Willow Manor Ball: Just Friends

What a night it is proving to be at  the Fourth Annual Willow Manor Ball.

The above video shows you just a few highlights. We’d heard the manor was quite large and “quirky” but weren’t prepared to see something with such an amazing mix of luster and oddity. Not only are there the hardwood floors that might have made Valentino rethink his comment about tile is the preferred surface for the tango, but at the push of a button, the lady of the manor revealed a huge ice skating rink adjoining the ball room on which she spun on skates with Mr. Williams.

There have been quite a number of marvelous tunes throughout the night, but we’ve shared just a few of our favorites here. “Just Friends” really set the tone of the night. We won’t speculate on whether or not there was a bit more than dance steps going on between the lady of the manor and Archibald (she is a married woman, after all), but it’s hard not to believe that there may have been more going on than just a twinkle in their eyes.

The formal but high-spirited nature of the first half of the evening quickly changed and got a tad political with the arrival of Air Force One and the Commander-in-Chief decked out in Wild West Garb and accompanied by that other icon from the Windy City, Oprah.

“Just call me Buck,” the man from the Oval Office commanded as he showed amazing flair for square dancing. Though he insisted that it was not a political gig, he did admit that one of the best ways to reach swing voters is through country swing.

Finally free of her five-shows-a-week routine, Oprah announced that she will be touring in 2012 in a production of Annie Get Your Gun which begins try out next month in Branson, Missouri, at the Ray Stevens Theater.  It turns out that Oprah has quite a pleasant singing voice.  Not quite “Mermanesque” but she definitely can carry a tune.  However, we are concerned that she is trying to put a little too much spiritual and social import into what is just a fun, old-fashioned show.  We started getting worried when she said that she hopes her version of “You Can’t Get a Man with a Gun” serves as a “teachable moment about urban violence and reconsideration of gender roles.”

Throughout the evening, the lady of the manor proved to be not only a delightful hostess but a great dancer who seemed to maneuver and amazing array of musical styles and seemed to pop in and out of a head spinning number of gowns, jump suits and even a prairie dress.

The Junk Thief Team was represented by our chief astrologer/cosmologist Dr. Alton V. Youwells, VII, the Chair of the Desert Studies Program at Ludlow State University in the Mojave Desert. Alton brought along what was clearly the most titled guest of the evening, the Duchess of Alba, the most titled woman in the world. Though she is about to marry a 60-year-old boy toy, she was quick to cut the rug with Alton.

There also seemed to be a high number of comics on hand. We were graced to have the talents of the two grand dames of Baby Phyllis and Saint Joan, but then there were two newcomers who, sadly, generally fell flat with their one lines — Grizzly Mama and Crazy Eyes. There was just a bit too much desperation in their attempts to humor the audience. Willow was gracious to them, but it was Saint Joan who finally asked them to leave and the party went on much more smoothly from there on.