Join us! Liberace on the Riviera: Century of the Showman February 25, 2019
Posted by jonathanwarren in Uncategorized.add a comment
Las Vegas Take Monte Carlo 16 May 2019, curing Monte Carlo Fashion Week, with Liberace on the Riviera!
Liberace is turning 100!
Over six decades ago, Liberace became the first headlining residence act on the Las Vegas Strip, selling out the Clover Room at the Riviera Hotel night after night.
The residency act in Las Vegas continues to this day to be the model of Rod Stewart, Gwen Stefanie, Lady Gaga and many more.
The Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas was themed for one of Liberace’s favorite locales, The Principality of Monaco. It’s Monte Carlo Tower was the Strip’s crowning glory in those early glamorous days. The Clover Room was named for the symbol of famed French author Louise de Vilmorin, who had just received the Prince Pierre of Monaco Literary award.
Sixty years after Liberace cut the ribbon to open the Riviera Hotel, his Foundation hosted the hotel’s last party.
Now, celebrating the Century of Liberace, one hundred parties may take place around the world, but…
View original post 113 more words
Las Vegas Shootings October 2, 2017
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consulate of Monaco, Uncategorized.Tags: Las Vegas Shooting, Mandalay Bay, massacre
add a comment
Last night Las Vegas, Nevada suffered the deadliest mass shooting in American history. As of this writing, at least 50 are dead and over 200 wounded.
The shooter was a local 64-year-old white male resident of Mesquite, Nevada. He fired a fully automatic machine gun from the 32nd floor of Mandalay Bay Hotel into a crowd of thousands assembled for the Harvest Music Festival on the Las Vegas Strip. The shooter was killed by police, who report that he acted alone and that international terrorism is not being considered as a motive.
The Consulate recommends those in the area utilize the Facebook Safe system to notify friends and family of your status. If you are looking for a Monaco resident or citizen whom you suspect may have been in the vicinity, please contact Consul Warren at +1 702-714-0059 or jw@consul.cc.
We are devastated by this horrific event. Our hearts break for all of the victims, as we too search for friends who were in attendance.
Line Renaud to again welcome Liberace to Paris March 30, 2017
Posted by jonathanwarren in Uncategorized.add a comment
The Honorary Consul of Monaco in Las Vegas has the honor of hosting Line Renaud at the Paris Museum of Modern Art, for a celebration of the 98th birthday of Liberace, on the occasion of the opening of the tremendous exhibit entitled “Medusa: Jewelry and Taboo.” The exhibit spotlights the impact of jewelry on cultures throughout history and features the artifacts and influence of Liberace. Pianist/composer Chloe Flower will open the exhibit with a performance on the Liberace Crystal Piano, which will remain on exhibit at the Museum.
Line Renaud under the her name in lights at the Dunes
The undeniable influence of the Paris on the Las Vegas Strip involves several personalities, including John C. Fremont and Louise de Vilmorin. But it was another grand dame of the City of Light who wove her way into the very fabric of Las Vegas culture.
Frederic Apcar’s brilliant licensing of France’s Casino de Paris, and his production of that show at the Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas, brought us arguably the most significant French personality to impact Las Vegas: Line Renaud. This tremendously popular singer, actress and stage personality moved to Las Vegas to star in Casino de Paris in 1963. She would return over the years, and was a key public figure at the opening of the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas, which she represented in France as its Good will Ambassador.
Line Renaud welcomes Liberace to Paris, France, 1955…
View original post 148 more words
THE PRINCESS CHARLENE OF MONACO FOUNDATION USA MAKES A BIG SPLASH FOR DROWNING PREVENTION AND CHILDREN’S POOL SAFETY May 3, 2016
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consulate of Monaco, Princess Charlene of Monaco.Tags: drowning prevention, Monaco Royal Family, Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, water safety
add a comment
The former Olympic swimmer champions water safety education by launching her foundation in the US and is honored for her commitment to the welfare of children through sport
LOS ANGELES, May 3, 2016 — On Wednesday, May 11, Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene of Monaco will launch the U.S. chapter of her foundation with an event at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica to highlight learningto-swim and water safety programs for youth. Along with U.S. Olympians Greg Louganis and Dara Torres, the Princess, a former Olympic swimmer, will be on hand with more than 40 local children, ages 8-13 from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Monica – Saint Anne School branch, to participate in the Safer 3 Water Safety Foundation’s Challenge. Santa Monica’s Mayor Tony Vazquez will present a Mayoral Proclamation to the Princess to mark the occasion.
