By Jay Betsill
The Saturday before the big game, better known as Super Bowl Eve, got off to an early start as the celebs in town were finally treated to a decent temperature that is more in line with what those of us who live in DFW have come to expect. While the DIRECTV Celebrity Beach Bowl drew a big crowd in Victory Park, I was a few football fields away at the luxurious Crescent Court Hotel for the Style Icon Lounge. Why would I pass up an entertaining beach football game featuring Alex Rodriguez, Warren Moon and Kevin Dillon playing as well as an appearance by the Dallas Mavericks Dancers? Not to mention a free concert by Maroon 5. The great Bonnie-Jill Laflin was at the Crescent. Enough said.
Next up was a quick lunch before a hard nights work. We ducked into the Smashburger across McKinney Ave. from the Ritz-Carlton and the Crescent, only to spot Johnny Drama — Entourage star Kevin Dillon — chowing next to us before snagging a dessert at the Cupcakery next door. And before I knew it, it was time to hit the party scene.
The big parties on Super Bowl Eve in Dallas caused a massive amount of traffic as the downtown and Uptown streets became overloaded with beautiful people wearing their best outfits and driving expensive cars. While it was impossible for me to hit every one of the big soirees, it was not for lack of trying. Here is a quick rundown of some of the highlights from my trip through one of the biggest party nights in the history of Big D.
For this amazing night of parties, I had my own driver to avoid the hassle of valet and $50 parking lots. And I decided that this is definitely the way to go in the future. The Mark Cuban Super Bowl Party presented in conjunction with HDNet and DIRECTV was an epic invitation-only event that had a massive line of people down Victory as far as the eye could see. The Insider correspondent Christina McLarty was on hand to conduct blue carpet interviews. Celebs on hand included ‘The Situation,’ ‘Red Zone’ host Andrew Siciliano, Spike Lee, Victoria’s Secret supermodel Marissa Miller, Jerry Ferrara from Entourage, Lana Tailor, the crew from The Dan Patrick Show, Michael Johnson, Mark Cuban and the headline performer of the night, Usher.
The Maxim Party powered by Motorola Xoom in Fair Park featured performances by Wyclef Jean and Jason Derulo, and other big names on the guest list: Jerry Bruckheimer, Terrell Owens, Delroy Lindo, ESPN’s Erin Andrews, Melissa Rycroft, Chuck Liddell, Chris Brown, Adrian Grenier and Kevin Connolly of Entourage, Craig Robinson of The Office, Chord Overstreet of Glee, Guy Fieri, Maxim cover girl Olivia Munn, hair guru Paul Mitchell, Chad Ochocinco, Jesse Metcalfe, Darelle Revis, and Quinton Aaron of The Blind Side. It was set up as a ‘State Fair’ for adults with plenty of activities to keep everyone busy. I was partial to the Skee Ball!
Everything’s Bigger in Texas LIVE hosted by Bonnie-Jill Laflin had a great scene in a heated tent set up next to the Patio Grill in Uptown. Entertainment was provided by Cherisse. The Rachel Starr Super Bowl party at Experience was a great time. It was my first time in the new venue and was fun to watch her interact with all of her fans as the place got crowded quickly after its 9:00pm start time. Mere steps from Rachel’s party was the new mega-club ZOUK with its Hall of Fame party honoring Deion Sanders with a performance by Snoop Dogg.
The Leigh Steinberg Super Bowl Party was a star-studded affair held at Eddie Deen’s Ranch. It took us awhile to get there as the Miller Lite/Jerry Jones party featuring Drake at House of Blues and the Bud Light Hotel traffic contributed to a major delay. Among the big names on hand were Yankees Nick Swisher, former Bills head coach Marv Levy, Cowboys Hall of Famer Rayfield Wright, Raiders legendary QB Jim Plunkett, Mr. Cowboy Bob Lilly, Earl Campbell, Serena Williams and former President George W. Bush. The entry was flanked by Mercedes sedans on either side and included a $225K Mercedes on display inside the party. With its decor and and tasty BBQ, the party had a really cool Texas vibe to it. It was also my final stop of the evening.
One last item remains as there is actually a football game to be played between the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers at Cowboys Stadium on Sunday Feb.6. Here’s hoping it will be an instant classic settled in the final seconds and change the national media topic from the winter weather to a great game at the worlds greatest stadium.
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