THE LATEST HAPPENINGS
AT BALLANTINES PR

This year, Travel + Leisure’s 2018 World’s Best Awards ranked the St. Regis Bora Bora Resort as the #1 Best Resort in the South Pacific, and #41 Top 100 Hotel in the World. The world-renowned magazine’s annual awards showcase the greatest islands, cities, hotels, cruise lines, airports and more, voted on by its readership. Though there were many top contenders in the South Pacific, Travel + Leisure readers and editors concluded that the “sheer romance” of the 2018 winner, the “paradisiacal” St. Regis Bora Bora, was hard to beat. Visit the stunning overwater villa resort and indulge in the crystal-blue water, white sand beaches, and unparalleled views Bora Bora has to offer. To read more about the Travel + Leisure 2018 World’s Best Awards, please visit:
https://www.travelandleisure.com/worlds-best/resort-hotels-south-pacific#st-regis-bora-bora-pool.

For more information, please contact kendal@ballantinespr.com.

From the 2018  Toronto International Film Festival ®,  Autograph Collection Hotels announced Academy Award and Emmy-nominated and Golden Globe award-winning actress and producer Maggie Gyllenhaal as Independent Film Advisor to the brand’s Indie Film Project, a multi-faceted platform designed to support the art of storytelling by shining a light on today’s most talented screenwriters, filmmakers, and distributors working in independent film.

In her role, Gyllenhaal has evolved the Indie Film Project’s Screenwriters in Residence program in which screenwriters, who share Autograph Collection Hotels' ethos of individuality and an independent spirit, are selected to take residence at the brand’s hotels around the world. Gyllenhaal was personally inspired by Virginia Woolf’s famed feminist 1929 essay “A Room of One’s Own,” which argues the importance of literal and figurative space that women writers need within a literary tradition dominated by men, stating: “A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.” Its message of refuge evokes the same sentiment that the brand’s Screenwriters in Residence program aims to give emerging screenwriters.

Gyllenhaal selected three powerful female screenwriters – Sarah Jane Inwards, Amanda Idoko, and Chiara Towne – from Hollywood’s buzzed-about  Black List (which curates the industry's most liked yet unproduced screenplays) to spend a week at an Autograph Collection hotel of their choice, offering an inspiring space, time and unrivalled hospitality to polish an existing script or develop new material.

"Just as every great film begins with a great screenplay, each one of our hotels has been built with a story meant to inspire, engage and connect us,” said Jennifer Connell, Vice President, Autograph Collection Hotels. “With the Indie Film Project in its third year, we have become unexpected patrons of an important industry that shares our values, and we are honored to continue fostering its talented community of independent storytellers.” 

For more information, please contact
dara@ballantinespr.com.

This coming October 20th, Global Down Syndrome Foundation will hold their 10th annual Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show, the single largest Down Syndrome fundraiser in the world, during Down Syndrome Awareness Month. An amazing lineup of advocate models and celebrities (i.e. Jamie Foxx, John C. McGinley, Amanda Booth, Ellery Jones, Sam Cronin, DeOndra Dixon, and more) will rock the runway at this inspiring event, which will honor film stars Colin Farrell and Zack Gottsagen as they receive Global’s Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocacy Award (Q Award). Since its establishment, the event has raised over $16 million, which underwrites life-changing research and life-saving medical care. For more information on how you can support the cause, please visit www.bebeautifulbeyourself.org or  www.globaldownsyndrome.org.

The University of Southern California and Larry Ellison announce a new, dynamic home for the Lawrence J. Ellison Institute for Transformative Medicine at the Expo Station, a boldly designed contemporary building being developed by The Luzzatto Company in the heart of West LA.

Led by Founding Director and CEO David B. Agus, MD, Professor of Medicine and Biomedical Engineering at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and USC Viterbi School of Engineering, the Ellison Institute aims to change the status quo in research and medical care through patient-centered innovation, technology, and convergent science. 

The Ellison Institute’s new 79,000-sq. ft. building will house a cancer clinic, interdisciplinary research laboratories focused on scientific discovery and innovation, a think tank, community education and outreach, and a wellness program. It is slated to open in May 2019.

For more information, please contact
trisha@ballantinespr.com.

