Coming back to the East End on the bus I picked up lots of good dish. I mean you can't just read the whole trip.

Southampton producer Patricia Watt has an early Father's Day present for her dad, the revered theater critic Douglas Watt, and it's not a tie! Patricia and her colleague, Jennifer Dumas, executive producer of last season's over the top tribute to the legendary Patricia Neal, "Hooray for Hollywood," are breathing new life into the annual Fred & Adele Astaire Awards and reviving the much anticipated awards after a hiatus of three years. Ava Astaire McKenzie, Fred's daughter, is simply thrilled that the awards are back on the theatrical calendar, and along with husband, artist Richard McKenzie, will serve as Honorary Chairs for the June 2 gala in the Grand Ballroom of the historic Manhattan Center Studios.

Judith and Rudy Giuliani. Photo by PatrickMcMullan.com

Patricia's dad, an early supporter of the awards, was just tickled but even more so when he learned that the committee would be presenting at this year's gala the first Douglas Watt Lifetime Achievement Award for excellence in dance to nine time Tony Award winner, and my favorite tall Texan, Tommy Tune. In my book, the courtly, erudite Doug so deserves to have this award named in his honor. Before retiring to his Southampton home, he wrote on music, opera, and dance for The New Yorker for some 50 years while serving as Senior Drama Critic for the Daily News, for even longer.

We'll be seeing a lot more of another well-known New York gent this summer, former New York Mayor, and presidential wannabe, Rudy Giuliani, has returned to work this week at his law firm, Bracewell & Giuliani. Rudy, whose commanding early lead in the polls quickly evaporated as primaries began, admits he's looking forward to coming back to a world that makes sense to him.

His political strategies and judgment along the campaign trail took heavy criticism from pundits, and the experience has left him a little hurt, but he and wife Judy are looking forward to enjoying their Bridgehampton home in peace once again. Whether you are a Republican, Democrat, or whatever, next time you see the Giuliani's at Sant Ambroeus smile, he's been through the mill.

I am definitely going to give a big smile and a hearty congrats to hedge fund king Jim Simons and his wife Marilyn the next time I see them strolling on the Wharf in Sag Harbor where they anchor their truly enormous yacht each summer. Jim, the former chairman of the math department at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is setting the course for a major development at the Long Island campus. The couple is donating $60 million to the University, the largest gift ever to any of New York State's public institutions. The donation will be used to build the Simons Center for Geometry and Physics at Stony Brook, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Jim headed up Stony Brook's math department from 1968 to 1976 and went on to become president of Renaissance Technologies, Inc., considered one of the most successful hedge funds in the world. Marilyn Simons received her Ph.D. in economics from the University and is president of the Simons Foundation. Clearly, these are two of Stony Brook's favorite alumni. In total, the Simons' have now donated – hold on to your hats folks - nearly $85 million to Stony Brook. Hear, Hear!

Another generous heart is East Hampton's Ronald Perelman, chairman of MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings Inc., who has made a $50 million gift to be divided equally between New York-Presbyterian Hospital and Weill Cornell Medical College in support of health care in New York City and around the world. The gift will establish the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute and support new research and clinical care initiatives at the internationally renowned Center for Reproductive Medicine - which will now be known as the Ronald O. Perelman and Claudia Cohen Center for Reproductive Medicine.

As you all know, Ron and Claudia Cohen were once Mr. & Mrs., and even though several marriages followed their split, she remained the love of his life as friends saw at her funeral last year.

The new Heart Institute will function as a "medical town square" complete with a patient-friendly welcome center, a clinical trials enrollment center, and an interactive education resource center that will include the latest medical information on heart disease, with an added focus on cardiac disease in women. The newly named Ronald O. Perelman and Claudia Cohen Center for Reproductive Medicine will be uniquely positioned to build upon Weill Cornell's tradition of groundbreaking developments that have changed the lives of people by making it possible for them to have a child.

