and discussed the plants and animals they worked with. 

Whether due to the picture-perfect weather or the cheery atmosphere White’s presence evoked throughout the exhibit, the 90-minute book signing went by in a flash. Cameras and phones themselves flashed almost constantly, as each guest wanted to capture his or her moment with one of Hollywood’s most respected actresses, and playful shouts of “I love you, Betty!” echoed every ten minutes or so as the line snaked through the garden. 

Betty White and I share a laugh. | Photo by Jennifer Zoon

Full disclosure: I’m a huge Betty White fan (think about it; do you know anyone who isn’t?). And thanks to my press pass, I was fortunate enough to be able to stand under the exhibit’s canopy with White for nearly two hours. When just a handful of fans remained, I was allowed to hop in the end of the line and became the last fan she would meet during the event. I hadn’t had time to wait in line and purchase White’s books before the signing, but I’d planned ahead and brought along my season one copies of Hot in Cleveland and The Golden Girls (no matter that the show first aired years before I was born; it’s a hilarious classic!). 

I became slightly worried when a park employee warned me that, due to the promotional nature of the event, White may not be willing to sign my DVDs in lieu of her books, but it turned out that she was glad to do so. When the time finally came for Betty White and I to meet face-to-face, I wasn’t nervous, speechless or star-struck, as I’d imagined I’d be in the presence of such a highly-esteemed woman who I consider an idol.  Instead, staring into the wizened, yet youthful face of the actress I suddenly felt like I’d known my whole life, I found myself relaxed and talking to White as if she were an old pal.

TV-on-DVD favorites made even more special! | Photo by Lindsey Leake

Signed DVDs in hand, I eventually had to tear myself away from White and reluctantly joined the throng of zoo-goers lining the park paths to see the star off in her chauffeured golf cart. With a few big waves and a final flash of America’s favorite smile, White was whisked away into the wooded depths of the zoo. And just like that, we were all abruptly shoved back into reality; the crowd dispersed and life in the park became business as usual. And me? I reached into my purse, pulled out the two DVDs and ran my right index finger across White’s Sharpie signature, smiling with the relief that it hadn’t all been a dream.

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Betty White’s National Zoo book signing, while open to the public, unsurprisingly reached maximum capacity the same day its online registration opened. But if you missed White on Friday, you can catch up with her tonight on TV Land during the Hot in Cleveland marathon starting at 8 p.m.

Celebri-Author Betty White Is Headed to The Zoo

Posted by Lorin Drinkard / Wednesday, May 16th, 2012

The Queen of Funny. / Photo courtesy: Shutterstock/ s_bukley

Forgot Cleveland. This week, Betty White will be heating things up by heading to the National Zoo for a book signing. On Friday, May 18, the eternally youthful 90-year-old will be promoting “Betty & Friends: My Life at the Zoo“ and “If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won’t.”

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Looky Who Made GQ’s Most Powerful List!

Posted by Lorin Drinkard / Tuesday, February 28th, 2012

That would be Eric Cantor.

Not Superman, but super awesome. / Photo credit: Shutterstock/ Olly

When GQ rolled out their annual 50 Most Powerful People in Washington list earlier this month, we had no doubt they would roundup a great slew of the District’s top movers and shakers. Our very own Virginia House Majority Leader clearly fits that bill.

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Seven Bits of Shopping News

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, November 28th, 2011

Hello, shoppers! Have I got news for you — a fabulous book signing, an open house with wondrous giveaways, an exclusive bridal trunk show, a jewelry trunk show/sale, savings on Santa pics and more!

On Thursday, Dec. 1, from 6-8 p.m., Vienna’s totally amazing Trousseau will host a book-signing event along with professional bra fittings by Chantelle Lingerie experts, champagne and hors d’oeuvres. Ali Cudby, author of “Busted! The Fab Foundations Guide to Bras That Fit, Flatter and Feel Fantastic” will be  the featured author. RSVP to kpalermo@chantelle.com.

On Saturday, Dec. 3, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Details Boutique in Haymarket will host a Holiday Open House. Go for the bubbly and bites; stay for the awesome swag! Giveaways have been generously provided by The John Medeiros Collection, Spinning Jewelry, Spartina 449, Kameleon Jewelry, Vera Bradley, Scarlett Robin and Brighton. Also, Blend Couture will create Custom Lipstick Bars for guests. RSVPs (include name and number of people) are not required, but are welcomed by Dec. 1 to Details@ChicPR.com.

