South O' the Highway (and the North too)

East Hampton's P. Diddy has been spending time in the city for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Last weekend, after the shows, the rapper turned designer partied with fashion heavyweight Zac Posen and model Angela Lindvall at the new Mansion Nightclub on W. 28th Street.

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Hamptonite Kim Catrall, whose upcoming Sex and the City movie comes out May 30, supported the arts and her friend Rosie O'Donnell at the closing show for Applause at the City Center last Friday.

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Nicole Miller was a big hit this past (Fashion) week at Bryant Park, showcasing a Joan of Arc-inspired wardrobe. The fashion designer with digs and friends on the East End creatively turned martyrdom into glam.

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Jean-Claude Baker of East Hampton, who owns and runs Chez Josephine Restaurant in New York, is exhibiting a massive collection of memorabilia about his mother, the famous dancer Josephine Baker who took Paris by storm many years ago, in the show windows at Macy's Herald Square until the end of February. It's an astounding collection and celebrates Black History Month. Go see it.

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The inimitable Kathleen Turner is still making waves with her sharp tongue. The actress, who put her Amagansett six-bedroom pad on the market last summer, is being sued for libel by Nicholas Cage, the actor she reportedly tears apart in her new memoir Send Yourself Roses: Thoughts on my Life, Love, and Leading Roles.

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Philanthropist and Hamptonite Pete Peterson, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and current Chairman Emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, recently received the David Rockefeller Award at the Museum of Modern Art for his philanthropic efforts. Peterson, the father of Holly Peterson, author of last summer's best-selling beach book The Manny, is giving away $1 billion to charitable causes.

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East Hampton's Steven Spielberg has gotten praise for his much publicized decision to drop out as artistic director of the upcoming 2008 Beijing Olympics. Spielberg, director of Schindler's List, is opposed to China's involvement in the ongoing genocide in Darfur.

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Actress/singer Jennifer Lopez is soon to give birth, and the Bronx native has a room ready on our own Long Island. The Latina star, wife of singer Marc Anthony, has a furnished, private room at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset.

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Bellport's Anna Wintour, Vogue editrix, toasted her friend Spencer Morgan, New York Observer writer, at his surprise birthday party last weekend at Chrystie Street eatery Sammy's Roumanian Steakhouse in Manhattan.

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Andre Balazs beat out fellow Hamptonites Beth Ostrosky, Padma Lakshmi, Alan Cumming, and Parker Posey for a pair of Piaget diamond earrings and a matching necklace at the annual Tribeca Ball charity auction held at the New York Academy of Art. The hotelier, who owns Shelter Island's retro hotel and bar Sunset Beach, paid $20,000 for the sparkling set.

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The Sag Harbor summer rental listed at nearly $400,000 (for just Memorial Day through Labor Day), a record price for the area, has been taken for the summer, much to the disdain of many hopeful bidders. The seven-bedroom, nine-bath home on two waterfront acres comes equipped with a private beach, a floating dock, a croquet course and other amenities to boot. It's listed for sale at $16 million.

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A Sag Harbor mansion may be making some noise this summer. The Estate, owned by Tenjune nightclub owners Mark Birnbaum and Eugene Remm. Though the owners stress that it isn't a "party house," The Estate has some upcoming high-profile events. Visitors have already included the likes of James Blunt, David Blaine, Mischa Barton and Michelle Rodriguez.

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Tyra Banks dined at the Plaza Café in Southampton last weekend. The talk show hostess was relaxing out East with some friends.

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