“Around the globe, thousands of innocent lives are tragically lost to drowning every year. I am here to share with you how many lives we are saving – and how many more we can save, simply by training the trainers and by focusing on one person, one family, and one community at a time. Having spent years teaching underprivileged children to acquire basic water safety techniques around aquatic environments, I can only say that simple ideas are often the most effective,” said Princess Charlene.
In 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated* that drowning claimed the lives of 372,000 people worldwide, which represents 42 people per hour or more than 1000 people per day (latest statistics available) – and that drowning kills more children than tuberculosis or measles. To combat these devastating statistics, Princess Charlene set up her foundation in 2012 which has implemented an international three-tiered mission focusing on learning-to-swim, water safety, and sport and education programs to educate children and young people – regardless of their origins, culture or circumstances – and to arrange amateur sporting competitions which encourage healthy, active lifestyles, the value of friendships and team spirit.
The foundation’s US board of directors includes, as president, H.E Maguy Maccario Doyle, Monaco’s Ambassador to the United States; Ms. Wallis Annenberg, president and CEO of The Annenberg Foundation; Mr. Greg Louganis, Olympic and world champion diver; and Ms. Dara Torres, Olympic and world champion swimmer.
Ambassador Maccario Doyle said, “It is a privilege, and indeed a pleasure, for me to support Her Serene Highness in the United States in her quest. We will work hard to promote water safety, sport and education programs, with a focus on the young, as well as the precious values of good sportsmanship like respect, teamwork and fair play. These values are central in Princess Charlene’s personal ethics. Her dedication to the safety and welfare of children, in particular, around the world is truly admirable and is to be applauded.”
“Princess Charlene has a unique and beautiful platform to engage kids with sports, and I’m honored by, and grateful to her, to help promote these values. I’m thrilled to have this opportunity, through the foundation, to help bring such important fundamentals into the lives of young people. Learning to swim can be life-saving, but is also a process that can be fun for the entire family,” said Mr. Louganis.
On May 12, the prestigious Blue Ribbon of The Music Center in Los Angeles, will honor the Princess with a special lunch at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in order to present her with a commemorative award in appreciation of her commitment to enriching the lives of children, and to acknowledge and welcome the launch of the US chapter of her foundation. The event entitled “Behind Palace Doors: A Conversation with Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene of Monaco” will be held under the honorary chairmanship of Wallis Annenberg. Mary Hart, TV personality and former host of Entertainment Tonight will be mistress of ceremonies.
The foundation’s US chapter launch is supported by the Annenberg Community Beach House at Santa Monica State Beach, the Safer 3 Water Safety Foundation, Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Monica – Saint Anne School branch, Dick and Noelle Wolf, Jacqueline Tesoriero, Renee Pepys Lowe, Larraine Segil, and Straps Unlimited, LLC. To learn more, please visit www.PCMFUSA.org and join us on Facebook.
_______
About the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation USA, Ltd. The US chapter is a not-for-profit organization, incorporated in New York State in 2016 to further the goals of the parent foundation which was established by Princess Charlene of Monaco, a former Olympic swimmer for South Africa, to promote water safety, sport and education programs particularly for children and young people. This 501(c)(3) (pending) charitable organization will promote the benefits of sporting activities; teach children and adults basic swimming, water safety, first-aid and drowning prevention skills, and foster national or international amateur sports competitions. Since the parent foundation was set up in 2012, under the Princess’s presidency and the vice presidency of Monaco’s Sovereign, H.S.H. Prince Albert II, more than 100 water safety programs benefitting almost 100,000 people, mainly children, have been implemented in Monaco, South Africa, Australia, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Canada, Chile, France, Ghana, Greece, India, Indonesia, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Morocco, Nicaragua, Peru, Philippines, the Dominican Republic, Senegal, Sudan, Serbia, Tanzania, Thailand, the USA, and Zimbabwe. http://www.fondationprincessecharlene.mc and http://www.PCMFUSA.org
Editor’s Note: Photography and videography of this event to be covered exclusively by Getty Images. Captioned images and video footage will be available after the event and by request to press contacts below. Interviews, by prior request to press contacts, will be available with the Foundation’s President, Ambassador Maguy Maccario Doyle, and board members Ms. Wallis Annenberg, Mr. Greg Louganis and Ms. Dara Torres.
