HIGHS AND LOWS
This was supposed to be a great week for Sidney Harman. The head of Harman International Industries (and husband of Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif.) was one of 11 individuals being honored by Washingtonian magazine Tuesday at its annual “Washingtonians of the Year” luncheon.
Recommended Stories
But, then Monday arrived, and it was a Black Monday for Harman indeed: The stock of Harman International Industries took a nose dive, closing at $43 a share (down 38 percent). It was HII’s worst single-day performance since it went public in 1986.
So Harman had plenty on his mind when he took to the microphone at the Willard Hotel. Harman — a patron of the arts whom the Washingtonian described in its latest issue as “a modern Medici” —
said to laughter , “If theater is right — if life is irony and paradox — consider that yesterday my stock was hammered and today I’m deified by the Washingtonian.”
All the world’s a stage, right?
Harman was joined by his wife and the other 10 honorees (such as C-SPAN’s Brian Lamb, Matt Gerson and the family of the late David Rosenbaum, who were honored for their work reforming Washington’s Emergency Medical Services system). The event was emceed by WAMU’s Diane Rehm and notables in the crowd included WJLA’s Maureen Bunyan, Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler, Rusty Powell of the National Gallery, Shakespeare Theatre Creative Director Michael Kahn and members of the Merrill family, who own the Washingtonian.
Several “Washingtonians of the Year” from years past also attended, including former GWU President Steve Trachtenberg, author Ron Kessler and longtime White House reporter Helen Thomas.
