"A Theme Park For Every Human Desire"

 The title is a quote from broadcaster Philip Adams about Sydney's Kings Cross where he partied in the 60s and 70s with the late media mogul Kerry Packer. Bizarrely, the Coca Cola sign that signals the beginning of 'The Cross' is now  National Trust listed.

Playwright and author Louis Nowra who has lived there for yonks has written a superb history of Kings Cross, a place he says : "attracts the sane and the mad… but that at times it’s hard to tell the difference."
The Cross is a no-holds barred place -backpackers, prostitutes, strippers, chefs, mad men, poets, beggars, booksellers, doctors, gangsters, sailors, musicians, drug traffickers, movie stars, eccentrics, judges and artists and a former Prime Minster (Paul Keating) live side by side in elegant terrace houses and cheap flats. And slam bang in the middle are George Miller's studios were he filmed Babe and Happy Feet.

Part flaneur, part historian and part eyewitness, Louis Nowra is the best possible guide to a place both real, and a state of mind. The Cross attracts hordes of tourists from all over Australia and the world. It's history began as a sort of melting pot for European expats- there are still gracious old Art Deco buildings lining Macleay Street packed with little old Hungarian and Polish ladies who fled from WW2. During the 20s it became the night time entertainment area offering every conceivable sin man desired- from strip clubs to bordellos, gay bars and 24 hour drinking clubs, illegal gambling casinos and even a few opium dens. The legendary Razor Gangs fought duels in the back streets over the cocaine trade.
 The illegal casinos were frequented by visiting celebrities and  local politicians including premier Sir Robert Askin who like a character out of Casablanca would have his winnings thrust into his hand and be ushered out a side door just before his own cops would raid the joint (mainly to collect bribes).

Norton & Goossens

The list of memorable characters is too long to chart: like the practising witch Rosaleen Norton who became entangled with the British conducter Sir Eugene Goossens (he attended her orgies) whose career crashed when he was stopped at customs retuning from the UK with a suitcase of porn for Ms Norton.

Mr Sin- Abe Saffron

 And Mr Sin Abe Saffron who came from humble beginnings to dominate The Cross for 40 years like an Antipodian Al Capone- just as powerful and deadly and finally like Capone, they could only get him for tax evasion. Owning a string of strip joints and the all male revue bar Les Girls and with a finger in every club and bar in the area, Abe made an art of bribing politicians and police including the Commissioner. And he saw off the US Mafia when they tried to muscle in on the action. When Saffron died he left around $30Million but it's rumoured there was another 30 or 40 hidden away.

Louis Nowra & wife Mandy Sayer

                                                                                                             
Things began to change in the 1960s with the mass influx of US  soldiers on 'R&R" leave from Vietnam and the appearance of Bernie Houghton reputedly the former boss of the infamous Air America who arrived with suitcases stuffed with cash and a new passport courtesy of his spook friends in ASIO. And with the opening of his Bourbon & Beefsteak 24 hour nightspot came hard drugs.

The unexpected can still happen in Kings Cross. Two years ago the Shuttle witnessed an impromptu one hour performance by comedian Robyn Williams at the Kit & Kaboodle when he arrived with actor Elijah Wood for dinner. The Beach Haus club became Leo Di Caprio and his entourage's favourite club of choice as he nightly commandeered 6 tables (leaving about 3 ).  And actor Russell Crowe could be often found popping in to the Portuguese Chicken bar around midnight after a munchies attack.
There's more, much much more in Nowra's book

Earth to Sydney's Gossip Writers (& Popbitch)

HRH Prince Henry of Wales (known as Prince Harry was never ever going to go to a Sydney nightclub and most especially, one in Kings Cross whose owners have a less than stellar background.
Harry was here on an official visit representing his mother HM The Queen of Australia. There is such a thing as protocol (look it up). There were no security details checking out nightspots. It just wasn't going to happen.
Indeed members of the Royal Family do not go to downmarket nightclubs (which would be most of the ones in Sydney). After 20 years of covering the social scene in London for a variety of British & European publications the Shuttle never once spotted a Royal in a nightclub that wasn't 'approved'-Annabels, Tramp and maybe Maunkberrys and that's about it.  You should know better.