Press Contacts: Pam Golum (The Lippin Group): pgolum@lippingroup.com 323-965-1990 Elle Berdy (Embassy of Monaco): eberdy@monacodc.org 917-689-7424 *Copied with permission from the publisher – Fact sheet N°347, April 2014, published by the World Health Organization (who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs347/fr)/
Alexandra Leigh-Hunt, daughter of Consul Henry Leigh Hunt, passes December 14, 2015
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consulate of Monaco, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Consular Corps, Uncategorized.Tags: Alexandra Leigh-Hunt, Henry Leigh Hunt, Las Vegas Consular Corps, Leigh S. J. Hunt, Louise de Vilmorin, Nevada Consular Corps
1 comment so far
Madame Leigh-Hunt was the last surviving of three daughters of Huntridge and Las Vegas Strip developer Henry Leigh Hunt and famed French author Louise de Vilmorin.
DECEMBER 7, 2015 — SAGHARBORONLINE.COM –//
“Alexandra Leigh-Hunt died peacefully in her sleep on December 2, 2015 in her home in Sag Harbor. Noted in equal measures for her elegance, the warmth of her hospitality and the conviction of her opinions, she was 85 years old and in failing health.
The middle of three daughters of Louise de Vilmorin, the noted French poet, and Henry Leigh-Hunt, an American entrepreneur and decorated veteran of the Battle of Belleau Wood, Ms. Leigh-Hunt was born on April 1, 1930 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, a suburb of Paris. She bore the burden of April Fools with grace.” — see entire obituary
Henry Leigh Hunt with daughters Jessie (standing) and Alexandra. circa 1930 -Alexandra Leigh-Hunt Collection
Having won the Prince Pierre of Monaco Literary Award in 1955, Alexandra’s mother, Louise de Vilmorin, was invited to cover the 1956 wedding of TTSSHH Prince Rainier III and Princess Grace, in Monaco for Marie Claire Magazine.
She had recommended her former husband, globe trotting adventurer and Las Vegas property magnate Henry Leigh Hunt, to be Honorary Consul of Monaco in Las Vegas. He had been appointed by Rainer III and confirmed by President Dwight Eisenhower in January, 1956, becoming the first Consul of Monaco and thereby opening the first consulate ever in Nevada.
Consul Jonathan Warren and Alexandra Leigh Hunt, Sag Harbor, Aug. 2013 Consulate of Monaco Collection
Alexandra was also the granddaughter of International empire builder Leigh S. J. Hunt, who first envisioned the Las Vegas Strip and attracted its first investors.
Consul Jonathan Warren was fortunate to have had the opportunity to have interviewed Ms. Leigh-Hunt, by her generous invitation in August of 2013, in Sag Harbor New York. The interview provided critical information and photos which will be published in an article in Las Vegas this spring. A book will follow.
We at the Consulate were saddened to hear of the passing of Alexandra Leigh-Hunt. Our condolences to the many family and friends mourning her loss and remembering her long and interesting life.
Fête du Prince sees expanded program for Monaco Consular Corps in the USA and Canada December 4, 2015
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consul of Monaco, Consulate of Monaco, Fete Nationale, Las Vegas Consular Corps, Nevada Consular Corps, Principality of Monaco.Tags: fete du Prince, Fete Nationale, Monaco
add a comment
The consuls of Monaco in the USA and Canada convened as usual for National Day celebrations in Monaco. Under the leadership of Monaco’s Ambassador to the USA and Canada, H.E. Maguy Maccario-Doyle, the program for north American consuls included an additional day of behind-the-scenes tours and official meetings.
The new Honorary Consul of Monaco in Boston, Rina Spence, founder of the Spence Center for Womens Health among many other accomplishments, attended for the first time.
1972 Obituary of Consul Henry Leigh Hunt March 25, 2014
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consul of Monaco, Consulate of Monaco, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Consular Corps, Nevada Consular Corps, Prince Rainier III of Monaco, Principality of Monaco.Tags: consul, Henry Leigh Hunt, Louise de Vilmorin
3 comments
HENRY LEIGH HUNT
1886-1972
Henry Leigh Hunt, Age 43
Photo: Jonathan Warren Collection
The following is an exerpt from the obituary of Henry Leigh Hunt, Honorary Consul of Monaco in Las Vegas from 1956 to 1963. It is believed to have been written the end of December, 1972.
Henry Leigh Hunt, 86, who died Thursday at the American Hospital in Neuilly was a descendant of both John Adams and Daniel Boone. During his long and adventurous life, he showed many of the characteristics of each.
Born in Des Moines, Iowa, he became a blood brother of the last monarch of China, hunted for many months with a renegade Assiniboine tribe in Canada, lived on a cotton plantation in the Sudan, captained the Yale polo team, was a mucker in a mine in Colorado, surveyed the Alaskan wilderness, learned gunfighting from the sheriff of El Paso, built a railroad in Brazil, was decorated by the French and American armies for his bravery in Belleau Wood, worked as a banker in Paris and as a real estate operator in Las Vegas.
