Behind the scenes for Obama’s speech: What went into President Barack Obama’s well-received array of jokes on Saturday night at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner? About two weeks of work, says Jon Favreau, the president’s chief speechwriter. Favreau told The Examiner that that’s how long it took himself, speechwriter Jon Lovett, Obama political adviser David Axelrod and a team of joke writers to craft the punchlines. He also said they spent several hours on Friday, working out his opening sight gag with the teleprompter screens.
Favreau’s flame: Speaking of Jon Favreau, we may be seeing our next “PoliWood” power couple in Favreau and Rashida Jones, as we spotted them being more than just friends.
The speechwriter and the actress arrived together Saturday night, marking the second time this weekend the twosome showed up to an event together. That’s not enough to claim them as a couple, but after they walked the red carpet (separately) Favreau placed his hand on her backside and led her through the crowd.
Seeing that she didn’t slap him, we think they got something going on. Stay tuned.
‘Gossip Girl’ star: It’s not all glamour: Let’s hope the middle of the night went better for “Gossip Girl’s” Chace Crawford than the beginning and end did. Two hours before the festivities began, the teen heartthrob was spotted at the Washington Hilton bar scarfing down chicken tenders and a Diet Coke. And then late at night, he was seen getting turned away at the door of the Vanity Fair/Bloomberg party.
Couric: What’s $5 million?: After the dinner was over, CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric was overheard chatting with a few folks, including Dave Price, who handles weather for the “Early Show.”
She commented on how much she liked the centerpiece at the president’s
head table, and then told Price she’d give him $5 to walk around the room with it.
He said, “$5? Try $5 million.”
She laughed and said OK, so he gamely grabbed the arrangement and began parading it around the room.
Sew him up: Why was Reggie Love, the personal aide to President Obama, sporting stitches on his chin Saturday night? A rough basketball game during the day.
Love, President Obama, Education Secretary Arne Duncan and a group of friends gathered at Fort McNair on Saturday afternoon for a round of pickup games.
Turns out it was a bit physical. Love had to get seven stitches, and lamented to the White House pool reporter that he couldn’t shave before the dinner.
The president’s team won three of five games. “One of the young guys said the president was much stronger than he looks and if they were invited for a replay in three weeks they’d get up every morning to prepare,” read the pool report.
Not the best timing: That was Michael Abramowitz receiving the Aldo Beckman Award for sustained excellence in White House coverage on Saturday. But, as the Correspondents’ Association had to point out in his title, Abramowitz is “formerly of the Washington Post.” You see, after Abramowitz was shuffled from the White House to the diplomatic beat late last year, he bolted the paper for a position with the Holocaust Museum.
Blind item!: What PR executive got into the Vanity Fair/Bloomberg party by saying he was Richard Wolffe, the former Newsweek correspondent turned Public Strategies exec?
