The late L.A. writer Eve Babitz has a cult fanbase in Hollywood, thanks to her cheeky prose and her chronicling of some of the key pop culture figures of the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s. That enduring legacy was celebrated Tuesday night at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, where a bevy of Hollywood actresses took turns on the mic. They read previously unpublished letters penned by Babitz, as sourced by writer Lili Anolik.
Anolik — celebrating the release of her new book “Didion and Babitz” — hosted the event in partnership with Belletrist, the book club founded by Emma Roberts and Karah Preiss. Roberts was among the readers in the room, joined by Beverly D’Angelo, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Nicole Richie and Elizabeth Olsen. The audience included Babitz’s sister, Mirandi; Dustin Lance Black; Tinx; Alexi Wasser; Cleo Wade; Gillian Jacobs; Jen Statsky; Bruce Wagner; Naomi Fry; Simone Harrouche; Jamie Mizrahi, and Carlos Lopez. They sipped tequila cocktails and martinis as they listened attentively to the words.
Anolik’s book, out now, explores the complicated relationship between Babitz, who died in December of 2021 at 78 years old, and the late Joan Didion, who passed away less than a week later at 87. It details their friendship, rivalry and the influence the two writers and California natives have had on culture.
In her research, Anolik came across papers that had been sitting in sealed boxes and found by Mirandi in the back of a closet. Anolik was inspired by an unsent letter from Babitz to Didion written in 1972.
“It was the first letter I pulled,” Anolik explained. “I knew that was it. I was back in.”
Anolik had already written about Babitz, releasing “Hollywood’s Eve: Eve Babitz and the Secret History of L.A.” in 2019. Prior to that, she made her debut with “Dark Rooms: A Novel” in 2015.
Appropriately, the night ended with a performance by Lily Kershaw, who sang a cover of The Mamas & the Papas’ “California Dreamin’.”
