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Richard Nixon's Gold-Inlaid Browning Shotgun at Auction

In addition to Ernest Hemingway's safari hunting rifle that we wrote about on Wednesday, a rare gold-inlaid Browning 12-gauge automatic shotgun that was presented to president Richard Nixon in 1970 will be offered at James D. Julia Auctioneers' Important Firearms sale in Fairfield, Maine on March 14. The gun, estimated at $50,000 – $75,000, is also historically significant in that it was the two millionth Browning shotgun made. At one time destined for the Smithsonian, Nixon returned the gun to Browning Arms where it resided in their archives until it was given to the National Shooting Sports Foundation.

Gallery: Richard Nixon's Browning Shotgun

Tags: American presidents, Browning, browning+guns, browningguns, celebrity, Ernest Hemingway, firearm, gold, gun, hunting, James D. Julia, Maine, politics, presidents, Richard Nixon, rifle, shooting, shotgun

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Ernest Hemingway's African Safari Rifle Up for Auction

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Sports, Men's Style, The Classicist

Ernest Hemingway's African Safari Rifle Up for Auction

A remarkable double-barreled elephant gun made by London's Westley Richards in 1913 that belonged to Ernest Hemingway and was used by the famed author on safari in Africa is being offered for auction on March 14. The impressive .577-caliber Nitro Express, the starring lot at James D. Julia Auctioneers' Important Firearms sale in Fairfield, Maine, comes with the original case and accessories and is expected to fetch between $150,000 – $200,000. The 16-pound rifle, engraved with rhinos and tigers and designed to bag the biggest game, has its own chapter in the new book Hemingway's Guns: The Sporting Arms of Ernest Hemingway.

Gallery: Ernest Hemingway's Safari Gun

Tags: Africa, auction, author, celebrity, celebrity auction, celebrity guns, Ernest Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway Africa, Ernest Hemingway guns, Ernest Hemingway safari, ernest+hemingway+guns, ernest+hemingway+on+safari, ernesthemingwayguns, ernesthemingwayonsafari, firearms, gun, gunsmith, Hemingway, Hemingway gun, Hemingway safari, Hemingway shotgun, hemingway+rifle, hemingwayrifle, hunting, Key West, Maine, rifle, Royal Warrant, safari, shooting, shotgun, sporting, sporting style, UK, Westley Richards, writer

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VW Closing Purchase of Porsche. Still Eyeing Alfa-Romeo

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

German automaker Volkswagen this week is expected to complete its long-planned $4.5 billion acquisition of luxury sports car maker Porsche. When the ink is dry, it will formally add Porsche to a brand stable that includes Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Bugatti, as well as mass-market brands Volkswagen, Skoda and Seat.

And VW AG supervisory board chairman, billionaire Ferdinand Piech (grandson of Porsche founder Ferdinand Porsche) isn't through trying to add premium and luxury brands. At the Geneva Motor Show this week Piech reiterated his interest in acquiring Italian brand Alfa Romeo, owned by Fiat, despite public statements by Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne that the marque is not for sale.

Tags: alfa romeo, Aventador, bentley, Bugatti, Ferdinand Piech, Fiat, Geneva Motor Show, Lamborghini, Porsche, Sergio Marchionne, Volkswagen AG

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RSVIP: Notes From the Academy Awards Red Plush and More

by Jeffrey Slonim (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events

Dateline Hollywood: At the Golden Globes this year, Julianne Moore stopped on the red carpet to inform RSVIP that Bruce Cohen, the co-producer of this season's Academy Awards, who won an Oscar himself for producing "American Beauty," wanted this reporter on the red carpet at his Oscars. "He's really trying," she said.

The Backstory: I won't give the year, but in High School, back in Falls Church, Virginia, Cohen introduced me to his close friend, then known as Julie (nee Smith), a sweet redheaded sophomore. We went on exactly one date, Homecoming. Bruce was always the hyper-organized one, who made all the posters for class elections. At Yale, we were in the same film class. As RSVIP practically lives on the red carpet, I have run into both him and Julie (now Julianne Moore) every few months over the past 20 years.

And on Oscar Sunday, Februry 27, true to his word, Cohen invited RSVIP inside the world's largest red-carpet media bubble.

