Animal Farm

THE PARTY Interior designer Michael Smith and HBO executive James Costos opened their Holmby Hills house to guests, many of whom had visited the organization’s farms in Acton and Orland, Calif., and in upstate New York, where rescued cows, turkeys, chickens, pigs, goats, sheep and other animals roam free on sprawling meadows. THE PLAYERS Peggy Lipton, Lu Parker, Seamus and Juliana Dever, Dax Miller, Alexandra von Furstenberg, Kevin Nealon, Gene Baur, Tony Kanal, Laura Theodore, Dan Piraro, Rory Freedman, Susie Coston THE HIGHLIGHTS Vegan hors d’oeuvres in hand, guests wandered through the house’s lush yet stately interiors (Smith decorated the White House for the Obamas) and immaculately manicured grounds. Coston and Theodore entertained with stories of finding sick cattle at auction and nursing them back to health, then letting them roam on farms and befriend other rescued animals. As images of the creatures flickered across screens, actress Emily Deschanel and husband David Hornsby offered to match donations made throughout the evening to feed and shelter the furry friends. Photos Courtesy of Alex J. Berliner