The countdown is over! The rich, famous, and glam rubbed elbows at the long-anticipated black-tie Grand Opening of the new Time Warner Center, New York’s newest landmark on Columbus Circle. The $1.7 billion twin-glass-tower, 80-story luxury complex with 2.8 million square feet of high-end retail, office, studio, and residential space is home to the five-star hotel Mandarin Oriental and 40+ upscale stores (including Coach, Tourneau, Hugo Boss, Godiva Chocolatier, Borders Books, Thomas Pink, Williams-Sonoma, J. Crew, Eileen Fisher, Sephora, and Stuart Wietzman). The Center is, of course, home to the broadcast facilities and corporate headquarters of Time Warner, and offers 201 private state-of-the-art condos, including the $42.5 million duplex penthouse owned by 46-year-old financier David Martinez and the $7 million condo purchased by Ricky Martin. “The Restaurant Collection” (on floors three and four) will be the world’s costliest Food Court, with multiple gourmet restaurants conceived and run by world-class chefs, including Thomas Keller (Per Se), Charlie Trotter (Café Grey), Masa Takayama (Masa), Jean Georges Vongerichten (Rare). Floors four and five will offer three new performance centers for Lincoln Center Jazz. There is an Equinox Health Club and a branch of Whole Foods Market, promising to be the largest supermarket in Manhattan!

Jon Stewart and Paula Zahn hosted the impossible-to-forget night to remember for notables including Governor George Pataki; Mayor Michael Bloomberg; Deputy Mayor Daniel Doctoroff; Schools Chancellor Joel Klein; developers Kenneth Himmel, Steve Ross, and Bill Mack; Charles Gargano; Vernon Jordan; Salman Rushdie; Candace Bushnell with her hubby/New York City-ballet-principal dancer Charles Askegard; Cindy Crawford (hubby, Rande Gerber, owns Stone Rose Lounge, the first up-scale restaurant in the new Center to open its doors); Kevin Bacon (not at all pleased when forced to wait in line for his coat!); Elizabeth Berkley and Greg Lauren; Calvin Klein; Bryant and Hilary Gumbel; Star Jones and her new fiancé; and Claudia Cohen.

Thousands of guests sampled delectable treats by celebrity chefs Thomas Keller and Jean Georges Vongerichten, and schmoozed and danced throughout all floors of the atrium while the jazz from Lincoln Center was streaming from gargantuan speakers. There was also a hot performance by Marc Anthony, whose electric energy served as a protective shield against any talk of his recent re-split with wife, former Miss Universe Dayanara Torres. Also entertaining: Jewel—the rags-to-riches songstress (once so poor, she lived in her car!), who arrived at the glass palace with current cowboy beau/Rodeo Hall of Famer Ty Murray.

Many compared the extravagant mega-event to Woodstock, or a World Series. Not content with the soiree being described as the most elaborate evening ever, however, Mayor Mike boldly vowed that there would be “more openings like this for NYC, as the best is yet to come!”