Calling all blushing brides — Gainesville’s Blush Bridal Boutique will host a Justin Alexander Trunk Show from Friday, Dec. 9, through Sunday, Dec. 11. Shop Justin Alexander’s Spring 2012 line before it hits stores. The couture line is famous for its sweeping ball gowns, mermaid styles, ruffles, lace, beading, sweetheart necklines, fitted bodices, dramatic and flowing skirts, texture, delicate details, sheer bolero jackets, crystal-embellished belts and elegant sashes.

One of the gorgeous Justin Alexander gowns to be featured in the trunk show at Blush Bridal Boutique Dec. 9-11. (Photo courtesy of Blush Bridal Boutique)

Also on Saturday, Dec. 10, from noon to 4 p.m., BeautyFull Boutique in Alexandria will be hosting a Jewelry Trunk Show & Sale featuring local jewelry designers and vendors including Nicky B’s, Ellen Young and others. Light refreshments will also be served. Register here.

Speaking of stellar locally designed jewels, on Saturdays Dec. 10 and 17 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays Dec. 11 and 18 from noon to 5 p.m., Queen Bee Designs will host their Holiday Hive Trunk Show & Sale! If you can’t make that, they’re hosting a Mid-Week Open House where Early Bird/Mommy Shopping is every morning all week from Dec. 12 – 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Working Ladies/Socialite Shopping Weekends are Dec. 12-15 from 5-9 p.m. All jewelry and accessories will be offered at wholesale prices (up to 50 percent off)!

And even Santa loves a sale! From now until next Wednesday, Dec. 7, get $3 off photo packages and a free gift when you visit Santa in the Fashion Court at Tysons Corner. See prices here and Santa’s hours here. Santa will be at Tysons until Dec. 24.

Happy shopping!

–Lexie Ramage

PS. Check back soon for Natalie’s Cyber Monday Spectacular!

Live blogging this weekend from Manassas’s 150th Anniversary Reenactment

Posted by Lorin Drinkard / Thursday, July 21st, 2011

Thursday, July 21, 2011

As reenacters grab their muskets and prepare to fight back in time 150 years, to the first major battle of the Civil War – the Battle of Bull Run, we, too, are prepping for this weekend’s historic events and sending our own reinforcements to scout out the troops.

Photo Courtesy: Gail Weyant

Meet Sylvia Whitman, our guest blogger for Friday and Saturday’s battle reenactment coverage.

Sylvia Whitman is a writing specialist at Marymount University and freelance writer in Arlington, Virginia.  She has ancestors both Blue and Gray.  According to family lore, her great-grandmother was “rolled in the fire by Union soldiers”—a story that led to the discovery that her great-great grandfather, Washington Curran Whitthorne, served as a Confederate adjutant general for Tennessee.

In addition to the battle reenactment (9:30 a.m. to noon, Saturday and Sunday), there will be exhibits, demonstrations and book signings throughout the weekend.

If you can’t make to the battlefield yourself, no worries – Sylvia will be posting and reporting back to our very own Game Plan blog with insider details and interviews straight from the trenches.

For a full list of the anniversary events and how to get to the battlefield, check out the Manassas Bull Run website.

- Lorin Drinkard

Discover Finder and his latest series

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, August 17th, 2009

Joseph Finder’s one of the leading voices when it comes to books filled with crackerjack intelligence dudes and espionage aplenty (and lots of Washington intrigue, which we Northern Virginians are familiar with), and he’s started a new series starring Nick Heller, former Special Forces operative and ace investigator. In Finder’s latest, “Vanished,” Finder’s brother has, well, vanished in Georgetown and he teams with his nephew, comes to grips with his corrupt dad and takes on a nefarious corporation. You gotta love nefarious corporations. Finder is coming to town to sign copies of the book at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Baileys Crossroads Borders.

