Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

The Tinz Keeps It Classy | The latest (and possibly most shameless) publicity stunt designed to gin up publicity for Tinsley Mortimer's reality show has her making out with former American Idol contestant Constantine Maroulis. [GoaG]

The path from socialite to reality TV star isn't an easy one. A pilot rarely leads to a full series. And even if it does, there's no telling what may be required to stir up the necessary amount of drama. (See here and here for a recent example of the lengths some will go.) That certainly hasn't stopped every other member of the social set from seeking out a TV deal, of course. To get a little perspective on the socialite-reality TV madness, Douglas Marshall took a few minutes to chat with power publicist Alison Brod and socialite Emma Snowdon-Jones at last night's Solerno-sponsored screening of Robin Baker Leacock's new documentary, A Passion for Giving, at the Four Seasons. More

Have you noticed that more and more social scenesters, models, and offspring of the rich and famous have morphed into DJs? It's a trend, as W points out: 

DJing—and the visibility that goes with it—has replaced handbag designing as the go-to profession for It girls and boys. The flock of hobbyist DJs for hire includes A-list models Jessica Stam and Agyness Deyn, actor Leo Fitzpatrick, artist Nate Lowman and rock-royalty spawn Alexandra Richards. They work fashion shows and store openings and have residencies, or regular gigs, at nightclubs—often based on the fact that a promotable name brings press and the right crowd to a venue.

Bad Kitty Cat | As if working for socialite and plastic surgery victim Jocelyne Wildenstein and being forced to face her every day in person wasn't bad enough, a group of workers who helped renovate Wildenstein's apartment staged a protest outside her apartment building yesterday over the $13,300 in back wages they claim she owes them. [NYDN]

Socialite Tinsley Mortimer may have a reality TV show in the works—it's called Empire State, by the way—but many of her society friends have been trying to steer clear of it. Last week, word emerged that the show's producers had found a couple of randoms to serve as regulars, including Hannah Bronfman (the daughter of Edgar Bronfman Jr.) and Paul Johnson-Calderon, a guy best known for stealing a purse earlier this year. But there's further evidence that producers are having a tough time finding people willing to associate themselves with the show.More

According to the Post, ex-publicist/alleged hacker Ali Wise doesn't have too many friends these days:

Pals of former Dolce & Gabbana mouthpiece Ali Wise -- who used her access to designer swag to leverage friendships on both coasts -- are rushing from her side like rats from a sinking ship after she was charged with hacking into female rivals' voice mails.

But clearly not all of Ali's pals are jumping ship. An unidentified friend sent along these thoughts on the case last night:More

If you'd marked down October 19 as the day when socialite/publicist Ali Wise would finally appear in court to face charges she allegedly hacked into another socialite's voicemail earlier this year, please note that the prosecutors asked for a little more time to prepare their case today and the judge adjourned it to January 14, 2010. See you then!

The CW is moving ahead with its reality show about Tinsley Mortimer, The Hollywood Reporter reports today. (The network has ordered eight half-hour episodes of the show that will "explore the lives of the young and wealthy.") When Douglas Marshall caught up with The Tinz earlier this week, she didn't want to talk about the production crew following her every move. In fact, she really didn't want to talk to us at all, since our coverage of her in the past hasn't always been entirely flattering. Once we assured her that we wouldn't ask her any personal questions, she graciously agreed to give us thirty seconds of her time. We made the most of it. More

Tinsley Loves Kids, Possibly Princes Too | Tinsley Mortimer has returned to NYC after a brief jaunt across the pond to hit up London Fashion Week. (She's now "living between New York and Knightsbridge," she explained to WWD earlier this week.) She rushed back to NYC yesterday, though, so she could make an appearance at the annual New Yorkers for Children gala at Cipriani 42nd Street last night. More

As hard as it may be to imagine, rumors have been floating around in recent days that social queen Tinsley Mortimer and her estranged husband, Topper, are now looking to reconcile. Crazy, huh? The evidence in favor of such an outlandish theory: Tinsley's German prince hasn't been seen by his new girlfriend's side at the dozens of events that the Tinz has attended during Fashion Week, but she has allegedly been seen in the company of Topper since returning from her European jaunt. The evidence against: Despite a report in New York a couple of weeks ago suggesting that Topper "hasn't entirely abandoned " the idea that Tinsley will come back to him, he's been "making the rounds" with Vogue editor Valerie Boster in recent days. Then there's this little dispatch from a tipster today:More

Anna Wintour lives in a lovely townhouse in the Village. But it doesn't come anywhere close to the new home that one her underlings, Vogue contributing editor Lauren Santo Domingo, is moving into with her husband Andrés Santo Domingo. And while the blonde Voguette and the Latin American heir didn't end up snagging the big discount that had been reported in the press, the house they're moving into is quite a sight. More

Ali Wise Returns to Fashion Week | Ali Wise, the socialite/ex-Dolce & Gabanna publicist accused of hacking into the voicemail of interior designer Nina Freudenberger, hasn't been completely MIA since her arrest back in July. But she has been keeping a lower profile in recent weeks, supposedly because she's been looking to "protect her supportive parents from public humiliation," according to Page Six magazine. She made an exception on Friday, though, when she turned up at the Fashion Week show of her good friend Charlotte Ronson hidden behind dark sunglasses. (Somewhat ironically, she held up a copy of The Daily with the headline "How You Cope!" for a passing photographer.) A couple of photos of Wise's return to Fashion Week below:More

In Defense of Ali | The new issue of Page Six Magazine (which is now back as a quarterly) has an update on Ali Wise, the socialite/publicist who was arrested back in July for allegedly hacking into the voicemail of socialite/interior decorator Nina Freudenberger. More

Teary-Eyed Topper | Social queen Tinsley Mortimer certainly seems to have moved on with her life: She's spending much of her time in London these days, happily dating a German prince, and now embarking on plans to conquer the world of fashion. Her estranged husband Topper hasn't been quite as lucky, according to Spencer Morgan, who writes about the unraveling of the "haute-Wasp fairy tale" in this week's New York: "Where Tinsley is blithe and carefree, Topper is tormented. He's become a full-time smoker. He's lost weight. He wakes up at precisely 3:25 every morning and plays over and over the reality show his life became. Still, he hasn't entirely abandoned the idea that she'll come back. 'I love my wife' is all he'll tell me." [NYM, previously]

Perhaps you've been wondering where Tinsley Mortimer has been the last couple of months? The New York socialite has been spending a good deal of her time in Europe now that she's a soon-to-be divorcée and the new man in her life, Prince Casimir Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn (or "Cassie), lives in London. So how are things going with the 33-year-old "man-about-town" who is descended from German royals, even though he looks more like a Greek shipping heir, or maybe the spoiled son of a Eastern European tyrant? And what happened with her ex, Topper Mortimer? Luckily, the Tinz sat down with London's Evening Standard and shared a few details. More