The love of his life was the beautiful French poetess Louise de Vilmorin. Although their marriage ended in divorce, they remained close and in 1962 he returned to France to be near her. He spent his last years at Saint-Lambert-des-Bois near Paris, and it is there, in the graveyard of the little church he loved, that he will be buried at 11 AM Tuesday. He is survived by his sister, Mrs. Bayard Rives, and by his daughters, Jessie Wood, Alexandra Horsey and Helena Baxter, and by his twelve grandchildren.
He dearly loved a good meal, a good drink, a good story. To the end, he always said, “I have lived a good life.”
Although the above obituary (provided by his descendants) was likely submitted to newspapers in New York and Las Vegas, it does not appear either ever printed it. Given the exceptionally low profile and spectacular life of Henry Leigh Hunt, some speculate that the papers simply thought it too fantastic to believe.
Consul of Monaco Provides Historic Context to Huntridge Theater Debate June 23, 2013
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consul of Monaco, Consulate of Monaco, Las Vegas Consular Corps, Nevada Consular Corps.Tags: Consular Corps, Consulate, Henry Leigh Hunt, Huntridge, Las Vegas, Monaco
add a comment
HSH Prince Albert II serves as Honorary Chair of One Drop event in Las Vegas March 25, 2013
Posted by jonathanwarren in Consul of Monaco, Consulate of Monaco, Las Vegas, Las Vegas Consular Corps, Mayor Goodman, Monegasques in the USA, Prince Albert II of Monaco, Principality of Monaco, Uncategorized.Tags: cirque du soleil, Consulate, Guy Lliberte, Las Vegas, Monaco, Principality
add a comment
The Sovereign Prince of Monaco lent his influence to the cause of potable water and sanitation development Friday night.
When Cirque du Soleil co-founder Guy Laliberté asked HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco to be the Honorary Chairman of the One Night for One Drop event at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, the Prince quickly agreed. Consul Warren joined other attendees at the VIP cocktail reception at Hyde at Bellagio in viewing a special video greeting from His Serene Highness.
The participation of the Prince is more that simply a kind gesture for a friend. The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation maintains water issues as a primary area of focus. Mr. Laliberté and Prince Albert II have worked together on the matter much.
Las Vegas Monaco Private Label friends Dr. and Mrs. Grover with Monaco resident Ross McBride and Consul Warren at the One Night for One Drop VIP Reception
One Night for One drop was a tremendous success. The event drew thousands. Many not only attended the show, but also the VIP Cocktail Reception at Hyde at Ballagio, and the after-party which ran until 1:00 a.m. There the pool was covered with a transparent floor and tented, housing a luxurious venue for musical acts, sumptuous culinary delights and libations.
More on the work of One Drop and the Prince Albert II Foundation:
Las Vegas Consul of Monaco Co-Founds Aspen Consular Corps March 12, 2013
Posted by jonathanwarren in Aspen Consular Corps, Consul of Monaco, Consulate of Monaco.Tags: Aspen Consular Corps, Consulate, Monaco, Principality
add a comment
On March 9, 2013 the Republic of Lithuania created the first Consulate based in the prestigious resort town of Aspen, Colorado, when Honorary Consul Dr. John Prunskis was appointed to the newly formed post.
Consul Paulina Biggs Sparkuhl (Chile); Consul John Prunskis (Lithuania); Consul Astra Michels (Lithuania); H.E. Žygimantas Pavilionis, Ambassador of Lithuania; Consul Vyautas Lapatinskas (Lithuania); Consul Jonathan Warren (Monaco) at the formation of the Lithuanian Consulate and the Aspen Consular Corps.
Consul Warren met Consul Prunskis at the World Congress of Consuls in Monte Carlo in November of 2012. At the finale event there, Consul Warren drafted the indenture forming the Consular Corps of Aspen, Colorado. The founding Dean of the Corps is Consul Prunskis, and two other founding members include the Honorary Consul of Chile in Las Vegas, Paulina Biggs Sparkuhl and Honorary Consul of Monaco in Las Vegas, Jonathan Warren. Both Consul Biggs Sparkuhl and Consul Warren have consular districts which include Colorado. The document was executed by the three founding members, and witnessed by numerous consuls at the World Congress last year.
On March 9th, Consuls of Lithuania from Las Vegas and Seattle joined the newly formed Aspen Consular Corps in welcoming H.E. Žygimantas Pavilionis, Ambassador of Lithuania, to open the new consulate. The events included speeches and traditional dance, followed by a cocktail with the Mayor of Aspen and other members of the local community.
Honorary Consulate of the Principality of Monaco in Las Vegas 