There were a lot of celebrities Tuesday night at the 90th anniversary party for Gallagher’s Steakhouse on West 52nd St. near Broadway. Richard Kind, Tovah Feldshuh, Len Cariou–Broadway types, all beloved types. The famed paparazzi, Ron Galella, mortal enemy of Jackie Onassis but chronicler of celebrities, had a corner booth. I ran into people I hadn’t seen in a long time, it was like a great big reunion.

But without a doubt the stars of the night were Robert Wagner and Jill St. John. They are the epitome of Hollywood cool. She was a Bond and a Batman girl. He was..is… suavecito. I looked it up later. Are you ready? He is 87. She is 77. They look like they’re in their Fifties. I interviewed Bob in the 90s, one of the best pieces I ever did. He remembered. I complimented them and Jill said, “As Oscar Wilde said, Living well is the best revenge.”

We talked about Liz Smith. “I loved her,” Wagner said. “When I heard she passed, I was very sad. She really loved me. She always wrote about me. She interviewed me at the 92nd St. Y when each of my books came out. She was very special.”

We talked about Jill’s five decade fame for appearing in the “Batman” TV pilot in 1966. She reprised the role of Molly, the Riddler’s assistant, in a subsequent episode as well. Four year old boys light up when they see her. They think “Batman” is current. Jill says she has to explain to them that the Riddler, the Joker, and the Penguin are all gone. “A little boy asked me Are they in heaven? I said, No, they were criminals, they’re in hell!” She laughed. (I’m telling you, Jill St. John is still hot.)

“Michael Weatherly’s son loves her,” said Wagner of his friend and “NCIS” co-star (Weatherly now stars in “Bull” on CBS.) “We’re having dinner with them this week, Jill said. Wagner will shoot a new “NCIS” episode before the end of the year.

We talked about his kids with Natalie Wood. “They’re all doing great,” he said. “Natasha is introducing a Natalie perfume on HSN,” he said.

“Listen to what happened. I got a fraud alert on my credit card,” Jill interjects. “I bought two bottles of Natalie to help sales, from HSN. The computer saw I hadn’t shopped there before! I was just trying to help!”

We didn’t get to talk about their famous “Seinfeld” appearance in the legendary “Yada Yada/Anti-Dentite” episode (which also featured Bryan Cranston as Dr. Tim Watley). After countless classic TV shows like “It Takes a Thief” and “Hart to Hart,” Wagner will always have “Seinfeld,”

What brought them to Gallagher’s and cold cold New York from warm Beverly Hills and balmy Aspen? “I came here when I was 12 with my grandparents,” Wagner said. “Then I was here all the time when I was a young actor. Plus Dean Poll, who owns it now, is a good friend.”

“He basically saved it from closing,” said Jill. We reminisced about John Springer, the famed Broadway press agent who repped the place 30 years ago. I told them Aretha Franklin likes the food so much she orders in from her hotel when she’s in town.

They posed for the photo above and went back to their filet mignon. What class acts! All I needed was Stefanie Powers to walk in and we’d be over the top with Hollywood cool!

photo c2017 Showbiz411

THE place to be last night was Carnegie Hall: only Oscar winner Danny Boyle could assemble an all star A team of actors for “The Children’s Monologues,” a charity event of performances to benefit the UK charity Dramatic Need. The group funds programs in South Africa for impoverished children.

Boyle– director of “Slumdog Millionaire,” “Trainspotting,” and “127 Hours”– brought together Susan Sarandon, James McAvoy, Audra McDonald, Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, Jason Alexander, Andrew Garfield, Daveed Diggs, Common, Esperanza Spaulding, Cynthia Erivo, Daniel Kaluuya, Gugu Mbatha Raw, Sebastian Stan, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and on and and on.

They read monologues written by South African children and then polished up by dramaturgs like Lynn Nottage, Tom Stoppard, Neil LaBute and others. Also featured was the Via Vyndal Pantsula Dance Crew and the New York City Youth Ensemble. It was a 5 star night that beautifully captured the spirit of South Africa and let some of our newest stars show off their stage ability. No one had more than a few hours of rehearsal.

Jessica Chastain learned the lines of her powerful dramatic monologue on the plane coming from L.A. yesterday. After she nailed it and came offstage, McAvoy– who she said “roped her into this”– told her who she’d replaced at the last minute. “Meryl Streep! Oh my god,” said Jessica, whose mother and best friend came to support her. “Oh. my. god.”

Jessica stars next month in Aaron Sorkin’s “Molly’s Game,” which I loved in Toronto. She gives an Oscar worthy performance and certainly should be in the mix with Saorise Ronan, Sally Hawkins, Judi Dench, and probably Meryl Streep– ironic, no? Chastain is due for some Oscar love. She should get it this time.

The great Donna Isaacson cast the event with partner Laura Stancyzk. I asked Donna how she got all these people to do it. “Danny Boyle,” she said.

Boyle has the uncanny knack for bringing other cultures to the west. In “Slumdog,” it the Indians and Mumbai. Last night it was South Africa. His answer to how he does it: “the cultures just present themselves and you go for it.” Hmmm….Modest.

So how are the kids from “Slumdog Millionaire” doing, I asked him? “They’ve turned 18,” he said. “We’ve gotten them each flats in Mumbai and we’re helping them with their money and being independent. We’re in touch with them all the time.” Boyle has been extraordinarily dedicated to them.