Prince Harry & The Ladies

A smiling HRH Prince Harry with 2 of our leading ladies at yesterday's naval celebrations- Lord Mayor Clover Moore on the left and the Governor General Quentin Bryce on the right. The Shuttle can report that far from partying last night as many columnists predicted Harry stayed indoors whilst  Harry Styles had about a dozen guests in his room at the Park Hyatt to watch the fireworks as no doubt, will Harry Windsor.

Foodie News

In the 1960s in Sydney, Windsor Street in Paddington was the place to be. The Windsor Castle pub was packed nightly with it's many bars and live music in the beer garden. Gays & lesbians, heterosexuals, the legendary Push (Germaine Greer etc) all made their way there. Paddington was a working class suburb with a mix of immigrants who flocked to the cheap housing.

Lucio (right) celebrates with pals.

These days those once affordable terrace houses with their exotic French lace ironwork sell for over a million dollars. The Windsor Castle has become a vast private home and each house seems to boast a BMW or Mercedes.

Maria Venuti partied with Mickey Robbins

One establishment opposite the Castle that has lasted : Lucio's Restaurant serving classic Italian food. It stared life as the Hungry Horse art gallery before being taken over by Lucio in 1983. In it's early days it was a hangout for artists like John Olsen and Tim Storrier who sometimes paid their bills with works of art. Lucio probably has a small fortune hanging on his walls. These days Lucio Galletto OAM hosts all manner of guests from movie stars like Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig with celebs like Ricky Martin and Giorgio Armani dining there. And thirty successful years was a good enough excuse to hold a party.
                                               ********************************
One guest at Lucio's party was Leon Fink who owns the world famous Quay Restaurant , seen her in our snap deep in conversation with News Ltd honcho Piers Ackermann (left).

Leon is behind the push to takeover the most visable dining spot in Sydney- Bennelong at the Sydney Opera House.
With the lease up on the top restaurant and chef Guillaume Brahimi throwing in the dish cloth, Fink has a plan to instal top chef Bill Granger who is cutting up a storm in the UK.

Happy Snapper News

While the dreaded paparazzi face ordeals, news comes of a legacy from the late gentleman photographer Lewis Morley.
Australian Morley who passed away at the age of 88 in Sydney at the beginning of this month has donated his entire portfolio to the National Media Museum in Bradford in the UK.

Morley chronicled the Swinging Sixties in London but became famous for his iconic pic of Christine Keeler as pictured here.

Below : Morley's photographs : Clint Eastwood, Joe Orton, Barry Humphries, Michael Caine

Paparazzi Wars

Things are not well in the world of the paparazzi.

 We've had Kayne West being arrested over an alleged assault an LA snapper while Russell Brand and Mike Tyson have both had their collars felt over scuffles with snappers . 30Rock star Alex Baldwin is renowned for his biffo bouts with New York photographers while and our National Treasure, actress Nicole Kidman was recently bowled over by an excited pap on a push bike in New York.

Now come a tale of a bust up in Kings Cross between Kidman's bête noire, the paparazzo Jamie Fawcett and another snapper named Max.  Apparently Fawcett was also placed under a  citizen's arrest by a former business partner Ben McDonald and there are claims of broken car mirrors and snaps appeared of Fawcett sporting a black eye before the local constabulary intervened. Fawcett has been the subject of attempted AVO orders in the past from Kidman and Mel B.  Nicole also appeared in court as a witness against him in a libel case against Fairfax Media which Fawcett won but was ordered to pay costs of $1M.