Those who are interested in breaking down fiction, or even just writing some, may want to stop by Politics and Prose downtown at 7 p.m. Wednesday, when James Wood will be chatting about his collection of essays, “How Fiction Works.” The store also hosts local author Eugenia Kim at 7 p.m. Tuesday when she’ll be there promoting her debut novel “The Calligrapher’s Daughter,” about her mother’s struggles in Japanese-occupied Korea.

There’s been all these shakeups in Gotham City lately, with a new Batman and Robin and the town going to heck with Arkham’s finest running amok, so why not add a new Batgirl to the mix? She makes her debut this week in her own monthly title, and the Man of Steel’s got one heck of a problem in the form of Black Lantern Superman when the ring-bearing corpse shows up in Smallville in “Blackest Night: Superman.” Daredevil celebrates his 500th issue by continuing his arc with Kingpin and Lady Bullseye, “Punisher Noir” (written by the fantastic Frank Tieri) looks great with the gun-toting vigilante targeting Dutch Schultz, and the first two books from the Vertigo Crime line debut: Ian Rankin’s “Dark Entries” (starring John Constantine) and Brian Azzarello’s “Filthy Rich.”

“The Time-Traveler’s Wife” debuted in theaters on Friday, so if you’ve seen it, what’s better: the movie or the book? Let me know in the comments.

They’re not booing. They’re saying, ‘Duuuuuune.’

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Monday, August 10th, 2009

Frank Herbert’s 1965 vaunted space opera “Dune” and its five sequels are close to many a sci-fi fan’s heart, and the series spawned the 1984 David Lynch film (you know, the one with Sting) and many other pop-culture adaptations over the years. Herbert died in 1986, but his son Brian and fellow scribe Kevin J. Anderson are keeping the sandy political and ecological epic going with a set of prequels and, currently, a set of novels set in between dear old dad’s tomes. The latest, “The Winds of Dune,” is a direct sequel to “Dune Messiah,” and Brian Herbert is coming to town for a signing event at the Baileys Crossroads Borders at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. The store is also hosting ace crime novelist Linwood Barclay at 7:30 Thursday, who will be promoting his latest thriller, “Fear the Worst,” about a single father and the daughter who mysteriously disappears. And Democratic types will want to hit up Politics and Prose downtown at 4 p.m. Thursday since Howard Dean, former DNC Chairman, will be chatting up his new book, “Howard Dean’s Prescription for Real Healthcare Reform.”

The debut issue of “Blackest Night” last month was fantastic, and so should the second issue be this week. It’s getting pretty crazy with the Martian Manhunter, the Dibnys and (possibly) Hawkman and Hawkgirl being turned into Black Lanterns. Who’s next? I can’t wait to see, because Geoff Johns is writing some magnificent stuff. Batman gets his own “Blackest Night” miniseries, and he’s teaming up with Deadman to deal with some resurrected people from his own past. Also debuting is “Adventure Comics” featuring Superboy and Starman from the Legion of Superheroes, and “The Marvels Project,” a series breaking out of Marvel’s 70th anniversary this year that tells the origins of the Marvel Universe.

Better fantasy epic: “Dune” or “The Lord of the Rings”? As always, let me know in the comments!

The inherent zen of a motorcycle shop

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

I’m back! And so is Matthew B. Crawford, who’s both philosopher and Richmond motorcycle shop owner. He worked at a D.C. think tank for some years before opening up his shop and writing the tome, “Shop Class as Soulcraft,” and he’ll be signing copies of this biography/self-help book about finding more of yourself through manual labor at the Politics and Prose downtown at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The store also hosts Washington Post writers Dan Balz and Haynes Johnson at 7 p.m. Wednesday — they’ll be discussing their coverage and analysis of the Obama/McCain presidential election that went into creating “The Battle for America 2008.”

Being a comic geek, one of the events I’m most looking forward to is on Saturday, when the very talented Ben Templesmith stops by Laughing Ogre Comics in Lansdowne for a signing between 12 and 4 p.m. He’s one of the best horror comics around, co-creating “30 Days of Night” with Reston native Steve Niles and hatching both “Welcome to Hoxford” and “Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse,” which he writes as well. He also co-created and does the art for Warren Ellis’ fantastic “Fell.” His style is unmistakably detailed and colorful, so definitely be sure to check this out since he’ll be signing anything and everything.

