Doug Dechert

The Transom refused to attend Toby Young's book party last night, even though it was clearly the must-attend party of 2002. Did one really have to attend to report it?

Rachel Sklar was in an effusive mood, her rockin' bod swaying slightly with the off-genre Soho House soundtrack. She warmly greeted the overly well-dressed reporter Greg Lindsay. Mr. Lindsay brushed aside compliments on his tan, the result of long hours this summer spent on the fun-loving eastern side of Ocean Beach. Remy Stern rolled his eyes roofdeck-ward almost imperceptibly as Jessica Coen made a crack about the cokey bathrooms of Soho House.

They were all trapped in the so-called "library" room, which contains no books. It was a room too small to contain such egos.

Early enough, Mr. Young's ploy came to fruition. He, and his co-hosts, had invited both Ian Spiegelman and Doug Dechert. The two feuding gentlemen had clearly been in training for this party: both had obviously been consuming massive amounts of carbohydrates in preparation for this moment.

Spencer Morgan in The New York Observer, February 20, 2006:

"Doug, are you going to reach out to Ian?" asked Webster Hall promoter Baird Jones; he is an old friend of Mr. Dechert's and knows how to push his buttons.

"Oh, yeah--I'm gonna reach out with my fist, right in that fuckin' schnoz of his," said Mr. Dechert. He gave his prepared (and likely well-worn) quote about Mr. Spiegelman: "He's a little media mediocrity, and he has the instincts and countenance of a rodent."

(Mr. Spiegelman, reached for comment, declined to be goaded into battle for a second time. "He seems a little obsessed with me. It's kind of gross," wrote Mr. Spiegelman in an e-mail. "I really don't want to be associated with that person at all. And, no, he's not in my book. I write dark, but not that dark.")

And so the boys, at last, shoved each other a wee bit. One question remains: How did Jared Paul Stern, in town just for the night and looking natty, not get any ink out of this party yet?

Where Dreams Come True  read more »

Where Dreams Come True: Making the scene with Robert Verdi, Amanda Lepore, Janice Dickinson, Miss U.S.A., Miss Universe and porn queen Jenna Jameson, who answers the question, "What residue are you left with as a byproduct of your career?" The Pud-Pounder: Doug Dechert, who's currently working at pimping out Page Sixer Richard Johnson's artist son, celebrated his 49th birthday this weekend. Is he still pissed off about a betrayal by his old teenage lover, Abigail Vona, and her pals like Jay McInerney? Oh hell yes. But how was the party? "I think it's a very nice event; it's a lovely crowd of people, and I wish Doug the best. But I would imagine this would be the same scene at his funeral," said a friend of the birthday boy. Next Fashion Week: September 8, 2006: Fashion week may be over--but so is Hilary Duff. Plus! Anna Wintour admits to fashion mistakes. Ladies' Rankings: Of the 62 hottest it-girls in Manhattan, who won the celebutante contest that is fashion week?

On the afternoon of June 22, Christopher Hulbert was speaking into his cell phone with the tremulous  read more »