The Upfronts - another reason to love this town!

Outsiders say L.A. is summer all year round, but the longer you live here, the less subtle the season changes are. In fact, I don't even need to be outdoors to know that summer is coming, because I have THE UPFRONTS to remind me!

Ah, taking in Ron Perlman's intricate bone structure

Sorry about the all-caps, but upfronts get me all kinds of worked up! Though I'm not in New York to see the live broadcast, where all the networks reveal their shows and drag out their talent for the upcoming season, the party gets piped in live to L.A., and there is always celebrating! While you are wined and dined by the networks, you get a sneak peak at all the new shows before the public does.

Fresh mini doughnuts? Yes please!

I remember being the first to see Modern Family at ABC. They were so proud of their new gem, that we watched the entire episode, instead of just a snippet. The historic El Capitan Theatre was alight with laughter as we ate through buckets of free popcorn. Another one of my favorite things at the ABC upfronts is Jimmy Kimmel, who gets on stage and rips ABC and every other network to shreds. And we eat it all up, this abuse.

CBS, keepin' it real!

Time Warner hosts their Summertime is Cabletime parties, which are boozy, in the swankiest hotels and are always a blast. With more and more quality programming going to cable stations, they have a lot of leverage and film talent.

Time Warner party

But perhaps one of the most exciting upfronts is at CBS, where you wander around the set of The Price is Right, cocktails in hand. I got to spin the wheel. Does anything get better than that? Well, I suppose spinning the wheel on the live show and landing on that glittery 100 has to be pretty amazing. But would I want to be that winning contestant who still must leave all this glitz, in order to lug my new dining set back to Duluth, Minnestota?

"Whoa!" - it's Joey Lawrence!

 Upfronts are definitely the "love" part of my love/hate relationship with L.A..

No photo booth prop goes unnoticed!

Have a Nice Drai!

Drai's in Hollywood not only has a rep for being celeb party central, but the photo gallery is filled with so many gorgeous twenty-somethings in up-to-the-minute fashion, it's enough to keep me home to curl up with Crown Royal and my Sex and the City box set. Who has time to look that beautiful? And please don't tell me they were born that way. It would kill me.

But Time Warner was kicking off their Summertime is Cabletime party at Drai's, which always rings in the summer for me. It's like Media Memorial Day. How could I resist?

The place was awash with airy white cabanas with beds, Moroccan lamps and the clamored-for view of Hollywood: from above. Servers passed around sparkling cranberry cocktails, Kobe sliders and mini cupcakes. A bunch of the the Lakers showed up, including Rick Fox with Eliza Dushku. Joey Lawrence was there with his fancy eyebrows, along with a few reality stars. 

Bliss Spa employees milled about, giving hand massages with their scented lotion. Everyone walked away with a bottle to keep. They set up a back massage area amidst candlelit lounges. Vintage-style synchronized swimmers in flowered caps slipped into the sparkling blue water to do a few numbers. Ray-Ban was on hand with mirrors and a selection of sunglasses. People sampled and walked away with their favorite pair, in addition to gift bags filled with treats, such as aluminum water bottles, kitchen wares from The Food Network, Vitamin Water and swag from The History Channel.

It was a great time. Right up there with my Crown Royal and Sex and the City box set.