Now a new law has been enacted in California  that prohibits photographers from shooting pics of children without their parents permission. It's mainly aimed at the children of celebrities as swarms of snappers were hanging around school gates to get pics of celebs arriving to pick up their kids. Will such laws spread here?
Sadly gone are the days when the Shuttle and the late gentleman photographer Dave Morgan would be stopped by Tom Cruise , then living in Sydney with Kidman, who would politely ask us if we could leave him alone for a few days. Naturally being very well mannered, we obliged . Once we were rewarded with an invitation to join Tom for lunch and at a game of pool in the local pub.
Meanwhile former high flyer and now bust agency boss Darryn Lyons was last scene riding in a polo event at the Warwick Farm Polo two weeks ago. Rumours that he is reluctant to return to the UK because of the Leveson Inquiry are of course, malicious.

Chris O'Brien Lifehouse

Chris O'Brien was a doctor and cancer specialist and an inspiration to thousands. Sadly he was taken from us at the age of 57 four years ago during his own battle with an aggressive brain tumour.  In his place has sprung up - the Chris O'Brien Lifehouse with a gleaming new building opposite the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital dedicated to treating cancer sufferers.
 Catalina, one of Sydney's most successive and lasting harbour side restaurants in Rose Bay threw a bash to raise much needed funds.

'Desert Of New Ideas'

Oh dear !. Just as the Sydney Contemporary was launched this weekend with a myriad of writers proclaiming it's brilliance (especially those whose bosses were sponsoring it) comes a report from the UK Sunday Times savaging an Australian art exhibition at the Royal Academy in London.

Rachel Griffiths at the Olsen Irwin                       'Sydney Sun'                                                  John Olsen   

As our snaps show actor Rachel Griffiths attended a media conference at the Olsen Irwin Gallery in Woolahra and also the exhibition at the Carriageworks in deepest Alexandria. The Olsen Irwin is run by Tim Olsen, son of one of our most celebrated artists John Olsen who recently exhibited at a Mayfair gallery.
The Time's art critic Waldermar Januszczak has labelled Olsen's Sydney Sun (purchased for the National Gallery in Canberra for $500K) and on display at the RA as evoking " the sensation of standing under a cascade of diarrhoea.”. Olsen has hit back accusing Januszczak of attempting to "put colonials in their place".

Continues Januszczak :"Australia is let down by lots of the art, which is weedy, provincial and all too European.". 
God only knows what our British critic would think of our publicity friendly Charles Billich who a local writer recently trilled had presented a grieving Katherine Jackson with a portrait of her late son Michael Jackson. Below is our much watched Youtube video of the master at work.

New Royal Baby Snaps with The Queen

Our exclusive photographs of Prince George with his parents the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge and his great grandmother HM The Queen

It's more mischief from the British photographer Alison Jackson whose amazing pictures can be seen here. And Prince William ? : he is in fact 30 year old Simon Watkinson who is an Adelaide born engineer living and working in the UK but cleaning up as the best royal impersonator in the business.
Below is an Alison Jackson video of Kate & The Queen at the hairdressers.

An Invite :

 

Australia's Got Talent winner Jack Vidgen & LA based Australian comedienne Jackie Loeb will be performing at a benefit for Net Ball America at the Australian Consul General's residence in Los Angeles on the 29th of this month- see the invite below.

Cate in Another Designer Gown

Cate Blanchett in a black Givenchy halterneck gown at London première of Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine.

Michael Jackson's Last Phone Call

You heard it here first..........

A Little Night Music

Last Night of The Proms and Dame Edna Everage sings a special song:

Photo Of The Week

Don't ask us to explain  :
 we have no idea what Picard, Elmo & Gandalf are doing in this snap but it's kinda cute.

Man of The People

Actor Russell Crowe has thrown his celebrity weight behind Anthony Albanese MP as leader of the Labor Party.
Albanese sat with Crowe and his sons at the Friday South Sydney Vs Melbourne footie match at the ANZ Stadium and were often deep in conversation. Russell has previously tweeted his support for PM Julia Gillard when she was under a media attack.

