OUTRAGEOUS IN PINK
An Alexander Tract Home Transformed -- Jamie Kabler's
Titillating Leisureland is Palm Springs' Party Central

From the pages of CA-Modern magazine
By Dave Weinstein

During the day Leisureland suggests an art gallery -- albeit one that's devoted to all things pink. There are photos by Richard Avedon, chairs by Rashid Karim, a fetishistic bust of an astro-gal by Colin Christian, and a toothy catlike creature by the British artist Mandad.

But Leisureland doesn't mean much by daylight. "It's all about parties," says Jamie Kabler, the proud homeowner.

Guests enjoy valet parking and klieg lights, and never have to search for their host -- he's on the red carpet, greeting each by name. The drink trays feature Pink Pusssies, go-go boys create a rhythm on the stage behind the pool, and sashaying past are 'drag artiste' Lady Bunny, whose bouffant hairdo shoots two feet towards the sky, or the voluptuous Amanda Lepore, whose lips are the size of sausages. "She doesn't say much," Jamie says. "I don't think she can, because her lips are so fat."

"I would have to use the word 'sensational' for his parties," says Barbara Wisbey, social columnist for Palm Springs' 'Bottom Line' magazine. "He has people at his parties form all walks of life, and he always seems to find the beautiful people."

Jamie has thrown pajama parties for 500 guests, 'Valley of the Dolls' parties, birthday parties, a coming-out party for Mamie Van Doren's Mamietage wines, and fundraising events for the Desert AIDS Project, among other good causes. The parties are often educational. "I flew a samba band in from Rio one time to teach everybody how to samba," he says. Often they get wild. "A lot of times the girls take their clothes off like the Kennedy parties of the '60s and jump in the pool," he says.

"The great thing about Leisureland is, it's safe for a lot of TV and film stars who are not 'out' but want to come and have a lot of fun -- and nobody writes about it," Jamie says.

For all its outrageousness, however, Leisureland sticks to tradition -- Palm Springs tradition. In a town known for legendary parties, the home has already become a legend five years after Jamie moved in. "That was just a plain old house on the corner," Wisbey remembers.

But Leisureland, sybaritic as it is, never comes across like Sodom and Gomorrah because the sparkling water runs freely and Jamie himself is so clear-eyed and straightforward.

A businessman who devised the Hollywood 48-Hour Miracle Diet (a "health spa in a bottle," the firm vows), Jamie ('diet guru to the stars') hugs people often, grabs their shoulders affectionately, and is quick to teach the uninitiated how to wave their hands in the air like they just don't care. "He's happy-go-lucky and wants everybody else in life to be happy-go-lucky, too," Wisbey says.

Leisureland is also all about family values. "Our family is here in Palm Springs," says Jay Jones, Jamie's friend and interior designer, who claims to be "just a Southern Baptist boy from Oklahoma."

"We make our own family," he says.

Jamie's house, an Alexander tract home in the neighborhood of Vista Las Palmas (where Jamie has headed the homeowners association), proved perfect for its intended uses. "I like clean lines, and it's a showcase for my photography collection," Jamie says.

And although Jamie and Jay have performed miracles with the house, they have left its architecture intact -- suggesting that mid-century homes really are as versatile as proponents claim. It was Jay who came up with the name for the house, which sits fortuitously enough on Leisure Way.

"Who wouldn't love Leisureland," says Joey English, a popular TV and radio host in the Coachella Valley whose own home is done up in vintage Cowboys-and-Indians. "It isn't my style. But it's Jamie's style."

Shortly after arriving in Palm Springs, Jamie decided to become part of the scene. Wisbey helped. "I get invited to everything," she says, "and I started taking Jamie around." Soon Jamie was involved with the Human Rights Campaign, the Desert AIDS Project and the AIDS Assistance Program, and joined the board of the Palm Springs Art Museum.

Leisureland's birth owes much to Jamie's persistence. He ran into Jay at the Palm Springs True Value hardware store -- which stocks a lot more than hardware. Jay, the store's buyer, had a reputation for designing homes for some of the valley's more creative denizens, and a background that included stints with such design legends as Ted Graber, who designed for Nancy Reagan; Billie Haines, who pioneered the Hollywood Regency style; and furniture designer Karl Springer, who loved varied textures, unexpected combinations, and such exotic materials as shagreen -- a rough sharkskin.

But, really, Jay owes it all to mom. "My mother worked in the drapery department of Sears," he says, "and my clients still call her today."

But Jay said no when Jamie first came calling. Jamie understood. "He turns down nine out of 10 people." But Jamie persisted.

"I said, 'Listen to me. My name is Jamie. From now on you are on my payroll. I'm paying you twice what you're getting.'" The plea succeeded and, Jamie says, "It was the best thing that ever happened to me."

Jay walked into the house and announced, "I can do something special here." His first piece of advice: "When you buy a new house, you have to set a date for a party." Four months later that party took place, with some of the decor improvised. The centerpiece was Jamie's Vespa scooter, a manikin behind the handlebars.

Since then, Jamie and Jay have never stopped. The house keeps evolving, with Jamie buying art and collectables -- including contorted female figures from the film 'Clockwork Orange,' a statue of Atlas holding the world, photo installations by Daniel Peet, Franco Rubartelli's photo of Veruschka, plus photos of Twiggy, Joe Dallesandro, and Tura Satana. There's a 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' bathroom, a wonderful display of 60-plus Barbie dolls, and what Jay calls 'the Blonde Bombshell room.' The kitchen walls are blood red.

Jay can be described as an action designer, often working out his schemes while perusing the local shops. "I try to keep the business in the valley," he says. A favorite shop is the Estate Sale, which sells treasures from the estates of prior generations of local party people. "They've got some of the most unusual pieces of furniture," Jay says. "You can see that people in Palm Springs did some of the most outrageous things."

When Jay sees something that moves him, he buys it. "Don't worry if you don't know where it will go," he advises do-it-yourselfers. "You can always make something work if it's a good piece and you like it -- whether it cost $10 or $10,000."

Jay helps design Jamie's parties as well as his house. They'll have a crew of 30 running the show. The morning after, he and Jamie analyze the night's traffic flow, figuring out how to do it better next time.

They've become good friends, united in part by their love of the desert. Jamie is in Palm Springs Thursdays through Mondays. Jay is there all the time. "I was very lucky to land here," he says, having arrived on a date with his partner 26 years ago. "I love it here when it's 140 degrees outside."

And Jamie appreciates that the desert is less stodgy than his former home in New York. "I love the inclusiveness of the desert," he says. "New York is exclusive."

"Ohmigosh," he says, "I'm the luckiest person in the world. I talk to Jay every day on the phone, and we plan things and we change things."

"You've got to laugh about this thing," Jay says. "It's such a frivolous thing. There are people dying all over the world, and we're decorating."

Photos: Barry Sturgill, Dave Weinstein

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