Radio host Scott Simon listens as comedian and talk-show veteran Dick Cavett recalls his great affection for Groucho Marx. Photograph by Ben Droz.
A lot of good one-liners were dropped at Katherine and David Bradley’s dinner party Tuesday night, but the most searing wasn’t uttered onstage. It was
whispered by a former Washington Post editor to another guest: “I liked Marcus, but. . . .” He was referring, of course,
to Marcus Brauchli, who, it was announced earlier in the day, would be replaced as the Post’s editor, a turnover that had been rumored for months. What made it poignant was
that it underscored how tenuous loyalty is among the powerful in this town. The right
job can make you a lot of friends, but if the job goes, so do the friends, or at least
those kinds of friends. Which is why the other topic of the evening was the Petraeus
scandal.
Comedian and erstwhile talk-show host Dick Cavett was one of the featured guests for the evening, a swanky opening-night party to bring
together the A-listers who would be attending the Bradleys’ annual 2012 Washington
Ideas Forum at the Newseum, a two-day intellectual talkfest they cohost with Walter Isaacson and the Aspen Institute. Cavett’s one-liner, mentioned while musing on his love of
Groucho Marx, was, “I have a trove of letters from Groucho, but not thousands of e-mails.”
That distinction belongs to Petraeus scandal costars Jill Kelley and General John
Allen, the American commander of international troops in Afghanistan, who reportedly
exchanged e-mails that total 20,000 to 30,000 pages (though some may be duplicates).
Given the week’s heightened atmosphere of scandal, it was impossible to have a Washington
party where all the latest news bombshells didn’t become morsels for discussion, with
Benghazi and the “fiscal cliff” as “also rans.” While servers from Susan Gage Caterers
passed cocktails, fried oysters, mini barbecue sandwiches, and mushrooms on toast,
one guest after another could be heard expressing incredulity about the bizarre events
surrounding now-former CIA director David Petraeus and his merry band. “It’s just the damnedest thing.” “Where will it end?” “Have you
ever heard of this Kelley woman?” “A lot of reporters know Paula Broadwell.” A number of journalists attended the party, but none I talked to outed themselves
as a Broadwell intimate.
The evening’s organizer, Elizabeth Baker Keffer of Atlantic Media, welcomed guests and noted that activist rock star Bono was in Washington this week, though not at this particular dinner. She had met him
the night before, however, and reported that he is “much shorter than you would expect,
and does a great impression of Bill Clinton.” She then directed everyone’s attention
across the room to a stage where journalist Margaret Carlson was set to interview Lizz Winstead, co-creator and head writer for The Daily Show.
Carlson took a moment to identify herself as the first woman columnist for Time magazine and then, calling out Isaacson, her former editor, she added, “and also
the last woman columnist at Time magazine.” When she turned her attention to Winstead, she asked the comedian, “How
many people think The Daily Show is a news show?” Winstead replied, “Does it matter?” Clips were shown from the program,
which had the audience laughing or groaning. When the screen filled with Clint Eastwood
at the GOP convention, onstage talking to an empty chair, Republican lobbyist Juleanna Glover sighed and muttered, “You can’t make it up,” which essentially summed up how she
felt about her candidate’s presidential campaign.
Carlson asked Winstead, “What makes politics funny?” Winstead looked surprised. “Is
that really the question?” she asked. A good point. People in Washington, especially
those in media and politics, laugh at the jokes, but they don’t often understand how
the city they take so seriously becomes the joke. Winstead explained that in creating
The Daily Show, “we decided, ‘Let’s have comedians who act and look like correspondents,’” an ironic
ruse they have turned into enduring success. “Now the media tries to look more like
The Daily Show, which makes The Daily Show more like The Daily Show.”
The Petraeus Scandal and Politics Were the Buzz at an A-List Washington Dinner Party
Atlantic Media’s Katherine and David Bradley hosted the opening night for the Ideas Forum Tuesday.
A lot of good one-liners were dropped at
Katherine and David Bradley’s dinner party Tuesday night, but the most searing wasn’t uttered onstage. It was
whispered by a former
Washington Post editor to another guest: “I liked Marcus, but. . . .” He was referring, of course,
to
Marcus Brauchli, who, it was announced earlier in the day, would be replaced as the
Post’s editor, a turnover that had been rumored for months. What made it poignant was
that it underscored how tenuous loyalty is among the powerful in this town. The right
job can make you a lot of friends, but if the job goes, so do the friends, or at least
those kinds of friends. Which is why the other topic of the evening was the Petraeus
scandal.