Tags: academy awards 2010, christian bale, elton john, florence and the machine, florence welch, jennifer hudson, jennifer lawrence, melissa leo, michelle williams, oscars 2011, rsvip

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Warren Buffett To Turn Jewelry Salesman For One Day

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Jewelry, Wealth

For one day only, financial guru Warren Buffett will be taking on a new role, jewelry salesperson. The Berkshire Hathaway will be behind the counter at Borsheims in Omaha, Nebraska during Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders' Weekend. You can buy your jewelry directly from Mr. Buffett on Sunday afternoon, May 1 at the Borhsheims store. Borsheims is a Berkshire Hathaway company. In a release, Borsheims President & CEO Susan Jacques said, "We are thrilled and flattered that Warren wants to come and sell at our store. I'm sure he'll be a record-setting salesman within a few minutes of being on the sales floor!" Given the fact that his charity lunches go for millions, I'm guessing there will be a line out the door.

As the video below explains, the Buffett family in Omaha goes back for generations explaining why, although he has the means to live anywhere in the world, Warren Buffett has always chosen to remain close to home. Buffett's success as one of the world's top financial minds has turned the annual shareholder's weekend for Berkshire Hathaway into a well-attended event bringing the world to Omaha each year. It has become the Super Bowl of shareholder meetings with major media and thousands of shareholders in attendance.

[via JCK Online]

Tags: berkshire hathaway, berkshire hathaway shareholders meeting, omaha, warren buffett

RSVIP: Oscar Countdown: 26th Film Independent Spirit Awards

by Jeffrey Slonim (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events

Day Five: The countdown is complete. Saturday, for reporters, the day before the Academy Awards, began at 9:00 a.m. at Santa Monica Beach. Public parking lot 5, reserved for the press, was a half-mile walk to the behemoth lunch tent pitched beside the beach. Wind off the ocean bit hard. Even towering palm trees looked cold as their branches whipped in gusts that littered Ocean Avenue with browning fronds.

The tent for the Film Independent Spirit Awards was a white plastic Quonset hut the size of an office complex. A crane huddled beside the white plastic structure that rippled in the wind. But apparently it was strong enough to hold the man standing on it three stories in the air, drawing a rope over the top.

Driving wind cut across the choppy surf, accumulating fine sand on the cement bike path. In our bones, we could feel the raw, salty proximity to the briny sea. One foreign female journalist in a short black sequined dress had goose bumps on her legs that resembled hives.
Waiting while staffed dried rain that had poured into the tent the night before, the press struggled for an hour in the bitter chill.

By 11:00 a.m.,the gray carpet arrivals corridor was flanked on one side by metal stanchions and a thousand journalists. Open at both ends it had flaps cut into the side facing the Pacific, creating a mild wind-tunnel.

"I love the weather," said director John Waters, above, a host at previous events, wearing Comme des Garcon and pants decorated with camouflage paint. "It's like a face lift." Actor Rainn Wilson, too, said he was relaxed "not to be hosting this time."

Tags: film independent spirit awards, indy spirit awards, james franco, kate walsh, natalie portman, nicole kidman, rsvip, spirit awards, vanessa hudgens

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RSVIP: Oscar Countdown, Women in Film Pre-Oscar Cocktails at Soho House

by Jeffrey Slonim (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events

Day Four: Skipped my first event. Oscar week in Hollywood is an endurance contest. For every party RSVIP attends, there are five more equally deserving ones. And of all the very special invites RSVIP receives, some go well beyond an ordinary envelope and printed card, especially during Tinseltown's busiest week.

RSVIP received the most extraordinary invitation from Trident Vitality as a part of Vanity Fair magazine's Campaign Hollywood. It was sent by express mail to my office in a mirrored box that will end up on a shelf at my house.

Thanks to the impressive physical invite, RSVIP had meant to stop by the West Hollywood event, ending at 6:00 p.m., but got caught up with work. The party launched the new Trident Vitality flavors. And the box also held a supply of Trident Vitality gum, which does have delicious flavor. But, sadly, a turn in the weather and traffic made the timing impractical.

