Three months after Woodstock, the hippie scene shifted south.

To the boondocks west of West Palm Beach.

On Thanksgiving weekend, 40 years ago.

See anyone you know in the crowd? (Courtesy Ken Davidoff)

And the local ruling class didn’t like it one bit.

Then-Palm Beach County Sheriff Bill Heidtman vowed to make life miserable for the free-loving, pot-smoking, anti-establishment youngsters who gathered at the Palm Beach Pop Festival. He threatened to herd alligators toward the crowd, gathered at the Palm Beach International Raceway. And he swore he’d have his good ole’ boys dig out fire ant colonies and relocate them at the venue.

Yet, 50,000 people showed up for the three-day event, the only one of its kind ever in this area. And they got to calling Heidtman “Sheriff Eichmann,” after Hitler’s henchman, Adolf Eichmann.

Mick Jagger at the 1969 Palm Beach Pop Festival (Courtesy Ken Davidoff)

The lineup of bands was nearly the same as the earlier New York state rendezvous. Except that Jimi Hendrix couldn’t make it. He was replaced by a little band known as The Rolling Stones. Janis Joplin belted out a few tunes, as did The Byrds, Sly and the Family Stone, Johnny Winter, Grand Funk Railroad, Spirit and Jefferson Airplane.

Florida rocker Tom Petty was there, too, after hitch-hiking south from his hometown of Gainesville.

Palm Beach society shutterbug Ken Davidoff remembers the festival well. At 19, he scored a gig as the event’s official photographer.

Janis Joplin and Johnny Winter at the 1969 festival (Courtesy Ken Davidoff)

“It was rainy and freezing cold and people were ankle deep in mud,” Davidoff said. “There were 50,000 at the beginning, but by the time the Stones got on stage on Sunday, there were maybe 3,000 left. The weather and delays just drove people away.”

Among the delays, Davidoff cited the Stones’ arrival after authorities forced the band to wait on their jet on the tarmac for six hours, sorta, kinda, on purpose.

Davidoff recently built this Web site for the anniversary and stuffed it with some of the 600-plus pictures he took that weekend. He’s also interviewing festival-goers, roadies and promoters for a documentary.

“The festival was definitely a historical event that very few residents knew about,” Davidoff said.

For more photos, click here. And for some of the sounds, click here.

It wasn’t so long ago, Miami resident Cynthia Rodriguez only had to look across the breakfast table for her daily dose of eye candy. She was married to New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez.

The good old days (Courtesy Sports Illustrated)

But then, along came Madonna, and the SoFla lovebirds were divorced. Both A-Rod and C-Rod have moved on. Alex is playing house with starlet Kate Hudson. And Cynthia took out her new main man, whose id is still unknown, for a stroll in Miami Beach the other day. Did she upgrade? Look below to find out and vote, or click (Read more…)

Back in the days: Varga and Mersentes (Palm Beach Post file photo)

Stolen nude pictures of a Palm Beach socialite.

Allegations of spying and stealing against a well-known society butler.

Big money. Conspiracy. Intrigue.

The latest filing in a Palm Beach County circuit court by the new husband of diet guru Robert Atkins‘ 72-year-old widow has it all.

Alexis Mersentes, 72, a serial groom of rich women who married the multi-millionaire Veronica Atkins in 2007, has joined his ex-girlfriend, former Worth Avenue store owner Ildiko Varga, 57, in a $1 million-lawsuit that Varga originally brought against him.

Confused yet?

Don’t be.

In the January lawsuit that the black-tie Palm Beach gala stalwart Varga brought against Mersentes, Varga claimed Mersentes took pictures of her posing nude then distributed them without her consent.

Now this: Mersentes, the defendant, has joined Varga as a plaintiff, claiming that he is as much a victim of the pictures’ distribution as she is.

Dozens of Varga’s nudie shots ended up in the hands of lawyers in an unrelated lawsuit in Miami.

So, how did the pictures end up in the public realm?

The butler did it!

Want more? Look below, or click (Read more…)

Deputy Chief Ralph Phillips (Courtesy Delray Beach Police)

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating whether a deputy chief at the Delray Beach Police Department interfered with his own cops in incidents involving his sons.

The FDLE is also looking at accusations of official misconduct against the sergeant who arrested one of the kids. He is accident homicide investigator Vinny Gray, and has since been reassigned in what he says is clear retaliation.

Deputy Chief Ralph Phillips, a 26-year veteran of the 150-member police force, confirmed to Page2Live that an investigation is underway.

Phillips declined to talk about the details. DBPD Chief Anthony Strianese and City Manager David Harden didn’t return calls.

According to a document obtained by Page2Live, Gray invoked the whistleblower protection act to prevent retaliation when he faxed a letter about Phillips to Harden last month.