The luxurious La Prairie Spa at Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills has unveiled the latest seasonal offerings just in time for the holiday season. With three new packages, there is sure to be a wellness offering tailored to everyone on your list. Starting November 12, these new offerings will be available:

• Gift of Platinum
  Rejuvenating Platinum Facial / 60 minutes
  Platinum Massage / 60 minutes
  *includes gratuity, valet, with a white hot chocolate
  $550


• Gift of Gold
  Perfecting Radiance Facial / 60 minutes
  Radiance Massage / 60 minutes
  *includes gratuity, valet, with an old fashioned coffee soda
  $500


• Gift of Caviar
  Caviar Lifting and Firming Facial / 60 minutes
  Caviar Massage / 60 minutes
  *includes gratuity, valet, with a Blue Curacao mocktail
  $450

“These new packages showcase the best treatments that La Prairie has to offer and utilize the most high-quality products,” said Amanda Raich, Spa Director. “Everyone enjoys the opportunity to be pampered and our luxe spa is the perfect relaxation retreat this holiday season.”

For more information, please contact
kendal@ballantinespr.com

Jean-Georges Beverly Hills, legendary French chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s first West Coast venture, announces the launch of two new specialty menus – Lunch38 and Social Hour. Housed within Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, the acclaimed restaurant’s latest offerings are perfect for guests looking for a quick lunch or after-work refreshment.

Curated for those on-the-go, Lunch38 introduces a seasonal, prix-fixe menu for just $38. With three courses available, guests can choose from signature starters such as Tomato Gazpacho and Ahi Tuna Tartare, followed by favorite entrees including the Chicken Parmesan, Steak Frites or Grilled Wagyu Cheeseburger. Lunch38 is available daily from 11:45 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

At Jean-Georges Beverly Hills Bar & Lounge, the new daily Social Hour presents guests with a special selection of refreshing sips starting at $10 and popular bites starting at $14. The early evening menu includes delectable choices such as Avocado Carpaccio Pizzetta, Crispy Sushi and Grilled Wagyu Sliders that can be paired with a Rosé-Aperol Spritz or Spicy Paloma. Available daily from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Social Hour also features a live piano performance from Wednesday through Saturday starting at 5:00 p.m.

Cattle & Claw, the sizzling hot pop-up restaurant located at the Sofitel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills, announces the extension of its residency at the prestigious hotel. Cattle & Claw has a single purpose: to give in-the-know omnivores a place to enjoy two of the world's favorite foods – lobsters and burgers.

Due to popular demand, Cattle & Claw is happy to announce a newly-curated menu created for the fall/winter season, adding even more comfort food to their renowned five- and ten-ounce burgers, truffle and sweet potato fries, and spiced lobster rolls and lobster salads. The new menu launched on September 22, the autumnal equinox marking the first day of fall, and includes decadent lobster mac'n'cheese, a delicate lobster bisque, a savory poutine, and the ultimate epicurean delight, surf’n’turf.

Special brunch menu items include a lobster frittata, lobster benedict, lobster waffles and more, all washed down with two hours of bottomless Mimosas, Bloody Marys or Lobster Bloody Marys. There are special burgers created just for brunch, too, which happens from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. each weekend and features a DJ.

For more information, please email
trisha@ballantinespr.com.

The second season of HBO’s hit series Big Little Lies is airing soon and guests at  Portola Hotel & Spa now have the opportunity to live like the ladies of Monterey. Book a Big Little Getaway in Monterey at the Portola Hotel & Spa and experience all the Monterey Peninsula has to offer. Located in downtown Monterey, Portola Hotel & Spa is just steps away from Fisherman’s Wharf (home to the Big Little Lies café, more commonly known as Paluca Trattoria) and walking distance from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Explore the coastline and take a scenic drive over Big Sur’s Bixby Bridge or relax on the beach of Carmel-by-the-Sea.

• Two-night stay in a Harbor View Room
• Warm chocolate chip cookie upon arrival
• Area Map including driving directions to scenic 17-mile drive
• Breakfast for two with bottomless mimosas each morning in The Club Room
• Bottle of 10Span Pinot Noir delivered to your guest room
• Complimentary Monterey Bay Aquarium tickets for two, 2-day admission
• Big Little Lies season one DVD

For more information, please email
trisha@ballantinespr.com.

October is breast cancer awareness month and Valpak has partnered with Susan G Komen to support the 1 in 8 women who will develop breast cancer at some point in their lives. For the first time ever, Valpak has turned its iconic Blue Envelope® pink to help raise awareness and funds for the cause. The pink envelope invites you to nominate a hero who has taken action in the fight against breast cancer, which will enter you in for a chance to win one of 25 KitchenAid Cook for the Cure® appliance sets (average retail value of over $800). Additionally, the October Valpak envelope will feature a special pink die-cut certificate inside for 500 lucky recipients, who will instantly win a KitchenAid immersion blender. Visit valpak.com/komen today to nominate a hero and donate – and be sure to look for your specially-marked pink envelope in your mailboxes for a chance to win some great pink appliances!

For more information, please contact
trisha@ballantinespr.com