Patty Hearst, granddaughter of publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst and heiress to the Hearst fortune, is a socialite, occasional actress, convicted felon, and the mother of social butterflies Lydia Hearst and Gillian Hearst Simonds. She gained notoriety when, at 19 years old, she was kidnapped from her Berkeley apartment by a guerrilla group called the Symbionese Liberation Army. As negotiations over her release dragged on, Patty announced in taped transmissions that she'd converted to the SLA's nonsensical lefty cause and renamed herself Tania. In one memorable photograph, Hearst even wielded an assault rifle as the group robbed a bank in San Francisco. Patty was arrested in 1975, claiming in trial that she had suffered from Stockholm Syndrome, but this didn't stop the jury from convicting her and sending her to prison. She was released in 1979 after President Jimmy Carter commuted her sentence. (She was officially pardoned by Bill Clinton on January 20, 2001, his final day in office.). Since then, Hearst has dabbled in writing and acting. Film director John Waters, who has long had a fascination with the bizarre 1974 incident, has cast Hearst in a slew of films over the years, including Cry-Baby, Serial Mom, Pecker, Cecil B. DeMented, and A Dirty Shame. She also made an appearance on TV teen drama Veronica Mars, playing (what else?) a kidnapped heiress.

Muffie Potter Aston

A downtown fashion designer, Dana Foley is co-owner of Foley + Corinna, the hip boutique on the Lower East Side, along with Anna Corinna.

Heiress to the Hearst Corporation (which estimates 5 billion dollars in annual revenue), socialite Amanda Hearst has the charmed life of someone great-grandfathered into a whole lot of money.

Eric Gioia is the former representative of the Queens neighborhoods of Woodside, Sunnyside, Long Island City, Astoria, and Maspeth in the New York City Council.

The Chicago-born Susan was a beauty queen and Pan Am stewardess before she married John Gutfreund in 1981. The CEO of the Wall Street powerhouse Salomon Bros at the time, Gutfreund was one of the most powerful men in town, and Susan quickly took to the role of trophy wife, throwing lavish parties and nearly melting her Gold Card from overuse. She hasn't been as high-profile since the early '90s, though, when her husband was embroiled in a bond trading scandal, fined $100,000, and banned for life from running a brokerage firm. Still, Susan never became a permanent social pariah and she remains a presence on the socialite scene and charity circuit.

The Speaker of the New York State Assembly, Shelly Silver is one of the most powerful players in Albany.

Once the most powerful Republican politician in New York state, Bruno is the former State Senate majority leader. The scandal-plagued politician announced his retirement in June 2008.

Don't call her just a socialite: although she's the daughter of famed artist Julian Schnabel, Stella has carved a place for herself in the indie film scene in her own right.

Debbie Bancroft is a socialite, society columnist, and philanthropic busy bee.

A regular at black-tie events around town, Jamee Gregory is an author, contributing editor to Elle Décor, and columnist for a collection of society magazines.

A former Vogue-tte and creative director of the ultra preppy Jack Roger's brand, Dupont is the wife of Richard Dupont and a staple at social functions around town.

A former middling star on the social scene, Bryan is the executive fashion director at Lucky magazine.

Dayssi Olarte de Kanavos

Somers White Farkas

Emilia Fanjul Pfeifler

The widow of Cornelius "Sonny" Vanderbilt Whitney, Marylou Whitney inherited an estimated $100 million when her husband died in 1992. A social staple, philanthropist, and horse aficionado, Marylou now has a husband who could easily pass for her grandson: She remarried tennis pro John Hendrickson in 1997 when she was 71 and he was 32.

Hope Atherton

Marina Rust Connor

A party fixture and writer, Bettina is an inescapable presence on the social scene.