Passion of the (Unspiked) Punch

IT'S A 'DRY' WEDDING FOR MEL'S DAUGHTER
Tuesday September 19, 2006

Mel Gibson was all smiles when he gave away his only daughter Hannah, 26, at her September 16 wedding to blues guitar player and singer Kenny Wayne Shepherd. The hour-long ceremony was held at the Holy Family Chapel — the Catholic Church Gibson shelled out $5 million to build in Agoura Hills, west of Los Angeles. I like Kenny Wayne, didn’t know he was Catholic – what if he’s not? How did Daddy allow that? Oh, he converted recently.
But being a celebrity and musician, this marriage will last!

And just to make sure there was no repeat of Gibson's headline-making DUI arrest in Malibu July 28, there was strictly no alcohol served during the lavish wedding reception held on the spectacular 2,000-acre Ventura Farms estate owned by Dole Food Co. chief David H. Murdock, a billionaire and one of Mel's close friends. Did he serve them tainted spinach?

Hannah, the oldest of Mel and Robyn Gibson's seven children, wore white and was attended by six bridesmaids, all in brown gowns. "She looked lovely and Mel was obviously very proud and happy for her," an observer tells Star. Hannah's six bothers, twins Edward and Christian, 24, William, 22, Louis, 19, Milo, 16 and seven year-old Thomas were all at the nuptials. Don't get me started on my views of overpopulation...

After the ceremony, the bridal party took black stretch limousines the eight miles from the church to the reception, while the 200-plus guests followed in shuttle buses. On their assigned bus seats, each guests found a chilled bottle of water with his or her name on it. BUS SEATS? Couldn't they have horse-drawn carriages? Something classier?

And at Ventura Farms — a huge main house plus acres and acres of manicured green lawns, white fences and stables where Murdock raises champion Arabian horses — instead of Champagne, family and guests toasted the bride and groom with Martinelli's sparkling cider, passion fruit ice tea, sodas, fruit juice and water. Must be nice to have a horse farm.

With a band playing as a bright-orange sun sank into the west, guests feasted on lobster bisque (for which fresh lobster was flown in from Tahiti at a cost of $40,000), filet mignon, roast sea bass, strawberry cream tarts, chocolate mousse and fresh raspberries. Didn't mention if the Pope performed the ceremony, or if the Knights of Templar frisked the guests as they arrived...

If Mel built the church, does he get to make the rules? He's a few commandments short of a tablet, if you ask me!