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Access Atlanta > Blog > Archives > 2007 > January > 04 > Entry
Engagement passes fiery test
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Fur Bus co-owner Rick Butgereit and PR maven Meg Reggie could be excused Wednesday for still attempting to process the holiday season.
For the past year, the couple has been spotted around town together at various media functions. So it was not a huge shock then that on Dec. 21, while dining at the Capital Grille in Buckhead, Reggie received a surprise that wasn’t on the menu: a ring box.
“He knows what a commitment phobe I am, so he gave me the choice of wearing it on my left or right hand,” Reggie recounted Wednesday. The ring didn’t fit on her right hand but fit perfectly on her left.
Two days later, the pair got to road-test those future “for better or worse” wedding vows when Butgereit’s house in east Cobb County went up in flames as the family slept. Butgereit’s oldest son put his hand through a window to fight the flames with a garden hose as the family escaped the burning house.
Many of the family’s Christmas gifts that had been stashed in the opposite end of the house were soot-covered but unharmed.
“The support from our community has been amazing,” Butgereit told us. “They gave us clothes, blankets, food and anything else we could possibly need.”
Meanwhile, Reggie’s ex-husband, esteemed celebrity and society wedding photographer Denis Reggie, has offered the use of his house and a car to the couple.
Looking on the bright side, the pair say that now they can avoid that pesky deliberation about where to live. Joked Butgereit: “Besides, I’ve been meaning to remodel anyway. I guess you could say I took the short route.”
AUCTION ITEM OF THE DAY
Not sure if you want to road trip it to New Jersey for next week’s court-ordered public auction of Whitney Houston’s personal belongings? All week as a public service, Buzz will painstakingly thumb through the auction catalog to preview various items for you.
Today’s item: No. 227: A beaded Versace catsuit. This sparkly black one-piece number comes complete with splotches of green, gold, blue and red and is adorned with, an, um, interesting animal and people print.
Rathbun Steak gets cooking online
As the city continued its journey back from the tryptophan-induced doldrums of the holidays Wednesday, we were excited to see that the Web site for Kevin Rathbun Steak, the Atlanta chef’s latest Inman Park creation, had suddenly gone live online. Here’s what we were able to determine from the info posted at kevinrathbunsteak.com:
The 145-seat eatery is scheduled for an early spring debut. The Johnson Studio, which has already transformed the interiors at the chef’s other two venues — Rathbun’s and Krog Bar — is busy creating a space with dark hardwood flooring and a wood ceiling. The steakhouse will also have “the look of a modernized speak-easy where in the past, only the ‘in the know’ people would know where the place would be.”
There was no immediate word whether that means the upcoming meat emporium would go signless, à la Seeger’s and Halo …
‘The View’ returns
Buzz Central’s “long national nightmare” resumed Wednesday as “The View” returned live on ABC. Natch, “View” den mother/executive producer Barbara Walters, seemingly well-rested from vacation, felt it necessary to also resume the pre-holiday feud between Rosie O’Donnell and The Donald. And Walters made it clear that she’s standing by O’Donnell in her bitter battle of words with Donald Trump.
Walters said she never told Trump she didn’t want O’Donnell on the show, as he has claimed. “Nothing could be further from the truth,” she said.
“She has brought a new vitality to this show, and the ratings prove it,” Walters said of O’Donnell, who is on vacation this week. When she returns, Walters said, “We will all welcome her back with open arms.”
Walters also took a moment to smooth things over with Trump, who got all riled up when O’Donnell said on “The View” that he had been “bankrupt so many times.”
“ABC has asked me to say this just to clarify things, and I will quote: ‘Donald Trump has never filed for personal bankruptcy. Several of his casino companies have filed for business bankruptcies. They are out of bankruptcy now,’ ” Walters said.
A phone call to Trump for comment wasn’t immediately returned Wednesday.
Uncoupling
“Lost” actress Emilie de Ravin has separated from her husband after six whole months of marriage, her spokesman confirmed Wednesday.
The 25-year-old Australian actress, who plays Claire Littleton, and actor Josh Janowicz, also 25, were married in Melbourne in June, publicist Jeff Raymond said. It was the first marriage for both. They have no children.
Celebrity docket
A judge in the Anna Nicole Smith baby dispute has given the former Playboy Playmate until Jan. 23 to have her daughter undergo paternity testing sought by a former boyfriend, the man’s attorney said.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Schnider ruled in favor of the 39-year-old Smith’s ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead last month. Birkhead claims he’s the father of Dannielynn Hope Marshall Stern, who was born Sept. 7 in the Bahamas.
It wasn’t known when Smith’s daughter might have the DNA test.
“We can’t make it any easier for her,” said Birkhead’s attorney, Debra Opri.
An after-hours phone message left for Smith’s lawyer, Ronald A. Rale, wasn’t immediately returned.
Celebrity birthdays
Actress Jane Wyman is 93. Actress Dyan Cannon is 70. Bernard Sumner of New Order (and Joy Division) is 51. Country singer Patty Loveless is 50. Singer Michael Stipe of R.E.M. is 47. Country singer Deana Carter is 41. Actress Jill Marie Jones (“Girlfriends”) is 32.
Contributing: news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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