“Deputy Chief Phillips has been using his official position and authority to secure more favorable treatment of his family by law enforcement,” Gray’s later starts.

Scott Phillips (Courtesy PBSO)

According to the missive, Delray cops started experiencing trouble with Scott Phillips, 19, the chief’s oldest son, in 2007. On July 10 that year, Gray wrote that his night crew found Scott and a convicted felon named Dustin Inman street racing. Both allegedly tried to flee but eventually were caught.

After the deputy chief arrived at the scene of the capture, Gray wrote, Philllips got in his son’s truck and drove it home. Scott Philllips wasn’t charged.

Inman, meanwhile, was arrested and charged with fleeing police. His car was impounded.

Six months later, the state attorney’s office declined to prosecute Inman, according to court records.

Then in February, according to Gray’s letter, Scott Phillips allegedly tried to ram a Delray police car during yet another pursuit that also involved Boynton Beach PD. This time, Gray alleges, the deputy chief asked that he change the incident report. Gray refused, and Scott Phillips pleaded guilty to charges of attempting to flee police and hit-and-run. He was sentenced to two years probation and 100 hours of community service, court records show.

Then in May, it was Chief Phillips youngest, Jeffrey, who was pulled over. According to Gray, Scott was driving 30 mph over the speed limit. When he was notified of the stop, the deputy chief allegedly ordered his son’s release with no citation, no warning or incident report.

Finally, three months ago, Gray added, Scott Phillips was chased on foot by a private security guard at an undisclosed Delray location. Once again, Chief Phillips showed up as his officers considered criminal trespassing. No charge was filed. Scott was still on probation.

Gray ends the letter by claiming that his career took a nasty turn after he arrested the teenager.

“Things are not as they appear,” Ralph Phillips told me Tuesday. “The outcome of this investigation will be very different from the story.”

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Kimberly Roden and Tim Mahoney (Courtesy Stuart News)

– One of several women who caused the spectacular fall of area U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney, Martin County operations manager Kimberly Roden, is walking away from her $73,000-a-year gig in a buyout effort by the county. A comely blue-eyed blonde who was credited for getting the U.S. government to pay for hurricane cleanup that it didn’t pay in neighboring counties, Roden was disciplined (sorta!) three days without pay earlier this year for not telling her superiors that she and the very married Mahoney were an item. The Democrat lost his reelection bid to Republican Tom Rooney last year after he admitted to several affairs, including one with an employee. His wife, Terry, filed for divorce within days. Roden took several tax-funded trips to Washington, D.C., while Mahoney was in office. Roden’s departure comes as the county offered to pay longtime employees for up to 16 weeks if they leave. “The program is absolutely voluntary,” said county administrative services boss Gary Gierlicz. “No one is being pushed out.”

Alex Rodriguez

– Major Leaguer Alex Rodriguez, who just won the World Series with the New York Yankees, has discounted his Coral Gables mansion. It was on the market for $14.8 million. Now, it can be yours for $10 million, according to realestalker Web site. Wouldn’t hurt so much if A-Rod didn’t buy the six-bedroomer for $12 million five years ago. The house is also on the auction site billionaireexchange.com. Rodriguez is said to be getting ready to play house on the Left Coast with Hollywood actress Kate Hudson (Fool’s Gold, Almost Famous). Tour A-Rod’s digs by clicking here.

With the NFL more than a month behind last year in announcing the halftime entertainment for the Feb. 7 Super Bowl at Land Shark Stadium, rumors are rampant that the league is considering one of two solutions.

The first, according to a source close to the host committee, is that the Miami Dolphins’ new co-owners — salsero Marc Anthony, hip-hopper Jennifer Lopez and Latin star Gloria Estefan — would combine forces for one of the world’s most-watched halftime shows. It’s unclear whether Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas, who agreed to purchase a small share of the team but hasn’t paid for it yet, would participate.

“Gloria appeared in six Super Bowls,” said Estefan publicist, David Naranjo. “She enjoys helping showcase the city. But I haven’t heard anything about her doing it again.”

The Who's Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend

The other avenue, according to a report in Sports Illustrated’s online version, it that the British band The Who may be thisclose from receiving the nod. While the band’s music is going through a renewal of sorts with the soundtracks of TV series like CSI: Miami, The Who aren’t touring and have no new CD to sell. The band’s frontman, Roger Daltrey, is in the states on the tail end of a solo tour. He appears at the Seminole Hard Rock and Casino in Hollywood on Nov. 29.

“The committee feels that it’s strange that the NFL hasn’t made an announcement yet,” the source said. “Last year, they did it (it was Bruce Springsteen) during a Sunday night game in September. “

At the NFL headquarters in New York, a spokeswoman said there’s no timeline to announce halftime shows.

“When we have something to announce, we will,” she said.

