Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

Karole Armitage's Armitage Gone! dance company held its annual benefit last night at Capitale. The honorees at the Think Punk! event, Jeff Koons and Earle Mack, celebrated with their wives, Justine and Carole, as well as with attendees like Rufus Wainwright (left), Andre Balazs, Calvin Klein, Fabiola Beracasa, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson, Nicole Miller, Lauren duPont, Allison Sarofim, Peter Marino, Mary Boone, David Salle, Michael Musto, Dominique Levy, Sandy Brant, Tom Sachs, Todd Eberle, Francesco Clemente, Michele Zalopany, and Jamie Niven. [PMc, VF, WWD]More

A bevy of models turned out on Wednesday night to celebrate Australian photographer Russell James' new book at the Stephan Weiss studio. Host Donna Karan and guests like Alan Cumming, Desiree Gruber, Ally Hilfiger, Douglas Hannant, Veronica Webb, and Josh Bernstein mingled with models like Alessandra Ambrosio (left), Angela Lindvall, Erin Wasson, Doutzen Kroes, Brooklyn Decker, Noemie Lenoir, Julie Henderson, Zuzana Gregorova, and Oluchi. [PMc, Wireimage, FWD]More

The Villency Emerging Fashion Program hosted a dinner at Bobo on Wednesday night to honor Elise Overland and threeASFOUR designers Adi, Ange and Gabi. Eric Villency and wife Kimberly Guilfoyle welcomed a collection of fashion and social fixtures, including Zani Gugelmann (left), Byrdie Bell, Daniel Benedict and Andrew Saffir, Ann Dexter-Jones, Richard Johnson, Hope Atherton, Kate Schelter, Maggie Betts, Horacio Silva, Jessica Joffe, Glenn O'Brien, Ferebee Bishop, Gigi Stone, Tom Sachs, Serena Merriman, Poppy de Villeneuve, and Stephanie LaCava. [PMc, FWD, VF, GoaG]More

» The Liv Tyler-hosted party for Hearts on Fire diamonds at the Rose Bar was the hottest ticket in one of the busiest social weeks of the year: Leonardo DiCaprio, Alexandra & Theodora Richards (who DJed), Keith Richards, Elizabeth Banks, Catherine Keener, Mena Suvari, Dave Navarro, Ellen von Unwerth, Tara Subkoff, Alan Cumming, Tinsley Mortimer, Adrian Grenier, Sean Avery, Emma Roberts, Monet Mazur, Richie Rich, Ingrid Sischy, Jamie Burke, Russell Simmons, Lauren Santo Domingo, Diego Garcia, Andrew Saffir and Daniel Benedict all stopped by. [The Daily/Paper]

» Too many people wanted to squeeze onto the Mini Rooftop for the V magazine party on Wednesday night, leading to a scrum outside the velvet rope. Those who made it through and caught a performance by Swedish popstar Lykke Li: Agyness Deyn, Irina Lazareanu, Barbara Bush, Doutzen Kroes, Hilary Rhoda, Joy Bryant, Leigh Lezark, Fabiola Beracasa, Sean Avery, Rachel Zoe, Cecilia Dean, Anne Slowey, Natasha Poly, Raquel Zimmerman, Christopher Bollen, and Derek Blasberg. [The Daily, NYO, Style.com]  More

1) Piaget launched its new Limelight Paris-New York Collection last night with a party at The Loft & Garden at Rockefeller Center, where Leighton Meester and Emmy Rossum (left) mingled with Liv Tyler, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Becki Newton, Mena Suvari, Joe Zee, Lisa Anastos, Lydia Fenet, Allison Aston, Adam Lippes, Roopal Patel, Zoe Kravitz, Philippe Leopold-Metzger, Geoffrey Bradfield, Gillian Miniter, Kate Schelter, Meredith Melling Burke, and Paul Sevigny. [FWD, PMc] 

2) Elie Tahari unveiled his spring 2009 accessories collection with a party last night. Guests included Carson Kressley, Dennis Basso, Meredith Melling Burke, Susan Kellogg, Roopal Patel, Linda Fargo, Simon van Kempen, Alex McCord, Rob Banning, and Basil Corbett, who sipped champagne and previewed Tahari's collection in the courtyard garden. [FWD, PMc]More

1) A screening of Bottle Shock, a dramedy about when California beat France in a wine taste test, was hosted by Michael Dunbar of Domaine Chandon and Newton Vineyard on Sunday night at the Southampton Cinema. The film's stars Alan Rickman, Eliza Dushku, and Bill Pullman, along with Bronson van Wyck, Andrew Fry, Devorah Rose, Elizabeth Lindemann, Jill, John, and Whitney Fairchild, Jeanne Greenberg and Nick Rohatyn, and Bettina Zilkha, watched the film followed by food and wine at Savanna's. [PMc]More

(1) The 9th annual Art For Life Benefit took place on Saturday at Russell Simmons' East Hampton house. Despite tickets not selling out as fast as usual, the event played host to Aretha Franklin, Christy Turlington, Lorraine Bracco, Soledad O'Brien, David Paterson, Diddy, Padma Lakshmi, Brett Ratner, LA Reid, the cast of Real Housewives of New York, Al Roker, Kelly Bensimon, Alina Cho, Simon de Pury, and Porschla Coleman—whose break up with Simmons, judging by their behavior, is either incredibly amicable or no longer in effect. [PMc]

(2) Sara and Patrick Handreke hosted a screening of the new rom-com Ghost Town in East Hampton. Guests included Arden Wohl, Bennett Miller, Peggy Siegal, the film's star Ricky Gervais and Jane Fallon, George Stephanopoulos and Alexandra Wentworth, and Helen and Tim Schifter. [PMc] More

• After an uncharacteristic bit of good PR, Harvey Weinstein is behaving in comfortingly predictable ways, haranguing his wife and firing people. The creative director of Halston, the label bought by Weinstein a year ago, has been ousted after designing one collection. [WWD]
• As scary as it sounds, in addition to Mark, Charlotte, and Samantha, Ann Dexter-Jones has more children who are now getting old enough to annoy you: Annabelle and Alexander can be seen in Charlotte's Fall campaign video. [style file]
• Heidi Klum confirms to Conan that her legs are insured for different amounts, because one of them has a scar. Some would suspect her boobs also have scars, but we'd never be so rude. [Pop Crunch via The Cut]
  

• Seasoned jetsetter Diane von Furstenberg plans to take the angst out of packing with her new cruise collection La Petite Valise: "Packing is the key to everything. It can be painful to do it properly and keep it light, but afterwards you'll be so happy, so proud." It also helps if you can afford to travel with an entourage of eight assistants. [Telegraph]
• Ed Westwick aka Chuck Bass is in talks to design a clothing line. That'll silence the gay rumors. [Fashionista]
• Derek Lam sold a majority stake in his company to the Labelux group, which means expansion (and a freestanding store on Crosby Street) is in the works. [UK Vogue]

1) Rory and Elie Tahari hosted a bash at their beachfront house for God's Love We Deliver: 400 guests including Simon Doonan (above center) and Jonathan Adler, Martha Stewart, Arnold Scaasi, Kelly Klein, Debbie Bancroft, Richard Mishaan, Tory Burch, Kyle MacLachlan (above left) and Desiree Gruber (above right), Olivia Chantecaille, Dennis Basso, Melissa Berkelhammer, Gigi Mortimer, Karen Pearl, and Tiffany Dubin raised $1.3 million by bidding on auction prizes including lunch with Blaine Trump and Joan Rivers at Le Cirque. [Hamptons.com/Dan's Hamptons] More