The Hill by Christina Wilke:

Hollywood on the Potomac: Sound familiar?

A new political book filled with photographs of celebrities and politicians was released last week under a familiar title, Hollywood on the Potomac.

So familiar a title, in fact, that the paperback photo book was nearly slapped with a lawsuit by Washington publicist Janet Donovan, who is the owner of the trademarked phrase “Hollywood on the Potomac.”

Donovan has written a column about L.A. celebrities in Washington, called “Hollywood on the Potomac,” since 2002, the same year she filed her initial trademark registration paperwork. The column appears in print monthly in Washington Life magazine, and as a blog at hollywoodonthepotomac.blogspot.com.

(Full disclosure: ITK’s editor used to work for Washington Life.)

Reached for comment, the publisher of the book, Arcadia Publishing, shifted blame for the trademark snafu onto the author, former Republican National Committee campaign strategist Jason Killian Meath.

“The author signed a contract confirming that they’ve received permission to use any copyrighted material in the book,” said P.J. Norlander, marketing director at Arcadia.

“But there’s certainly a lot of gray area here,” she said, adding, “We’d be happy to come to a resolution with the owner of the copyright.”

According to Donovan, further resolution won’t be necessary ... this time. “I’m going to give them a pass on this one,” she told ITK. “It’s a book, so what would I do, make them pull the book from the shelves?”

That’s exactly what she could do, according to her attorney, and it wouldn’t be the first time Donovan has had to take legal action to protect her trademarked phrase.

The most recent incident occurred when “Hollywood on the Potomac” appeared at the top of a website called wrap.com.

“My lawyer sent a cease-and-desist letter and they pulled it down,” said Donovan.

Meath may have been spared the destruction of his book, but as far as he’s concerned, it was his publisher’s job to make sure the title didn’t violate any laws. “We went through a lot of different titles while we were planning the book,” he told ITK, “and of course, the final decision on that is in the hands of the publisher.”

Funniest Celebrity in Washington 2005 Matt Cooper

Cooper's the best.

"The Mole" goes to Hollywood on the Potomac book party

Pictured: Jason Meath, Pam Bailey, Patrick Dorton


By "The Mole"

Jack Valenti caught it. Mike Deaver mastered it. At some point, young Jason Killian Meath, too, got the bug. Struck by a photograph of conservative idol and President Ronald Reagan with a bejeweled Michael Jackson at the White House, political media consultant Meath realized that Hollywood and Washington make a bizarre and weirdly fitting couple. It was 1984, after all. These days, Meath, a partner at Rational 360, has come out with a book with a very rational (if copyright-protected) title, "Hollywood on the Potomac" (Arcadia Publishing 2009).

Gee, where have we heard that name before?

The book is straightforward, sepia-tone photos of Hollywood and Washington stars. Jack Kennedy and brother-in-law Peter Lawford don the cover, appropriately pictured sailing, seriously, off the coast of Maine. Republican strategists and Reagan protégés dotted the launch party of 20- and 30-somethings at Georgetown's George -- Grocery Manufacturer's Association honcho Pam Bailey, a Reagan White House wunderkind herself, looked even better than she did as head of the cosmetics powerhouse Personal Care Products Association. (Hollywood -- call her agent!) Former Clinton adviser and Rational 360 partner Patrick Dorton (son-in-law of Democratic lobbyist Fred Graefe), as well as partner Stuart Stevens, "the only Republican media consultant to have worked extensively on network television," his web bio says -- dutifully mingled to support their partner Meath in the cavernous club.

This book, a photo album heavy on Ronnie and Nancy, is a sweet if mild walk down memory lane. For the juice, there's only http://hollywoodonthepotomac.blogspot.com

Hollywood on the Potomac also appears in Washington Life Magazine by Janet Donovan

Tammy Haddad's party in honor of Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn

September Issue of Washington Life Magazine: HOP

Hot Topics: click on link to additional pages:

Yeas & Nays: Dinner in honor of Fran Drescher

Drescher recalls Kennedy's role in her cancer-advocacy | Washington Examiner

Dinner in Honor of Fran Drescher at Teatro Goldoni Aug. 29th

25 Young International Film Students at Chez Moi

Via USC son Alex and The State Department

CQ Roasts & Toasts Bob Merry. Mediabistro.com/fishbowldc

CQ Roasts & Toasts Bob Merry

Thursday wasn't just another day in the life of CQ CEO Bob Merry whose departure from his home of 22 years is imminent, it was party central.

Part One: Cocktail reception on the rooftop of The Hay Adams with colleagues Mike Riley, Bruce Drake, Ken Sands and Loesje Troglia.

As happens at these events, the tributes were plentiful, but the crowd favorite was from Victoria Munroe of the advertising department. "Actually, I'm very glad Bob could join us tonight. He initially said he couldn't make it because he was going to be hiking the Appalachian Trail... Before speaking tonight I had two thoughts. First, how do you toast a charismatic, popular, visionary and successful leader? And, second, I am so glad that that is not at all relevant tonight."

And, "Bob, we were hoping to get President Obama to call in and wish you well. We requested just 5 minutes of the President's time, but the White House said he couldn't do it. But Joe Biden did say he'd be glad to call in for about 3 hours," Munroe went on.