Comedian and erstwhile talk-show host
Dick Cavett was one of the featured guests for the evening, a swanky opening-night party to bring
together the A-listers who would be attending the Bradleys’ annual 2012 Washington
Ideas Forum at the Newseum, a two-day intellectual talkfest they cohost with
Walter Isaacson and the Aspen Institute. Cavett’s one-liner, mentioned while musing on his love of
Groucho Marx, was, “I have a trove of letters from Groucho, but not thousands of e-mails.”
That distinction belongs to Petraeus scandal costars Jill Kelley and General John
Allen, the American commander of international troops in Afghanistan, who reportedly
exchanged e-mails that total 20,000 to 30,000 pages (though some may be duplicates).
Given the week’s heightened atmosphere of scandal, it was impossible to have a Washington
party where all the latest news bombshells didn’t become morsels for discussion, with
Benghazi and the “fiscal cliff” as “also rans.” While servers from Susan Gage Caterers
passed cocktails, fried oysters, mini barbecue sandwiches, and mushrooms on toast,
one guest after another could be heard expressing incredulity about the bizarre events
surrounding now-former CIA director
David Petraeus and his merry band. “It’s just the damnedest thing.” “Where will it end?” “Have you
ever heard of this Kelley woman?” “A lot of reporters know
Paula Broadwell.” A number of journalists attended the party, but none I talked to outed themselves
as a Broadwell intimate.
The evening’s organizer,
Elizabeth Baker Keffer of Atlantic Media, welcomed guests and noted that activist rock star
Bono was in Washington this week, though not at this particular dinner. She had met him
the night before, however, and reported that he is “much shorter than you would expect,
and does a great impression of Bill Clinton.” She then directed everyone’s attention
across the room to a stage where journalist
Margaret Carlson was set to interview
Lizz Winstead, co-creator and head writer for
The Daily Show.
Carlson took a moment to identify herself as the first woman columnist for
Time magazine and then, calling out Isaacson, her former editor, she added, “and also
the last woman columnist at
Time magazine.” When she turned her attention to Winstead, she asked the comedian, “How
many people think
The Daily Show is a news show?” Winstead replied, “Does it matter?” Clips were shown from the program,
which had the audience laughing or groaning. When the screen filled with Clint Eastwood
at the GOP convention, onstage talking to an empty chair, Republican lobbyist
Juleanna Glover sighed and muttered, “You can’t make it up,” which essentially summed up how she
felt about her candidate’s presidential campaign.
Carlson asked Winstead, “What makes politics funny?” Winstead looked surprised. “Is
that really the question?” she asked. A good point. People in Washington, especially
those in media and politics, laugh at the jokes, but they don’t often understand how
the city they take so seriously becomes the joke. Winstead explained that in creating
The Daily Show, “we decided, ‘Let’s have comedians who act and look like correspondents,’” an ironic
ruse they have turned into enduring success. “Now the media tries to look more like
The Daily Show, which makes
The Daily Show more like
The Daily Show.”
Most Popular in News & Politics
See a Spotted Lanternfly? Here’s What to Do.
Meet DC’s 2025 Tech Titans
Trump Travels One Block From White House, Declares DC Crime-Free; Barron Trump Moves to Town; and GOP Begins Siege of Home Rule
The “MAGA Former Dancer” Named to a Top Job at the Kennedy Center Inherits a Troubled Program
Patel Dined at Rao’s After Kirk Shooting, Nonviolent Offenses Led to Most Arrests During Trump’s DC Crackdown, and You Should Try These Gougères
Washingtonian Magazine
September Issue: Style Setters
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
These Confusing Bands Aren’t Actually From DC
Fiona Apple Wrote a Song About This Maryland Court-Watching Effort
The Confusing Dispute Over the Future of the Anacostia Playhouse
Protecting Our Drinking Water Keeps Him Up at Night
More from News & Politics
GOP Candidate Quits Virginia Race After Losing Federal Contracting Job, Trump Plans Crackdown on Left Following Kirk’s Death, and Theatre Week Starts Thursday
5 Things to Know About “Severance” Star Tramell Tillman
See a Spotted Lanternfly? Here’s What to Do.
Patel Dined at Rao’s After Kirk Shooting, Nonviolent Offenses Led to Most Arrests During Trump’s DC Crackdown, and You Should Try These Gougères
How a DC Area Wetlands Restoration Project Could Help Clean Up the Anacostia River
Pressure Grows on FBI Leadership as Search for Kirk’s Killer Continues, Kennedy Center Fires More Staffers, and Spotted Lanternflies Are Everywhere
What Is Free DC?
Manhunt for Charlie Kirk Shooter Continues, Britain Fires US Ambassador Over Epstein Connections, and Sandwich Guy Will Get a Jury Trial