On Friday afternoon, with only two days before the Academy Awards, the sunny weather we had been enjoying took a turn for the worse. With chilly temperatures and driving rain, Soho House, with its underground garage and sparkling penthouse views on Sunset Boulevard, called.

The Fourth Annual Women in Film pre-Oscar cocktail party began at 5:00 p.m. on February 25. As RSVIP arrived, we spotted Amy Sacco, a tall, blond diva of New York night life, leaving the underground parking structure at 9200 Sunset Boulevard. She was likely beginning her day.

When yet another special Amy, Amy Adams from "The Fighter," above, climbed out of her black town car, she was fighting with her clingy black dress.

The fabric had gathered static and had ridden up in the car. And she repeatedly pulled it down and flattened out wrinkles before facing the phalanx of photographers.

Tags: amy adams, dale dickey, Hailee Steinfeld, halle berry, kate walsh, melissa leo, rsvip, soho house

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RSVIP: Oscar Countdown, Essence Black Women in Hollywood Lunch and More

by Jeffrey Slonim (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events

Day Three: Phew, the Academy Awards week checklist is complete. RSVIP picked up our coveted credentials for the Kodak Center red carpet and a parking pass for the Elton John fete. We also gathered our credentials for Saturday's irreverent Independent Spirit Awards, which will take place in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica.

At 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, February 24, RSVIP took a quick right off Sunset Boulevard up the palm-lined driveway of the Beverly Hills Hotel, and an efficient attendant in a polo shirt commandeered my rental car.

Downstairs, by the leafy patio, a slenderized Jennifer Hudson had her adorable baby in tow during arrivals at the 2011 Essence Magazine Black Women in Hollywood Awards luncheon. Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine, and Viola Davis were also being honored.

"This is very important to me," Davis, right, told RSVIP concerning the event. "Black women need to be acknowledged as often as possible," she said. "There's the business of deprivation of roles, and even when we've done roles, they often seem to be roles that aren't fleshed out."

Tags: cheryl hines, essence magazine, paris hilton, rsvip, viola davis

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RSVIP: Countdown to Oscars, Global Green Pre-Oscar Party and More

by Jeffrey Slonim (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Events

Day two: Breakfast at the timeless Fountain Coffee Room in the basement of the Beverly Hilton Hotel remains heavenly. A large pink napkin completes every setting at the counter. The wallpaper has a broad palm frond pattern. RSVIP had the same thoughtful waitress and the same distinguished gent with long white hair seated beside me as usual. Stellar bacon.

Wednesday evening, the black-and-yellow Bugatti Veyron, a bumblebee of a race car, parked daily outside of Bijan on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, and, emblazoned with Ettore Bugatti's initial logo, "EB," was drawing crowds as usual.

In the plush interior of Solange Azagury-Partridge, a gem of a jewelry store, just down the hill, a glam Katharina Harf, near right, was hosting cocktails for DKMS, a center which has registered 2.6 million bone-marrow donors worldwide.

Colorful rings that resembled lips glimmered in a glass display case. And Zooey Deschanel, above right, in a Valentino dress with a glittering gold pattern soon joined the party. Over wee hors d'oeuvres in puffed pastry, wine and sparkling water, Harf mentioned that she founded DKMS in Germany after losing her mother to leukemia.

Tags: alison brie, daphne zuniga, dennis haysbert, francees fisher, global green usa, james van der beek, justin bartha, rsvip, taylor armstrong, zooey deschanel

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The Ultimate Las Vegas Philanthropic Gala: Diamonds, Exotic Travel, Classic Cars, And Curated Experiences

by Susan Kime (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Events, Charity

The Ultimate Las Vegas Philanthropic Gala: Diamonds, Exotic Travel, Classic Cars, And Curated Experiences

According to the Organization For Economic Co-operation and Development, The United States led the world last year in charitable donations, a whopping $28.67 billion dollars worth. So it is no wonder that one of the largest, wealthiest and most respected charity galas, the Power Of Love, in Las Vegas also netted quite an amount last year, for a one-night celebration: $28M, with $8M from a single donor. This year, actually, this Saturday, they are expecting to do even better, due to the dazzling, over-the-top auction prizes, even for Las Vegas.