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Sammy Sosa (left) during his Cubs days, and Sosa at the Latin Grammys last week (AP Photo right; Getty Images left)

– Believe it or not, these are pictures of the same man: retired steroid-injecting slugger Sammy Sosa. Thing is, that’s him as a Chicago Cub circa 2004 on the left, and last week at the Latin Grammys on the right. Is he bleaching his skin? Did he take up moonwalking, too? Que pasa, amigo? A friend of Sosa’s told the Chicago Tribune that the Dominican Republic native, who turns 41 on Thursday and now lives in a $4.4 million penthouse in Aventura, is in the process of undergoing some form of skin rejuvenation. From the looks of it, there must not be much skin left on Sosa’s face. Said Palm Beach dermatologist Layne Nisenbaum: “It looks like he is using a prescription bleach. If it were skin rejuvenation, it’d look better than this. This is terrible.”

Steve Abrams

– It’s good to see that Palm Beach County Commish and attorney Steve Abrams has kept his sense of humor despite resigning from the Fort Lauderdale law firm of Rothstein Rosenfeldt and Adler as it collapsed last week. Founder Scott Rothstein is believed to have been running a $100 million Ponzi scheme. Abrams, a former mayor of Boca Raton, opened his remarks to a Rotary Club gathering the other day with this: “I’ll get this out of the way immediately. You’ve been reading about it in the papers, and it’s been worrying me, actually keeping me up at night. My Philadelphia Phillies are losing to the New York Yankees.”

Chris Evert in a red dress Saturday night at the Boca Raton Resort (Michele Sandberg/Special to Page2Live)

Just a month after tennis legend Chris Evert said she was “fine” with her split from her husband of 18 months, Aussie golfer Greg Norman, Evert told Page2Live that she misses the Great White Shark.

Looking elegant in a red dress, Evert made the startling admission Saturday night at the Boca Raton Resort, as she walked into the gala of her fund-raising tennis tournament.

She was asked: “Are you a happy woman?”

“I’m happy with this event,” Evert first said. Then, after a brief silence, she added: “Greg is missed. I miss him. He was always a big part of this.”

She didn’t discuss what the future holds for her and Norman, whom she married in June 2008 after both divorced their long-time spouses. They announced in early October that they were splitsville.

A dozen celebrities, meanwhile, put on their best outfits and dancing shoes for the gala, which marked the 20th anniversary of the event. Songbird Natalie Cole sang for the 500-plus who paid $750-a-pop to get in. Among other celebrities: Burn Notice hunk Jeffrey Donovan, tennis great Martina Navratilova, Navratilova’s old doubles partner Pam Shriver, Lindsay Davenport, Monica Seles, Justin Gimelstob and Vince Spadea, TV and the movies’ Elisabeth Shue, comic Jon Lovitz and soap opera star Maeve Quinlan. Most of them will be playing tennis at the Delray Tennis Center on Sunday.

Norman (AP Photo)

Double bogey for Jupiter Island golfer Greg Norman!

Not only is he dealing with his separation from new wife Chris Evert, the Boca Raton-based former tennis star, but now he’s got a ticked off ex-wife to deal with.

Palm Beacher Laura Andrassy says the Great White Shark stiffed her in his yearly payment of their divorce settlement.

She contends in new paperwork filed in the Martin County courthouse in Stuart that his $2 million wire transfer to her June 15 was about $72,000 short. She asked a judge to force Norman to pay up, or order arbitration.

According to their contract, the ex-missus, a former flight attendant, will be $103 million richer by 2023 as a result of the agreement they signed when they were divorced two years ago.

So, what’s $72,000?

“It’s a substantial sum of money,” said Andrassy’s lawyer in West Palm Beach, Jack Scarola. “I have no desire to annoy Mr. Norman. But he has an obligation to meet his contractual commitments. If someone owes $72,000, just pay up.”

Andrassy, leaving a divorce hearing with lawyer Jack Scarola in 2007 (The Palm Beach Post archives)

Norman’s divorce attorney, Jeff Fisher, declined comment. But in his response filed in court, Fisher wrote that Norman and his ex promised they’d seek arbitration for disputes instead of the court system.

Andrassy’s recent motion to enforce is nothing more than a “method to feed information (usually of a disparaging nature) about the former husband to the media.”

The $72,000 alleged shortfall, according to court papers, comes from the calculation of Andrassy’s share in Norman’s Colorado ranch, Seven Lakes Lodge. She’s supposed to get close to $780,000 a year for the ranch, but got much less.

Incidentally, Norman recently put the property on the market for $55 million.

The motion reopens the saga of golfer/vintner’s divorce, which was filed in June 2006 after Andrassy accused him of cheating on her with tennis champ Evert. Although Norman and Andrassy were officially divorced when he married Evert in June 2008, they’ve been ironing some of their differences since.

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