Both Crowe and Albanese have been life long South Sydney supporters. But will Albanese have a challenge for the leadership on his hands with the MP for the South Sydney area, former health minister the very popular Tanya Plibersek ?. The Shuttle's political spy disguised as a polling booth says Labor are reluctant to take on another female leader at present after the "Gillard experiment" which they believe demonstrated that the media wasn't ready for a female leader.
Meanwhile on Facebook, twitter and much of the social media, Liberal Party supporters, having had their dream fulfilled are actively pondering upon whether Malcolm Turnbull can be drafted into the top job.

Mercedes Benz Fashion Week : Spain

It's not just in New York City that beautiful women ( and men) are treading the boards and showing off some gorgeous creations : here are the latest fashions from yesterday's parades in Madrid :

Ana Locking

Ailanto

Roberto Torretta

New York Mercedes Benz Fashion Week

Some scenes....                                                                                   (photographs : Corbis)

Election News : PM Tony Abbott Outed !

PM Tony can barely hide his excitement

He has just taken the reigns after a concerted media campaign led by the American billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch and now the Shuttle brings you exclusive news : far from being a Philistine troglodyte who will roll us back into the 1950s as his critics claim, PM Tony Abbott is a fan of the arts !

The gilded couple Charles Billich & wife Krista who regularly fly exited social hacks around the world to breathlessly report on their glittering soirees at upmarket venues like the Playboy Mansion in LA , have presented a grateful Prime Minister with a gorgeous work of art that only our Charles can produce. Will it hang in The Lodge like other rare Billich works hang in The Vatican and other grand mansions?  And is it a fetching nude, perhaps of Krista draped over a chaise lounge legs akimbo ?  . Is this the first step for an exciting exhibition of Billich prints at the National Gallery in Canberra ?. Will Sir Les Patterson emerge from retirement ? Clearly a New Era for The Yartz is upon us.  Exciting times ahead. !   

Yachting News with Captain Clive

Rupert Murdoch's magnificent yacht Rosehearty is up for sale in the USA for a reputed $50M. Launched in 2006 the boat has 2 staterooms and room for 12 guests in 6 cabins and uses a crew of 10. It has some quite beautiful large cabins and it makes a change from the Gin Palaces much loved by Sydney's monied classes. Read more about Rosehearty here.

And continuing our yachting news : the Shuttle's favourite wacky billionaire, Cpt Clive Palmer of the Titanic 2 had some extraordinary claims to make today on morning television as he slapped down cheeky host Karl Stefanovic. Palmer once claimed The Greens were being covertly financed by the CIA but now he has  a new theory about Wendi Murdoch. 

Pop Duo Electrocuted

Irish identical twins and X-Factor discoveries Jedward, will be in Australia in November for 3 concerts. Bet you can't wait. Here they are from an earlier visit when they appeared on Radio Nova FM.

Fabulous No-Bodies

Ground Hog Day

The Shuttle met the designer Oscar de la Renta in Sydney a few years ago. It was at a party in a marquee erected outside the Park Hyatt Hotel with a magnificent view across to the Sydney Opera House.
Oscar arrived with the late Lady Sonia McMahon. He said he loved Sydney and Melbourne and wished he had discovered the cities much earlier. As to a question on  Australian fashion :"it shows promise" was the master's diplomatic reply.

What Oscar would think about the froth and bubble of the 2 cities seasonal fashion shows is a mystery. Same guest list, same location, same designers. Each and every show is like a repeat of the last. Just the fabrics change.
 One social writer recently resorted to trilling about the seating arrangements at the last David Jones show, excitedly reporting that they had scored a front row seat and that a fashion publicist who had incurred their displeasure had been relegated to the back row.
The inanity of the reporting (possibly influenced by the heavy advertising of Australia's 2 leading department store chains) is as vacuous as the guest list-"fabulous nobodies" in every sense. A series of alleged social faces who feature at every event as Ipad wielding publicists breathlessly inform the feverish paparazzi of  the arrival of yet another footballer or TV news announcer. At least the French champagne proffered soothes the boredom.

