Aug 20, 2007

Celebrity Beat: Carmen Electra

Electra heads inside Bon V.

Carmen Electra made a local stop Saturday to host RedHot Midnight Kiss, an event benefiting the West Side homeless shelter Primo Center for Women and Children, at the just-opened club Bon V (1100 W. Randolph St.).

It was a commendable cause—the 27-year-old Primo keeps mothers and children together, and helps its clients locate permanent housing—but it was the night’s sexy host who catapulted attendance. "Our head count was around 600 for the six-hour event," event co-chair Jeff Fisher says. Not bad, especially considering that organizers were expecting 350 attendees, and ticket prices ranged from $250 to $10,000. The evening raised $90,000 for Primo.

Electra spent most of the night behind bodyguards dancing to hip-hop, but we managed to catch a few minutes to chat in a corner booth. The pretty, petite model-slash-actress said she’d just finished shooting Hunting and Fishing in New Orleans with Kevin Sorbo; the flick, from the writers of Scary Movie, takes a crack at the Spartan battle film 300. Electra also dished about her new workout DVD and her gig as the face of a new Max Factor campaign. “It’s a dream come true,” she told me. “I love makeup!” The 35-year-old self-proclaimed girlie girl admitted she doesn’t leave the house without mascara or lip gloss, and counts Marc Jacobs, Roberto Cavalli, and Diane Von Furstenberg among her favorite designers. "I have so many favorites; it really depends on the season," she said. On Saturday, Electra shone in a blue-green beaded Jenny Packman dress and chunky Neil Lane bangles.

Owners Cannon and Urlacher

As for Bon V (the name is a play on “the good life” in French), “We’re not even technically open to the public yet,” co-owner Hunter Cannon told me. Cannon, 35, who also owns Ta’Too and Hye Bar, has partnered with 27-year-old Casey Urlacher, brother of Brian, in the new 7,500-square-foot West Loop nightspot. The pair kept a low-profile Saturday, but Cannon says they’re aiming for an official grand opening on Saturday, September 1st.

Photography: (Image 1) Jason Gorenstein; (Image 2) Sarah Preston

Posted at 05:23 PM in Nightlife | Permalink

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