Thirty-five years old might seem washed-up to some ageist types in the music business, and one can only imagine how old 35 is in cat years. But Japanese pop icon Hello Kitty was looking fabulous (has she had work done?) when she celebrated her 35th birthday at a month-long spree of girly galas at Los Angeles's Royal T Café, joined by such Kitty-enthusiast party guests as Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance, Pete Wentz of Fall Out Boy, Jane's Addiction/Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Dave Navarro, Paris Hilton, tween queen Miranda Cosgrove, Sum 41's Derryck Whibley, ex-Guns N' Roses axeman Gilby Clarke, and hip-hop model/ex-wife Kimora Lee Simmons, as well as by many other catty showbiz scenesters.
An Asian artspace where Lolita maids in frilly kneesocks and candy-colored wigs served up Kitty-shaped sushi and pancakes and bubbly Kitty-branded pink champagne, the Royal T Café rolled out the pink carpet for bow-bedecked famous fans of the much-loved mouthless feline icon, as well for various avant artists whose twisted and inspired modern-day depictions of Hello Kitty filled the Royal T art gallery. And most notable among these showpieces were a series of stunning Kitty-themed portraits of Lady Gaga, the Kittiest of them all:
Royal T hosted various 35th birthday events in October and November, including a "Bats & Cats Masquerade" gothic '80s dance party at which Kitty girls in big black hair bows gyrated to Bauhaus and the Cure. But the main event was the final night...the Hello Kitty fashion show:
Of course, the 16 designers (including Skingraft, the company behind many of Adam Lambert's leather jackets) commissioned to create one-of-a-kind feline fashions for the event had to meet a high standard, as Lady Gaga's crazy stuffed-animal dress and Kimora Lee Simmons-designed diamond hip belt, as well as Katy Perry's famous MAC Couture bustier (which she once wore to the Brit Awards), were all on display:
But the designers were definitely up to the challenge, and it wouldn't be surprising if some of these out-there outfits end up being rocked by other various female pop stars in the future:
Meow!
So happy birthday, Miss Kitty. You're still rockin' after all these years.