Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/1162043
46 WATCH WHAT HAPPENS, LIVE! BY CHRISTINA GEYER. PHOTOGRAPHY DANA DRIENSKY, GITTINGS, TAMYTHA CAMERON SMITH. E ach year, Community Partners of Dallas' Chick Lit Luncheon grows infinitely larger — and higher profile. My first Chick Lit Luncheon was somewhere around a decade ago: Emily Giffin of Something Borrowed novel fame was speaker, and Brook Hollow Golf Club's ballroom was packed. While I wouldn't call it small, it wasn't, well, massive. But this year's Chick Lit Luncheon was. President and CEO Paige McDaniel and development and communications VP Joanna Clarke moved the event from Brook Hollow to the Hilton Anatole hotel years ago, so they could have thousands more seats to fill. And they have done so in spades, typically selling out the Chantilly Ballroom in a snap, with big names such as Tim Gunn and Katie Holmes. This year proved their largest yet. Co-chairs Leigh Anne Haugh and Amy Hegi, with honorary chair Amy Prestidge, wrangled Bravo TV host and producer Andy Cohen to serve as speaker. Real Housewives fever hit the city, and the event sold out several months before the luncheon. So many tickets were sold, in fact, that the event was moved to the Anatole's enormous Trinity Ballroom. A record-breaking 1,600 guests attended, and Cohen didn't disappoint. His witty banter was, of course, on point — and his observations on being a new dad were heartwarming. The takeaway? I must come up with a novel way — there will be no joining the cast of The Real Housewives of Dallas — to be invited as a guest on Cohen's hit show Watch What Happens Live. I'm smitten. BRAVO STAR ANDY COHEN LIGHTS UP CHICK LIT LUNCHEON. Cara French, Lucy Wrubel Laura Black, Laura Conway Mark Meadows, Paige McDaniel Heather Cole, Kristen Saxton Leigh Anne Haugh, Amy Hegi Andy Cohen, Amy Prestidge Mandy Davenport, Allie Stensrud, Katy Miller Korey Williams, Lara Tafel Muffin Lemak, Shelby Wagner, Claire Emanuelson Fernanda Alvarez, Catherine Hill, Catalina Gonzalez Mimsy Brewster Jane Kwak, Ann Wool Pat McEvoy, Shelle Sills