Archive for March, 2010

NBA's great Magic Johnson (center) with four Sweetie Pies servers and general manager (far right) Tim Norman, son of owner's Robbie Montgomery.

Former NBA champ and entrepreneur Magic Johnson brought a party of 20, including players, coaches and his pop to Sweetie Pie’s after the NCAA men’s tourney, to celebrate the win of his Michigan State victory. Dinner included a healthy fare of baked chicken. Johnson was given space during the meal, after which about 200 diners grabbed their cell-photo gear to shoot the happening. Guests were still rollicking over a gaffe by a CNN Cable sportscaster, who heralded, “We’ll see you in St. Louis at the N-Double-ACP Men’s Tournament.”

BET show host, comedienne and Oscar winner, Mo’Nique, while on Fox2 with Kevin Steincross, mentioned she was on the prowl for a soul food restaurant in our town, and the former plus-size entertainer added she’d snub diet food.  On the air, Steincross recommended Sweetie Pie’s on Manchester.  Its owner is former Ike Turner warbler,  Robbie Montgomery.  Mo’Nique arrived at the eatery with an entourage of 10, including two

Oscar Winner Mo-Nique, Robbie Montgomery of Sweetie Pies and Rev. Earl E. Nance, Jr., of Heat-Up St. Louis.

bodyguards and road manager, Rob Wilkins.  She had just been to a photo shoot for the Girl Scouts along with 13 other women, who are being feted in April for their outstanding leadership. On hand to greet the star was notable fan the Rev. Earl Nance, Jr., a Heat Up St. Louis biggie, and Whirl pub Gentry Trotter.  Mo’Niique’s faves – fried chicken, mac and cheese and fried Jack Salmon – were served.  Members of the crew chowed down on fried catfish filets, mixed cabbage, homemade cornbread, candied yams and okra. Other notables on the scene were  the Black Rep’s Ron and Heather Himes, Cong. Lacy Clay’s assistant Dawn Fuller, LeRoy Wilson,Vanessa Hughes and Gateway Classic’s new CEO Rich Gray.  Mo’Nique requested a takeout and was last spotted at Black Dress vintage shop on Manchester. How, “Precious”!’

I’m  old enough to remember when no one drank vodka because none was available. So, it was time for an r&r in Florida.  And, that’s where I learned from McDonald execs, that the chain is poised for a major thrust into cyberspace.  On the highways and byways, passengers will get alerts on their BlackBerrys and iPhones, that a McDonald’s is  – - miles to the nearest eatery.  The messages will also include the specials of the day. But, that’s not the entire item. The chain will soon be in the throes of testing customer-friendly table service. Not bad for the 12,000 units in the nation, that each grosses an annual average of  $3.5 million.

The next edition of the St. Louis phone book will be minus one of its listings, now that the meanest/nicest woman Ruth Jacobson died.  The retired veep of Fleishman-Hillard never forgot  her humble beginning as a mom living off of Gravois, wheeling around her daughter, Anne, after Ruth’s husband vanished.  Jacobson began her career in public relations as assistant to Lucia Perigore at the Ambassador-East Hotel in Chicago. She hit it bigtime after she was plucked by the late Alfred Fleishman to join the company here.  As special events chief, she helmed the topping off of the Equitable Building.  The late August Busch, Jr., was escorted to his perch at the dais and was expected to speak.  Suddenly, according to Ruth, he jumped up from his chair and summoned her.”But, Mr. Busch, you can’t leave now,” she said.  Busch shot back, “I’ve got to pee right now.” And the twosome trailed off into the sunset. Following her retirement from F-H, Jacobson moved to Oakland, Ca., to be with her daughter and grandson.  She returned here and lived in one of the towers on Hanley Road, where neighbors trot back and forth to borrow cups of money from each other.  Her move here was attributed to an estrangement from her daughter.  One of her trusted friends, Molly Hyland, emailed the columnist a few days ago, that her remains were still unclaimed at the Lupton Chapel.  A sad ending.

Dan McGuire, the bearded half of a Central West power couple, has opted out of the race to replace State Representative Rachel Storch. It was not clear at press time (OK, you know what I mean) if that means that the newly-betrothed Storch has tipped McGuire that she intends
to file next week, or if we should take at face value McGuire’s emailed explanation:   “I find that,
at this stage of my life, I cannot summon the ‘fire in the belly’ necessary to mount an aggressive full-time campaign, and I have several other important family obligations this summer. “

Her neighbors say that Ladue mayor Irene S. Holmes is getting some high-powered assistance in her public relations/litigation battle with her former police chief. Holmes was stung by a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story on Friday reporting that Larry White, Ladue’s ex-chief cop, has claimed in a lawsuit that Holmes “told him on several occasions that she wanted “those people” to be pulled from their cars so that others would see and avoid Ladue. White, a former Missouri Highway Patrol official, says in the suit that he understood ‘those people’ to be African-Americans.”  Advising Holmes on the subject is Susan Ryan, a local flack whose smiling visage appears (at least for now) in the number two position on Holmes’ Facebook page.

Saturday morning’s groundbreaking for a high-tech pig-iron smelter at long-abandoned PPG manufacturing site is a nice victory of Jefferson County executive Chuck Banks and for Jeff Co’s distressed labor community.  The $350 million facility is the first phase of a planned $1 billion dollar mine/refining/transportation operation, and it will employ more than 1,000 union trades members for the next several years.  It also represents a chance for tiny Crystal City, the town named for a company that abandoned it, to sharply escalate its municipal services.

There are, apparently, no hangdog expressions on the faces of the staff and core supporters of the Animal House Fund. After admitting failure in its ambitious 5-year attempt to design and privately fund a new public animal shelter building, the group has lowered its sights and will
compete with other local not-for-profit groups to operate a shelter that will handle animal welfare chores for the city of St. Louis. And AHF’s top funder Ed Throop is telling pals that the group’s bid will be a partnership with nationally known animal rescue advocate Randy Grim, whose highest profile canine companion is a survivor of the city’s dog pound.

Roberto Gallardo is this close to opening a downtown iteration of Westport’s once-popular Ozzie’s.  Every day last week prospective managers, bar tenders, and servers mingled with construction workers and picketing electricians on the sidewalk of the 1500 block of Washington Avenue.  Gallardo will miss the NCAA basketball crowd, but should be open in time for most of baseball season. Meanwhile, St. Louis County executive Charlie Dooley slipped onto Washington Avenue last week to raise money for his reelection from big crowd of movers and shakers at trendy Smokin’ Joe’s BBQ.