Got into my very first post-Emmy Governor's Ball tonight. It was easy to get to: you just walk down the hall from the press tent and into the ball. But I had to go back to the parking structure at USC first to drop off my laptop so I wouldn't look like a nerd blogger at this fancy party.
So, got there and ordered a diet coke then began to circle the room, looking for stars like Lucy Ricardo in an episode of "I Love Lucy." I quickly realize that there are many more non-stars here than stars. So this is gonna take some work. It's not easy to circle the room when teams of food servers keep marching out of the kitchen with scarily focused precision. In other words, get in their path at your own peril.

OK! My first sightings. Sitting at a table in the middle of the room are Marcia Cross and her hubby and across from them are Patricia Heaton and Kelsey Grammer. Alright, I'm cookin now. There goes Conchata Ferrell, making her way to the ladies room. I sure wish she had won for "Two and a Half Men." I was rooting for her.
Meanwhile, Brad Garrett is sitting with a table of folks I don't recognize and is eating his dinner. I don't know what they served since I was just a mingler, not an official guest. I know it was meat (filet mignon?) and a potato and it all looked really fancy - Food Network fancy.

OK, jackpot. This is the "Ugly Betty" table, or tables, and I see Eric Mabius kissing someone's Emmy. America Ferrera is nowhere to be seen so I assume Mabius is smooching the Emmy won by Richard Shepard for directing the "Betty" pilot. Also spot Michael Urie and the kid who plays Justin whose real name escapes me at this late hour. And Ana Ortiz is there too, looking lovely.

Tony Bennett has just been introduced and he's gonna sing! i make my way to the center of the room. This, I gotta see...and hear. He does three numbers including "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" and is in incredible form. Is he 81 now? Amazing."
Back to star sightings: I see Thomas Haden Church arrive, Emmy in hand and he is standing with the gang from "Broken Trail" including fellow winner Robert Duvall. Then this was cool: I'm plotting my next move when I tiurn around and essentially am face-to-face with Al Gore, the former vice president of the U.S. and an Emmy winner tonight. I say, "Congratulations Mr. Gore." He smiles, says "Thank you" and we shake hands. I'm kinda giddy for a few seconds then spot LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa who is just being surrounded by all these people - mostly women. He seemed to be trying to make his way out of the room was constantly being stopped, asked to pose for pictures etc.

I decide to make one last circle around the party before heading out. i spot Glenn Close standing at a table talking to people, including Edward Asner. At another table, I see Ben Vereen talking to his "Roots" co-star Leslie Uggams.
I didn't see Sally Field at the ball but on my way in, I did see her walking out of a press tent with her son and before I knew it, I said to her: "Great speech!" She paused for a moment, looked over her shoulder and said: "Thank you!" Then she walked into the night...