And while you’re in the comics mood, be sure to pick up the debut issue of the new “Doom Patrol” series. The “world’s strangest superheroes” have gone through many different incarnations since 1963, but this time could be better than ever since the book’s courtesy of writer Keith Giffen. Also out this week: We fnd out what happened to the Masters of Evil when the Scarlet Witch went bonkers in a “House of M” special; “Luke Cage Noir,” featuring the great period art of Falls Church’s own Shawn Martinbrough; and everybody’s searching for Steve Rogers in the second issue of “Captain America: Reborn,” while Steve is doing his best “Lost” impression and is somewhere else in time.

It’s now August! What’s the one summer read you still need to get to before Labor Day? Let me know in the comments.

California dreamin’

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

Hey all! I’m off to San Diego for the better part of the next two weeks, but I wanted to fill you in on what to do in the meantime. Because I know you’re all lost without me. (I kid, I kid.) So…

Go to: Sarah Dunant’s signing at Politics and Prose downtown at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 29. She’s presenting “The Sacred Heart,” a 16th-century historical fiction revolving around a convent and perfect for anybody who was a fan of her “The Birth of Venus.”

Read: “Amazing Spider-Man” No. 600. It’s a milestone issue for Spidey, and to celebrate, Doctor Octopus is back! All eight of those mechanized arms will be in full effect, as will an appearance by Daredevil, a wedding the Webhead never saw coming and a return of someone we haven’t seen in a while. All that and Stan Lee, too.

Watch: One of three movies this week, depending on your interests (and age): the Disney family adventure “G-Force,” starring a bunch of guinea pigs who are crazy good at espionage; the chick flick “The Ugly Truth” pitting Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler in a war of the sexes; or “Orphan,” a horror movie featuring one of the creepiest little girls since those twins in “The Shining.”

Buy: “Watchmen” Director’s Cut on Blu-ray. OK, you can get the standard edition, but this is the kind of thing that makes you upgrade your current home entertainment system. While the movie was good in the theater, Zack Snyder’s director’s cut is 30 minutes longer, features more stuff cut from the Alan Moore masterpiece, and looks INSANE in high definition. Seriously, go now. Turn off the computer. It’ll still be here when you get back.

What are your feelings on standard editions vs. super-duper extended extreme editions of movies on DVD? Let me know what you prefer in the comments, and here’s your video of the next two weeks:

It’s time to party like it’s 1959

Posted by The Editorial Desk / Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

Instead of writing about 1958 or 1960, Fred Kaplan has picked to write about the many culture-defining events of the the year in-between in “1959: The Year Everything Changed.” In it, he argues that ’59 was the year that kicked off the Sixties and a period of sociological, cultural and political changes. A lot of interesting people make appearances, from Malcolm X and Miles Davis to John F. Kennedy and Lenny Bruce, in this intriguing tome, which Kaplan will be presenting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Politics and Prose downtown.

The store also hosts another couple of events for those interested in world history: Seth Jones will be speaking at 7 p.m. Wednesday on his book about the many world powers that have tasted defeat by invading Afghanistan, “In the Graveyard of Empires,” and Matthew Aid stops by at 7 p.m. Thursday to chat about his chronicling of the National Security Agency, “The Secret Sentry.”

A little bit closer to home, popular chick-lit author Jennifer Weiner will be in town at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Baileys Crossroads Borders and signing copies of her new book, “Best Friends Forever,” a female-friendly story about two childhood pals reconnecting after years apart thanks to unforeseen circumstances.

Many movie and book fans have been awaiting this day for a while, and on Tuesday at midnight, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” finally hits theaters. It was supposed to get released last November, but was pushed to this summer, much to fans’ chagrin.

The sixth book was by far my favorite of the J.K. Rowling series, as it delved deeper into Voldemort’s past and showed how Dumbledore was involved, introduced the all-important seven horcruxes, and allowed Harry and his pals to grow up a little bit more. If the new movie’s even half as good as the book, it’ll probably the best one yet. Director David Yates is back in the saddle, too, which bodes well for the movie franchise after doing a spot-on job with “Order of the Phoenix.” (Of course, I don’t think anyone’s going to come close to what Alphonso Cuaran did with the third film, “Prisoner of Azkaban.”)

So what’s your fave Potter book and movie, and do they match? Let me know in the comments.