Now Oscar de la Renta has declared war on these guest lists and is to ban them from his New York 2014 parades : "decision-makers in the business should not have to fight their way through "30,000 people, and 10,000 who are trying to take pictures of all of those people, who are totally unrelated to the clothes". And he has allies on the New York Times including Cathy Horyn and the legendary Susy Menkes.  Perhaps it's fortunate Mr de la Renta didn't experience Sydney & Melbourne's low-rent-a-crowds and departed with fond memories of our local fashion industry.

Shuttle history on sale

A photograph taken by a Social Shuttle contributor is for sale on Ebay and currently stands at $660  $810. It's a snap of former Prime Minsters Gough Whitlam, Paul Keating and Bob Hawke with the then Labor Opposition Leader Kim Beazley and it's signed by all four leaders. 25 signed copies were produced and many have re-sold for much higher sums
You can bid here : http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=261277166245

A NIght in New York City

Ellen, Gina Gershon, Harvey Weinstein Pharrell Williams,Emily Threlkeld, Matt Lauer,Calvin Klein, Donna Karan,

A much coveted invitation arrives : an invite to a birthday party for New York and the USA's top society snapper Patrick McMullan (pictured below). McMullan's birthday bashes have become legendary in the Big Apple and are a much sort after invite. As a contributing editor to Vanity Fair and a host of top US glossies Patrick is also a much sought after guest. Here is a just a sample of one party he attended last week : a benefit for the Apollo Theatre hosted by Ron Perelman. Check out the onstage entertainment : Jamie Foxx, Pharrell Williams, Ellen de Generis and Lenny Kravitz. Now that's a party.           photographs (c) Patrick McMullan    www.patrickmcmullan.com

Anjelica Huston, Fran Lebowitz,            Stephanie and Jon Bon Jovi        Patty Smyth, John McEnroe,. Billy Joel

some light entertainment : Jamie Foxx & Lennie Kravitz                  Ellen DeGeneres and Pharrell Williams.

Vale Sir David Frost

David Frost has died of a heart attack at the age of 74 while travelling on the QE2.
Frost was in Sydney 2 years ago to appear on a stage chat show with Michael Parkinson.
At a press conference Sir David practically gave a full show as he chatted for over 40 minutes to the assembled media.

Some of the most fascinating people who he had interviewed ? (apart from Richard Nixon) : John F. Kennedy, Julian Assange and a man he considered the most intellectual politician in the world , Gough Whitlam.

Ooh La La !

If only Australian politics was this exciting. We've never had an MP as fascinating as the Hungarian porn star and singer Cicciolina, real name Ilona Staller, who became an MP in Italy. Now Miranda Kerr has channeled Cicciolina for a photo shoot by Sebastian Faena for V Magazine.

 It's been done before as our snaps below show but certainly not with a s much style. We even uncovered a Cicciolina clone who looks suspiciously like Arnie Schwarzenegger. And we found an Italian drag Cicciolina on Youtube. What fun!

Day One with Georgia May Jagger

Bauer Media launched their '30 Days of Fashion & Beauty' with a cocktail party at the Sydney Town Hall. Ambassadors include Jecinta Campbell, looking quite amazing in a hot pink Alex Perry dress and Georgia May Jagger who brought her mum Jerry Hall.

Melbourne Tops Sydney

Melbourne has been declared the world's most livable city by the Economic Intelligence Unit (of the Economist Magazine)  out of 140 others. Sydney came in 7th, Adelaide was 6th and Perth 9th. The locations are judged on stability, culture and environment,  healthcare, infrastructure and education. Vienna was second while Vancouver third.

Melbourne                            Adelaide                                                       Sydney