Life in the cast lane

By Mark Shanahan & Paysha Rhone, Globe Staff  |  October 7, 2008

Boston native David Rapaport has hit the big time in LA. The casting agent, responsible for unearthing the stars of "Gossip Girl" and the new "90210," has been nominated, along with former partner Lindsey Hayes Kroeger, for a Casting Society of America award - the Artios Award for Outstanding Achievement in Casting a Dramatic Pilot, to be presented Nov. 10. Rapaport, who got his start in Boston with Kevin Fennessy, said finding stars for "Gossip Girl" was a challenge, because the books had already set the characters firmly in teens' minds. "For each role, we probably read 200 to 300 people," he said. "We were looking to break out new talent." He said he always had Blake Lively in mind, since he saw her in "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants." Rapaport said he's proud of the cast's success. "It was exciting to watch them develop. Most importantly, I wanted no divas, no egos, just a good group of kids. And they are." He also cast for the movie "Quarantine," in theaters Friday.

Checking in on the Mandarin

A swanky crowd of high rollers gathered in the lobby of the new Mandarin Oriental, Boston yesterday to sip wine and watch Mayor Tom Menino and hotel developers Robin Brown and Stephen Weiner (along with their wives, Marcia and Roberta, respectively, and the hotel brass) cut the fancy red ribbon. The party also featured dancing men dressed as Chinese lions and a solemn feng shui blessing by Mandarin bigwig Terry Stinson. Taking in the scene were city councilor Michael Ross, construction magnate John Fish, Massport director Tom Kenton, powerbroker Kevin Phelan, the Rev. Ray Hammond, and Mizu salon owner Elan Sassoon and his wife, Adriana. Weiner gave a heartfelt speech, in which he detailed the 13-year project and thanked his late partner, Julian Cohen (Cohen's wife, Carol, was in the crowd). Weiner added that his 11-year-old granddaughter Rachel is already working on him to hold her bat mitzvah at the Mandarin, because " 'It will be free!' Free! What a great concept," he joked.

Board meeting

Former Brookline-ite Coan "Buddy" Nichols and his codirector Rick Charnoski will roll into the Harvard Graduate School of Design Friday to screen their documentary, "Deathbowl to Downtown: The Evolution of Skateboarding in New York City." They'll be joined by urban planning professor Jerold Kayden, whom they interviewed about how 1960s zoning laws shaped the landscape that would become a playground for city skaters. Nichols said the pair wanted to get away from California's suburban, surfer-centric skateboarding history and explore how graffiti artists and other skaters used boards for transportation in the '70s. It's a topic Nichols has a soft spot for. He skated Boston "when the Orange Line was still an elevated train," he said. "We were going down to South Boston and getting chased by locals. That's the life of a skater . . . being kicked out of everywhere."

Animal magnetism

Never mind Tina Fey's latest take on Sarah Palin. The silliest skit on "Saturday Night Live" was "Mark Wahlberg Talks to Animals," which featured Andy Samberg as everyone's favorite former Southie street tough. "Hey, I'm Mark Wahlberg, you guys know me," said Samberg, doing a passable impression of the A-list actor. Samberg then talked to a dog, a donkey, a chicken, and a goat, saying inane things like: "So you're a dog, right? What's that all about? . . . It was great to meet you. Say hi to your mother for me, OK?" The bit is blowing up online, and is posted at www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live. Wahlberg's brother Robert told us yesterday his sister saw it, "but she wasn't sure what it was all about."

Damon feeling the Miami heat

If Dustin Hoffman is Marathon Man, Matt Damon is Triathlon Man. Jason Bourne's alter ego participated in the Escape to Miami Triathlon Sunday. The Miami Herald reports that the actor ran in a team that included his stepfather, Jay Jones, and friend Barry Hetherington, and he was met at the finish line by his wife, Luciana Bozán Barroso, and their 7-week-old daughter Gia. "My brother talked me into it," Damon, 38, told the Herald, referring to Kyle Damon, who did all three stages and finished in 27th place, with a time of 2:23:40. Matt's time for the 6.2-mile run was a mediocre 59 minutes, 54 seconds. "I knew I was in trouble when the old guy with the oxygen tank passed me," he joked. "I was doing this movie this summer 'The Informant' where I had to put on all this weight, and my brother told me, 'October 5, save the date.' "

Quite a body of work

Screenwriter William Monahan shambled down the red carpet at the weekend premiere of "Body of Lies," Ridley Scott's new action flick starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Monahan, a Boston native, has been much in demand since taking home the Oscar for "The Departed." He also wrote the Mel Gibson cop drama "Edge of Darkness," which is filming now in Northampton.

Recipe for winning

Congrats to Tom Berry of Temple Bar in Cambridge, who won the James Beard Foundation Greens tapas challenge Sunday. (The Greens are the foundation's younger "friends" group.) The winner gets to come back the following year - and invite two new Boston chefs to compete against. Rachel Klein of Aura won in 2007. This year, she invited Berry and Will Gilson of Garden at the Cellar. Previous winners include Barbara Lynch, Laura Brennan, and Marc Orfaly.

Chefs and the city

Hit Fox reality show "Hell's Kitchen" holds an open casting call Sunday at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel, the show's first auditions here. "We are in love with Boston," gushed casting producer Lisa Ganz, "because Boston has the best characters in America, and also the most talented characters. We know they have some of the best chefs in the country." The show's looking for skilled, outspoken, and competitive cooks, 21 and older, who can hang with tough-love chef Gordon Ramsay.

Correction: Because of a reporting error, an item in yesterday's Names column misspelled the name of Massport CEO and executive director Thomas J. Kinton.