A thin, homeless girl was being escorted out of a lavish charity gala by two security guards. She looked at the piano and screamed, “Can I play the piano for a plate of food?” The guest of honor, legendary pianist Lawrence Carter, stepped forward, brushed the guards aside, and said: “Let her play.” What happened next left the room silent.
The annual gala for the “Opportunities for Youth” foundation was the glittering, suffocating apex of the Los Angeles charity season. Mrs. Eleanor Davenport, the city’s reigning philanthropist and a woman whose generosity was matched only by her ruthlessness, moved through the opulent ballroom of the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in a cloud of bespoke silk and … Read more