An invitation going around for a golf tournament at Pelican Hill begs the question of which date Wisconsin Guv Scott Walker is asking OC donors to save. The near term has him looking for golfers for the 5th Annual Reagan Cup to benefit the Republican Governors Association, an outing set for July 16, according to the invite from the man who fought the public-employee unions in Wisconsin and won. Have to wonder if Walker will have another date in mind—Nov. 8, 2016—as he rubs elbows at the tourney …
No shortage on coverage of these parts lately in The Wall Street Journal, which had three stories with OC datelines—two on the front page, one on the first page of an inside section—in a recent two-week span. A March 25 piece looked at Dana Point-based Pintar Investments, which has been scooping up houses throughout OC and now owns or manages 1,700 of them. The report said Pintar and other institutional investors are grabbing just about any home available here under $400,000, a trend that’s frustrating for individual buyers but also credited for bringing “stabilized prices” and an improved “market psychology.” A March 29 piece highlighted Vivante, a $62 million luxury retirement rental development in the works near Hoag in Newport Beach. April 9 saw OC back on the front page with coverage of Mariners Church Senior Pastor Kenton Beshore, who’s expected to be among 300 evangelical clergy members in Washington, D.C., this week to lobby for immigration reform, with expectations that they’ll try to convince GOP lawmakers to go along with pathways to citizenship …
There were noontime champagne toasts all around as Mikimoto in South Coast Plaza recognized a jewel of a different sort—South Coast Repertory, which is gearing up for its 50th season this fall. Longtime patron Julia Argyros unveiled details of the Sept. 21 gala, which will be celebrated on the repertory’s premises, with her namesake stage converted into an after-hours nightclub. Repertory founders Martin Benson and David Emmes cracked the funniest lines, but Managing Director (and Emmes’ wife) Paula Tomei had the best observation: “Half a century has passed with every season operating in the black. How many theaters or arts organizations of any kind can say that?” …
Congratulations to Bishop Kevin W. Vann and Fred C. Helms, the U.S. Bank vet hired last week as COO of Christ Cathedral, the new name of the Crystal Cathedral campus in Garden Grove. And to Hager Pacific Managing Partner Rob Neal, who said he could “think of no better choice to help us embrace this enthusiasm and ensure an even brighter future for Catholics in our diocese.” Neal had another reason to cheer: He put in more than a year of double-time as volunteer interim COO before the hire of Helms …
Silicon Valley rich guy Eric Greenberg recently chipped on John Hueston in a New York courtroom, comparing the local lawyer to My Cousin Vinny. The comment came during a case over charges that a batch of vintage wine Greenberg sold to energy mogul William Koch included $350,000 worth of fakes. Hueston matched Vinny by winning the case, getting his client $381,000 for damages …
Jeff Margolis on life after the $1.4 billion sale of his TriZetto Health Group in 2008: “I failed at semi-retirement.” Reporter Jane Yu has more on Margolis in her story on this page.