On Saturday, February 26, Keep Memory Alive (KMA) will host its 15th annual Power of Love Gala at Bellagio in Las Vegas. Along with an evening of live entertainment, Power of Love guests will enjoy a significant auction bidding experience with impressive, one-of-a-kind items to benefit Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. Cleveland Clinic's Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health provides state-of-the-art care for cognitive disorders and for the family members of those who suffer from them. It is a substantial treatment center in Las Vegas, opened in July of 2009, where many substantial donations have helped the center thrive. A recent Luxist piece was written on Steve Wynn's commission of a James Rosenquist painting for the Clinic.

The live auction on Saturday evening will have items (see images next page) and experiences that are both pricey and priceless -- a private lunch with Lee Iacocca, and the opportunity to win the I-Legacy, one of 45 limited edition Mustangs. Luxist wrote about this unusual opportunity recently. Then, there's an eight night wine tour of Italy for four people, curated by Michael Mondavi, another wine trip to Australia, ownership of a new Fisker Karma, time in the Los Angeles recording studio with Kenny 'Babyface" Edmonds, and more. The silent auction will have ownership experiences like winning the Mercedes 2012 SLS AMG Roadster, and original Blue Dog art by George Rodrigues and others. There are many more entertainment, travel, and cultural adventures, jewelry giveways from Tiffany's and Harry Winston, to high end shopping sprees.

Some auction items are listed on the next page. A complete listing is on the Keep Memory Alive website.

Tags: Bellagio Las Vegas, Clevelanc Clinic Lou Ruvo Center For Brain Health, Keep Memry Alive Power of Love Gala, Las Vegas Cleveland Clinic, Las Vegas Philanthropic Gala, Philanthropic auctions, philanthropic giving in the US, philanthropy, Power Of Love gala

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EXCLUSIVE: Ralph Lauren to Exhibit Car Collection Classics for the First Time

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Events, The Classicist, Architecture & Design

Ralph Lauren to Exhibit Car Collection Classics for the First Time

Images exclusive to Luxist, courtesy of Ralph Lauren; click for high-res gallery

Some of the most precious gems in famed fashion designer Ralph Lauren's incredible car collection will be exhibited for the the first time ever in Paris this spring. Lauren's collection, in our opinion the finest one in private hands on the planet, features impeccable examples of the rarest and most valuable vehicles in the world. We can reveal exclusively that four of his exquisite automotive works of art, which have never before been seen in public, will be on view at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris from April 28 – August 28: a 1964 Ferrari 250 LM; a 1960 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta Scaglietti; a 1956/1958 Jaguar XKSS; and a 1931 Alfa Romeo Monza 8C 2300.

13 other Lauren cars will also be on display during the exhibit, entitled The Art of the Automobile: Masterpieces from the Ralph Lauren Collection, including an amazing 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa (above), a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO, and a 1938 Bugatti 57 SC Atlantic Coupé. The last two alone are worth about $30 – $40 million each, and are among the world's most expensive cars. The Paris exhibit will focus on European models created between the 1930s and the 1990s, "illustrating the evolution of car design in the 20th Century." They were selected by curator Rodolphe Rapetti and will be arranged by scenographer Jean-Michel Wilmotte, with the "kinetics" and sound of the vehicles conveyed by means of various films and recordings. The museum will also be producing a luxe book to celebrate the occasion.

Gallery: Ralph Lauren's Cars Headed to Paris

Tags: Alfa Romeo, Bentley, billionaire, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Bugatti, car collection, car design, celebrity cars, classic cars, designer, exclusive, exhibit, exhibition, fashion design, fashion designer, Ferrari, Ferrari 250 GTO, ferrari+250+gt, ferrari250gt, France, Jaguar, McLaren, mens style, Musée des Arts Décoratifs, museum, museum show, Paris, Porsche, Ralph Lauren, ralph+lauren+car+collection, ralph+lauren+cars, ralph+laurens+car+collection, ralphlaurencarcollection, ralphlaurencars, ralphlaurenscarcollection, supercars, The Classicist, worlds most expensive, worlds most expensive car, worlds most expensive cars

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Red Carpet Preview: The Beautiful Jewels of Gilan

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Jewelry

Everything we are hearing about the Oscars this season is that this could be the most exuberant Oscars in years. Bold colors, dramatic gowns and the return of dramatic jewelry. We've seen it already at other awards shows, stars wearing hundreds of thousands or even million-dollar gems. But more than just big pieces, we're seeing intriguing jewels, bright colors and unusual settings.