The Stella Adler Studio of Acting will honor Martin Sheen, Pamela J. Newman, Liz Smith, and the late Roy Scheider at their upcoming "Stella by Starlight" dinner at Cipriani's. Roy served as Vice Chairman of the famed Studio for many years. A new scholarship will be inaugurated for our old friend Roy and a passel of pals from the Hamptons and Hollywood will be on hand to salute him. Mercedes Ruehl and husband David Geiser, Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson, Mike Medavoy, Tommy Tune, Christine Baranski, Kathleen Turner, Elaine Stritch, Holland Taylor, and director Jack O'Brien will be among the glittering crowd.

Speaking of Miss Turner, I am so pleased to tell you that her Broadway directorial debut has the New York critics showering her with praise for her work on "Crimes of the Heart". From the entertainment Bible Variety to the mighty New York Times, the reviews are positively effusive. Way to go Kat!

Getting back to the director's chair also is Montauk's Pulitzer, Tony, and Drama Desk award winning playwright Edward Albee. He'll direct an evening of his one-act plays "The American Dream", a startling story of murder and morality that rocks middle class ethics to its complacent core, and "The Sandbox", an allegory on life and death. He has the very talented Broadway vets Judith Ivey, Myra Carter, and George Bartenieff as his stars. Edward believe it or not turns 80 next week! Happy Birthday, Mr. Albee.

What do you get when you combine a gifted composer and hands-on parent with a bunch of bright kids eager to learn about music? Here in the Hamptons that combo spells Bruce Wolosoff and the Hayground Creative Orchestra, the successful outgrowth of an intensive three-week musical composition workshop for kids from six to 13 at Hayground School. For the fourth year in a row, Bruce is composer in residence and will conduct a free to the community concert with the students on Mar. 19.

A much respected composer, Wolosoff has focused on opera in recent years, composing for the Center for Contemporary Opera in New York and members of the Royal Danish Opera. Most recently, he completed "Songs Without Words", a large scale set of pieces scored for amplified string quartet, for the Carpe Diem String Quartet. At the conclusion of his Hayground residency, Wolosoff will begin scoring the feature film "Iron Cross", a revenge thriller written and directed by Joshua Newton that was Roy Scheider's last film (the late actor and Hayground co-founder was a close personal friend of the Wolosoff's).

More culture notes: The Southampton Inn is starting to resemble that famed literary bastion The Lotos Club in hosting significant cultural events. Owner Dede Gotthelf and her new team have paired up with the North Sea Poetry Scene (NSPS) to continue their efforts to present diverse cultural activities for the East End community as well as their international clientele. The Inn will host a special presentation of the NSPS, an afternoon with two of Wales' most prolific and acclaimed poets, Aeronwy Thomas, daughter of famed Dylan Thomas, and Peter Thabit Jones on Apr. 2. The afternoon will feature readings by the acclaimed poets, a Q & A session and a reception featuring wine and hors d'oeuvres created by Southampton Inn's four star chef Peter Dunlop.

I can't tell you how shocked I was to hear that New Line Cinema co-CEOs Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne were shown the door when Warner Brothers absorbed the 40-year-old studio, which produced the "Lord of the Rings," "Rush Hour," and "Austin Powers" blockbuster franchises. Within the industry, the two men are regarded as visionaries who had the chutzpah and power to bring to the screen the work of such directors as Robert Altman, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Peter Jackson.

My insider friends told me that the very genial Lynne was totally blindsided by the Time Warner punch, especially as they were hoping to capitalize on their "Lord of the Rings" success with two more Hobbit-themed Peter Jackson films. Lynne and Shaye may have missed the mark with the Nicole Kidman vehicle, "The Golden Compass" but their "Semi-Pro" with Will Ferrell is a box office smash.

Personally, I don't get it – but that's Hollywood. At least Michael has his very successful vineyard, Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue, to keep him busy while he ponders his next move in filmdom. I don't see Michael, one of East Hampton's most creative producers, going quietly into the night. Stay tuned!