Barbara Davis, center, with Gail Johnson, left, president of The Guild of the Children’s Diabetes Foundation at Denver and High Hopes Award recipient Arlene Hirschfeld. Photo by Steve Peterson, Special to The Denver Post
What: High Hopes Carousel Ball
When: Sept. 26, 2009
Where: Sheraton Denver Downtown
Result: $800,000 for the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes
Chaircouples: Shawn and Deirdre Hunter, Stacy and Jeff Robinson, Julie and Steve Roitman
Starring: Larry King, Shawn King, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds and Earth, Wind & Fire
Honoring: Arlene Hirschfeld
You can never go home again. Unless your name is Barbara Davis and you’re returning to your old stomping grounds to oversee the rebirth of the gala that put Denver on the map, the one and only Carousel Ball.
Well, maybe not same exact Carousel Ball that Davis and her late husband, Marvin, started here 31 years ago. That one starred such legendary entertainers as Frank Sinatra, Lucille Ball and Sammy Davis Jr. and brought in political figures that included presidents, ambassadors and other world leaders.
But it did sparkle, with about 1,000 guests turning out to honor Arlene Hirschfeld and be entertained by CNN talk show host Larry King and his wife, Shawn; Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, and Earth, Wind & Fire.
The Davises (he made his fortune in oil and property development; later, his holdings included ownership of 20th Century Fox, Pebble Beach, the Beverly Hills Hotel and Aspen Skiing Co) established the Carousel Ball as a fundraiser for the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes. It was formed after their daughter, Dana, was diagnosed with diabetes.
The family moved to Beverly Hills in the late 1980s, taking the ball with them. They re-named it Carousel of Hope, and it continues as an every-other-year success that draws the cream of Hollywood. It was Denver’s loss, to be sure.
“We did the first three Carousel Balls in this hotel,” Barbara Davis told us on Saturday. “It was the Hilton at the time.” One of her most vivid memories is that of Lucille Ball’s husband Gary Morton making every effort to solicit bids on a Rolex watch that was part of the auction. “He may have thought he was getting bids from the audience, but he was actually bidding against himself. And he wound up buying it.”
In previous years, when the High Hopes Carousel Ball was known as the High Hopes Tribute Dinner, Davis was accompanied by one or more of her five children, usually daughters Nancy and Dana. This year, Nancy had a commitment she was obligated to honor and Dana was in Texas for trunk showings of the line of shoes she has designed.
“They’re like the Taryn Rose brand, stylish but very comfortable,” Davis said, adding that they’re also well-received. “She has them in 70 stores.”
The Davis sisters each donated to the benefit’s silent auction. Dana gave a $450 ced a triple emerald certificate good toward a pair of her shoes, with the opportunity to name a future design; Nancy contributed a triple emerald choker, set in white gold and diamonds, from her Peace & Love Jewelry collection.
The Sheraton ballroom, where a beef filet and salmon dinner was served, was decorated in shades of pink by a design team from Bouquets. Owners BJ Dyer and Guenther Vogt had their hands full that night: They’d just returned from Phoenix, where they received their second Marketer of the Year award (an industry record) from the Society of American Florists, and in addition to High Hopes, they also were in charge of decorating the Seawell Ballroom for Beatles Bash, an event taking place simultaneously at the DCPA.
“It’s too bad both of these fun events were scheduled for the same night,” Dyer said, “but on the plus side, it’s a testament to Denver’s strength in supporting worthy causes.”
Guests at High Hopes included Gov. Bill and Jeannie Ritter; Mayor John Hickenlooper; Dr. Jules Amer, the pediatrician who diagnosed Dana Davis with diabetes; Dr. George Eisenbarth, executive director of the Barbara Davis Center; former Colorado first lady Frances Owens; John and Anna Sie; Michelle Sie Whitten; Larry Mizel; Norm Brownstein; Sharon Magness Blake and Ernie Blake; CBS4′s Ed Green, who was given the title “host,” but was more of a master of ceremonies, the descriptor reserved for Larry King; and attorney Doug Tisdale, who called the live auction.
Tisdale, there with girlfriend Lynne Hamstra, had no trouble coaxing four- and five-figure bids for the live auction items that included a trip to London to see the Jonas Brothers in concert and a visit to Los Angeles for the 2010 Carousel of Hope Ball. He also blew the roof off the paddle-raiser segment by landing $100,000 in pledges when the goal had been to raise $30,000.
Pam Diamond resisted any urge to participate in the bidding, and why not? She’d accessorized her black velvet evening gown with Harry Winston diamond earrings purchased at an earlier Carousel Ball.
Carol Roger, a Realtor who’d sold the Davises’ Devonshire Heights home following their move to Southern California, recalled an auction item she’d purchased at one of the LA Carousel Balls. “It was a round of golf with Sidney Poitier and O.J. Simpson that I’d gotten for my husband. But before I could collect on it …”
Roger’s “date” for High Hopes was Vivian Guzofsky, a past chair of one of the Denver Carousel Balls. “People come out of the woodwork every time Barbara comes to town,” Guzofsky said as the looked out at the crowd filling the Sheraton ballroom.
Familiar faces included Nancy and Dr. Les Lockspeiser (she’s the artist who designed the original Carousel Ball logo that is still in use today); Katie Stapleton and Patrick Coulson; Sue Cannon; Jordon and Essie Perlmutter; Warren and Ruth Toltz; Ted and Marsha Alpert; Tom and Cydney Marsico; Ted and Cindy Halaby; Larry and Marilyn Atler; Skip and Nancy Miller; Fred and Roxanne Vierra; Mary and Dr. Richard Krugman; David and Bonnie Mandarich; Peter and Cathy Culshaw; Al and Jamie Angelich; Dr. Michael Salem; Sheila and Dr. Gary Gutterman; David and Ricki Rest; Rick and Sheila Bugdanowitz; Howard and Susan Noble; Ed and Lee Palmer Everding; Bob and Kalleen Malone; Dick and Marcia Robinson; John and Lisa Robinson; Mark and Ellen Robinson Schwartz; Sharon Kamen; Pam and Dr. John Grossman; Evan and Evi Makovsky; Craig Fleishman and Layne Hunt; Don and Mary Lou Kortz; silent auction chairs Gretchen Pope, Lisa Corley, Sally Frerichs and Jan Rosen; Melly Kinnard; Steve and Robin Chotin; Paul Esserman; Allied Jewish Federation chief Doug Seserman and his wife, Susan; Denver City Council members Carla Madison and Charlie Brown; and Diane Huttner, who, like Barbara Davis, had her hair done for the occasion by James Mucker of Salon Utopia.
Later, Davis would further endear herself to the crowd by observing: “Beauty isn’t found only in cities where movies are made. It’s abundant in cities filled with people who have kind hearts, fantastic cities like Denver.”
Arlene Hirschfeld, honored for her years of service to both the community and the Barbara Davis Center, was introduced by her husband of 43 years, Barry, and was accompanied by son and daughter-in-law Hayden and Elana Hirschfeld.
Hayden and Elana recently made his parents first-time grandparents, with the birth of their son, Emery William. The baby is grandchild No. 6 for Elana’s parents, Bob and Diane Hochstadt, also were at High Hopes, sharing a table with Dr. Eisenbarth and his wife, Frieda.
Joanne Davidson: 303-809-1314 or jdavidson@denverpost.com