Luxist popped into the Gilan suite at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills to see some red-carpet worthy stunners. With the Academy Awards just a few days away many pieces were out being evaluated to see if they would work with the celebrity gowns but we got to see a few of these intriguing pieces.

Tags: gilan, jewelry, red carpet

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Malt Advocate Shocks Scotland: Names Indian Amrut "World Whisky of the Year"

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Malt Advocate Shocks Scotland: Names Indian Amrut

The influential Malt Advocate Magazine has named Indian whisky Amrut Fusion "World Whisky of the Year."

It is the second major honor bestowed upon Amrut's Fusion, having been named third best whiskey of the year in the 2010 edition of "The Whisky Bible." This time, it scored top of the heap worldwide, besting and shocking Scotland, American and Canadian whiskey producers.

World Whisky of the Year is a new award category for the magazine. Editor John Hansell says: "We created this category to recognize that there are some wonderful whiskies being produced in countries like Japan, India, Sweden, England, and many more, but there aren't enough whiskies made in any of these countries (and imported to the United States) to warrant their own category."

Amrut Fusion, about $60.00, sold in the U.S. bears no age statement, but contains no whisky aged more than six years old. Much of the whisky in Fusion is less than four years in the barrel. Aging in second-fill casks in India speeds maturation because of India's warm climate. The whisky is made from combining Indian malted barley with peated Scottish malt.

For the benefit of the uninitiated, Amrut Distilleries Ltd. belongs to the N.R. Jagdale Group, which is an old line Indian industrial company based in Bangalore. The company also produces vodka, gin, brandy and rum.

Malt Advocate awards honors for several other categories. Of the six major product awards, it is worth noting that only one is currently priced above $100.00.

Click links below for detailed Luxist reviews and inormation about the products and distillieries.

Scotch Whisky Single Malt of the Year
Glenfarclas 40-Year old: At $460.00 Malt Advocate calls this single-malt a "steal."

Scotch Whisky Blend of the Year
Compass Box "Flaming Heart": A blend of malt whiskies from seven distilleries in three regions of Scotland, Compass Box proves again that you don't have to make your own whisky to produce great blends. Price: About $85.00.

Tags: Amrut Fusion, Buffalo Trace, Compass Box, Forty Creek Confederation Oak, Glenfarclas, Kilchoman, Malt Advocate, Rebreast 12 Year Old, Whisky Bible, World Whisky of the World

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Saving Saab: Spyker To Sell Luxury Sports Car Biz To Save Swedish Icon

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Spyker, maker of hand-built exotic cars, is selling that business to a Russian billionaire, while it concentrates on reviving Swedish premium carmaker Saab.

Spyker, which bought Saab from General Motors in 2010, has signed a memo of understanding to sell the Spyker business and brand to Russian financier Vladimir Antonov, who owns CPP Global Holdings in the U.K.

The sale of Spyker is expected to raise $44 million, substantially reducing the company's debt, and positioning it better to give Saab a shot at surviving as a niche premium car brand.

Tags: Bob Lutz, GM, Saab, Saab 9-3, Saab 9-5, Spyker, Victor Muller, Vladimir Antonov

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Can Lincoln Keep Limo Market with MKT "Town Car"?

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Who isn't happy to see a Lincoln Town Car waiting for them instead of a Ford Crown Victoria taxi?

This days are coming to a close as the automaker gets close to discontinuing the venerable Town Car, the engineering chassis of which technically dates back to the early 1970s.

Ford just introduced a replacement for the Town Car sedan, based on the Lincoln MKT crossover (see gallery), at an annual gathering of limousine and livery car buyers in Las Vegas.

Lincoln plans to build two chauffeur-dedicated MKT Town Car versions in 2012 to replace the Town Car. But trade publication Automotive News reports that some of the companies that buy airport cars and limousines aren't as happy about the MKT as Ford hopes despite the more modern engineering platform and added cargo room in the vehicle.

Gallery: Lincoln MKT Town Car