Part Two: Dinner with friends and colleagues at Teatro Goldoni hosted by publicist Janet Donovan, who is also a publicist for CQ.

That portion of the evening was "off the record," but we managed to snag this one photo from them. In attendance: Al Hunt, Jeff Stein, Craig Crawford, Mort Kondracke, Myra McPherson, David Rapp, Bruce Drake, Margaret Warner, Keith White, Jerome Cramer, and Judy Woodruff.

Posted by Christine

Bob Merry gets roasted by friends & colleagues

Bob Merry: Author * Journalist * Editor * Media Extraordinaire * Damn Fine CEO


Mort Kondrake * Bruce Drake * Al Hunt * Margaret Warner

Douglas Brinkley's Book Party at Roosevelt House

Michael Kosmides: Cigars and Champagne with Mark Garagos

First at Milano and then to my place.

Katharine Weymouth's Summer White Party

If last Saturday night's White Party hosted by Katharine Weymouth, Goli Sheikoleslami, Molly Elkin & Ivan Wasserman is any indication as to how The Washington Post Publisher is surviving the controversy surrounding her 'salon' gatherings, you'd have to give her a thumbs up.


Could have been the weather: perfect. Could have been the guests: eclectic. Could have been the house: fab. Could have been the music and dancing: fun. Whatever the reason, she showed no visible signs of stress.

Harry Jaffe, longtime follower of The Washington Post for Washingtonian, may have gotten it right when he noted in an August 2008 article: " The woman seems unflappable. I’m beginning to think that longtime journalist Sally Quinn was not far off when she said, “Katharine is one of the most authentic people I’ve ever met.”


Considering her typical day goes like this: “I’ve been up since 5:55 and going nonstop. Got the three kids up. Put drops in the eyes of Red, the Cavalier King Charles spaniel. Fed the kids. Made lunches for the kids. Attempted to work out. Got two to the bus stop and the youngest to day camp at Beauvoir," Jaffe may be on to something.


Top photo: Molly Elkin and Beth Solomon


Right photo: Harry Jaffe

The List, Were you on it?

If you were any where other than Jane Stanton Hitchcock's book party at Cafe Milano last Thursday night, you were at the wrong party. Her latest tomb, "Mortal Friends", is not only a mystery to die for, but an invitation to guess who's who in the thinly veiled book about Washingtonians amid high society and politicians.....not necessarily a list you don't want to be on. Her husband Jim Hoagland and she spend a lot of time walking through Montrose Park in Oak Hill Cemetery which lead her to her current book. "I can't help it you know, I wake up thinking a serial killer is loose. .. a body in Montrose Park..... I like to be twisty in my book. I like things not to be what they seem. I felt that this was a really good opportunity to get to know another side of Washington that social people really don't see." So in Moral Friends, there is a policeman who comes to my heroine and says, "I believe that there maybe a killer hiding in plain sight in society, and you seem to know about society, and in order to know the true civil world, you have to know what the lies are." "I kept going to these dinner parties and thinking, okay, would I know evil if it sat next to me?" Think Ted Bundy. "Ted Bundy, my poster boy. God, I would have dated Ted, in fact, I did date Ted. I was in Aspen around the time he was there. I had long dark hair, parted in the middle, the perfect candidate and I think that's a very important thing to realize when you look at other people. You are going to trust people who look more like you do, and that's what this book is about in many ways that the female is trying to--you know, who do you really trust and what do you really know about people? Do you know it's simply because they tell you. It is amazing how people check what it is that they're tell you." "All mystery writers are killers at heart. I remembered Churchill said, "Now the truth is so important that she must be surrounded by a bodyguard of lies." "Well in mystery writing, it's just the opposite. The lie is so important that you have to be surrounded by these truths." Can't tell you more since Jane 'borrowed' my book to autograph for Dr. Jill Biden. Playing the guessing game: Andrea Mitchell & Alan Greenspan, Janet Langhart & Bill Cohen Aniko Gaal Schott, Ann & Lloyd Hand, Ann Jordan, Arnaud de Borchgrave, Ben Bradlee, Bob Schieffer, Buffy Cafritz, Capricia Marshall, Deborah Gore Dean, Diana Negroponte, Donna & Mack McLarty, Ina Ginsburg, Jane Harmon, Jim & Kate Lehrer, John Negroponte, Judith Terra, Liz Stevens, Lucky Roosevelt, Kevin Chaffee, Michael Beschloss, Mike Peabody, Nini Ferguson, Rima Al-Sabah, Sally Bedell & Steve Smith, Sally Quinn, Susan Blumenthal, Susan Eisenhower, Walter & Didi Cutler and Winston Bao Lord.

Photo: Jane Stanton Hitchcock earlier in the day at Nathans.

Mark Ein and Michael Kosmides Host The Washington Kastles

Radio & Television Correspondents' Dinner

Mike Allen's Birthday party at Tammy Haddad's

Dinner in Honor of Russell Simmons & Daphna Ziman

Congratulations To Teatro Goldoni

Favorite Restaurant of The Year - RAMMYS 2009. Photo credit: Neshan H. Naltchayan