TRADING SPACES? When the Clintons (Bill, Hillary and Chelsea) recently came to Little Rock for the 10th anniversary of the opening of the Clinton Presidential Center -- the events like those a decade ago -- were accented with stars. The big surprise? The return of superstar Barbra Streisand, one of fewer than 20 entertainers who've won all four major entertainment awards -- an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony. She was photographed chatting with the former president at a Saturday luncheon at South on Main. Streisand's Clinton connection? She and Clinton's mother, Virginia Kelley, who died in January 1994, had become fast friends.
Meanwhile, days earlier, Little Rock native and current resident Bill Whitworth appeared in the online version of the New York Social Diary. Whitworth, a former associate editor of The New Yorker and editor-in-chief of Atlantic Monthly, years ago returned to his hometown, where he now edits books by high-profile folks (such as British media baron Conrad Black's biography on Richard Nixon and his history of the United States).
Whitworth, with son Matt and daughter Katherine (former editor of Arkansas Life magazine), was in New York earlier this month attending Academy Award-winning actress and director Anjelica Huston's party for the release of the second half of her autobiography, Watch Me, which picks up with her life in Los Angeles in 1973. Whitworth edited this book and Huston's first, A Story Lately Told. Other guests included actor Matthew Broderick, ABC News presenter Diane Sawyer and Sawyer's husband, director Mike Nichols. Nichols died Wednesday and also was among that elite group who've won all four major entertainment awards.
NATIVE SON SHINES: The Rev. Al Green of Memphis, a '70s chart-topping soul singer and Forrest City native, will be honored next month at the 37th annual Kennedy Center Honors, which recognizes a lifetime of excellence in the performing arts. He'll be honored along with actor Tom Hanks, comedian Lily Tomlin, musician Sting (formerly of The Police) and ballerina Patricia McBride.
REDNECK RIVIERA: Tommy Theis, 22, a firefighter from Blytheville, is in the cast of Party Down South 2, an hour-long reality show airing at 8 p.m. Thursdays on CMT. The 12-episode season follows "this rowdy group of eight as they arrive in Biloxi, Miss., ready to shotgun the summer." A news release promises "mud pits, hook-ups, hangovers and a whole lot of drama." Theis' bio notes he "has so much pride for his home state that he even has a tattoo on his arm that reads 'Arkansas Bred'" and he "never misses a day at the gym. He spends hours working on his physique, so he can impress all the ladies with his ripped abs and toned arms. He likes his women hot, and no matter where he is, it's always a party as long as he has a beer in his hands."
Contact Linda S. Haymes at (501) 399-3636 or lhaymes@arkansasonline.com
SundayMonday on 11/23/2014