So long ‘Sex and the City’

Luis Pena

Men and women alike convened at the Hard Rock Cafe in Fashion Island

to bid farewell to the cosmo-drinking singles clan of Carrie,

Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda after six successful seasons as the

women of “Sex and the City.”

The event, which cost $25 to attend, served as a benefit for the

Newport Beach Film Festival.

To get into the spirit of the final episode, the gathering offered

a character look-alike contest, best shoes contest and show trivia.

There was also a survey to see which one of Carrie’s suitors fans

would want to marry: Mr. Big, Aidan or Aleksandr.

The farewell celebration was the brainchild of Keiko Beatie,

director of program development and special projects at the Newport

Beach Film Festival.

“We felt that there was so much interest in the final episode ...

and that many of the supporters of the festival had inquired about

it, and we felt that we would go ahead and highlight this event,”

Beatie said.

Most of the women who are fans of the independent foursome can

relate to the characters because they have an essence that is

positive and supportive for female relationships -- something not

normally portrayed by women on TV.

Although the “extracurricular activities” of the characters may be

in question, it’s their search to find meaning in their relationships

that the fans of the show feel a kinship to, Beatie said.

Fans also liked the frankness of the foursome and their openness

about sex.

“I”ll miss Samantha, not because she is a slut, but because she is

a strong woman who runs her own business, who makes her own decisions

[and] who rules her own world,” said Leslie Carlos of Huntington

Beach.

She’ll also miss the fashions, the attitudes and the friendship

that the women in the show shared.

Women weren’t the only ones enjoying the final hours of the show’s

run. Todd French of Irvine, and a former New Yorker, proves that “Sex

and the City” wasn’t just a chick show. “Carrie Bradshaw mentions one

time that New Yorkers are always looking for an apartment, a job and

a lover, and that’s a true statement,” French said.

French admitted that the characters became pseudo friends to him.

His favorite character was Charlotte York, played by Kristin Davis.

“Everyone watches the Super Bowl on the big screen, why can’t we

watch it [‘Sex and the City’] on big the screen,” said Kim Nguyen, of

Irvine.

The characters were like family to her sister Anne Nguyen, who

will miss talking about them with her own friends and family.

Now that the show has come to an end, the Nguyen sisters will

probably cancel their HBO subscriptions.