The Sunset Strip was the place to be for the “Rock Star” premiere after-party.
WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Sept. 4, 2001 — Leather pants, shimmery backless tops and bedazzled black concert tees were the uniform of the evening at the post-premiere party for Rock Star, which took over the House of Blues for a night of raucous rock-and-roll revelry.
A horde of V.I.P.s descended upon the Sunset Strip and crowded outside the House for entry–so many, in fact, that V.I.P. status suddenly didn’t mean much to the many real-life rock stars who tried to find a less conspicuous way in but found themselves waiting in line with everyone else. The flow inside went smoothly, however, and once inside the House was Rock-in’.
The film’s star Mark Wahlberg was the man of the hour, looking sharply studly in an elegant black T-shirt that hugged his famous abs. Wahlberg shmoozed effortlessly with the assembled Industry-bes and wanna-bes. “It was fantastic,” Wahlberg said of watching the film surrounded by a plethora of genuine rock gods. “I was sitting there with the real guys!” He also said that Brad Pitt, who was attached to the film for quite awhile before making way for Wahlberg, gave him kudos for his performance.
Speaking of Mr. Pitt, he graciously stuck to the shadows as his missus, Jennifer Aniston, who co-stars in the film, sent flashbulbs a-poppin’. You can probably forget any real-life pregnancy rumors for the Friends star, despite what her character Rachel may be facing. Ain’t no way Jen and another person, no matter how tiny, could fit into the sleek and oh-so-revealing little black frock she was wearing (“Could she BE more thin?” whispered one catty girl in Chandler Bing-esque style as Mrs. Pitt walked by).
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Jennifer and Brad quickly adjourned upstairs to the V. (for “Very”) V.I.P. Foundation Room upstairs, where Limp Bizkit’s Fred Durst, director Quentin Tarantino and porn star Ron Jeremy listened to “virtual karoake” sung by real rock stars strumming a tennis racket (no, really!) that electronically translated their random plucking into real music. Aniston chatted with a trio of Playmate types before she and her hubby disappeared into one of the House’s many “secret” rooms hidden behind a phony wall.
Rock-and-roll war-horses like KISS’s Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons (sans makeup) mingled with the new breed–including members of Orgy, Korn and Concrete–while stars David Alan Grier, Jon Favreau and David Spade (note to Davey: the era of Kurt Cobain flannel is over, at least for now) dug into a sumptuous buffet spread in the House’s funky The Porch restaurant.
Downstairs, a younger and even more energetic assembly of beautiful people got amped by a live cover band that played a ceaseless stream of ’80s hits from the likes of Bon Jovi and Whitesnake. A luminous-looking Rachael Leigh Cook–not exactly rocker-chic in a sprightly tangerine dress–banged her head alongside Once and Again star Shane West to a rip-roaring version of Judas Priest’s “Another Thing Comin'” and cheered when the band ripped into a heavy metal interpretation of an N’ Sync song.
The bash continued on until about 2 a.m. and the vibe was refreshingly without any notorious rock star attitude. Even bad boy Durst stopped on his way into a taxicab to compare notes with a street musician strumming Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s “Relax” on his guitar as his scruffy yellow dog watched the sea of limos depart into the night.
