We made a list and checked it twice. Now find out if you are on it.
Robert Higdon photographed at an interior design client’s residence. (Photo by Tony Powell)
We wanted to do something a little different with the 20th anniversary edition of The Washington Life Social List. So many wonderful characters have come and gone over the two decades since we started our roster of the capital’s most prominent citizens — which has now grown to around 750 individual listings of “notably social individuals from politics, diplomacy, business, philanthropy and the arts.”
“Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” you might say, and that would certainly be the case with regard to our decision to feature seven of Washington’s most prominent women in a special portrait essay to mark the occasion. These very grandes dames — Ruth Buchanan, Buffy Cafritz, Ann Jordan, Polly Kraft, Kate Lehrer, Diane Rehm and Marie Ridder — have graced our pages from the start. Not only are they more fascinating than ever, we heard they had quite a bit of fun during their sittings with our Principal Photographer Tony Powell!
Many of our ladies have strong ties to Georgetown, which was one of the reasons we asked noted defense policy expert Mike Pillsbury to take a look at the book that has everyone abuzz in that storied enclave these days. His review of “The Georgetown Set: Friends and Rivals in Cold War Washington” is fascinating indeed. On a lighter side, you’ll be amused by the “tips” we’ve lifted from one of the season’s most entertaining reads, “The Social Climber’s Bible,” especially if you aren’t aware of the “Three Questions You Should Never Ask at a Cocktail Party”!
