— DIANE CLEHANE

We’ve been spoiled by the steady stream of A-listers we’ve come to meet during our weekly Wednesday visits. So you can imagine our disappointment when we heard we missed Gabriel Byrne, who was in the dining room a week or so ago on a Tuesday. (We know more than a few folks who are obsessed with his portrayal of the tortured but tender shrink on HBO’s In Treatment.) But timing is everything, isn’t it?

There weren’t any stars of the big or small screen at Michael’s today, but the place was packed with plenty of movers and shakers to keep things interesting. I was lunching with public relations guru Tom Goodman, president and CEO of Goodman Media. Tom is one of the busiest — and nicest — guys in the business. He started his firm in 1996 after toiling in PR for CBS and ABC (where he traveled with Peter Jennings). British Airways “put us in business,” says Tom, and NBC, who tapped him to help launch MSNBC, soon followed. Tom is gearing up for a jam-packed summer promoting The World Science Festival in June (Harrison Ford is expected at the gala), Joe Torre‘s Safe at Home Foundation celebrity golf tournament at Trump National Golf Course in July and the 40th Anniversary of Woodstock with a weekend-long celebration in August at The Museum at Bethel Woods. Next month, the museum will also premiere an exhibit of photos — many never before seen — by photojournalist Gerry Deiter of John Lennon‘s and Yoko Ono‘s famous 1969 bed-in for peace. Sounds groovy…

Here’s the rundown on today’s crowd:

2. Gerry Byrne and two well-dressed gents …

3. Nicki Haskell and pals

4. Harper’s Bazaar editrix Glenda Bailey and Evelyn Lauder. I’m told that Mrs. Lauder was making her second appearance of the week at Michael’s, having hosted the First Lady of Panama for lunch yesterday.

5. Stan Shuman

6. The ‘Imber Gang:’ Dr. Gerald Imber, Jeff Greenfield, Jerry Della Femina and Andy Bergman

7. Myrna Blyth and ‘Page Six’s Paula Froelich. The gals were celebrating the release of Paula’s new book, Mercury in Retrograde. She’ll be chatting with the hosts of The View and the Today show next week about the page-turner. Set those DVRs!

8. Henry Schleiff and a handsome fellow we didn’t recognize…

9. Dan Glass

11. Sportscaster Russ Salzberg

12. Steve Blacker

14. Tiki Barber (who wins today’s Best Dressed award) and a blonde gal

15. Dan Wassong and my pal Suzanne Bracker

16. John Karmen

17. A cardigan-clad Luke Janklow

18. Randy Jones, who was feted in the Garden Room by Joan Rivers last week for his new book, The Richest Man in Town.

20. Pamela Keogh and Joe Montebello

21. Viacom CFO Richard Bressler

22. Derek Johnston

23. Trixie Dorsett (love the name!)

25. Tom Goodman and yours truly

27. Reese Schoenfeld with his assistant Erica Shusas. A little birdie told me they were enjoying a celebratory lunch because Erica just got her master’s degree. Congrats!

28. Chris Ahern and Steven Yee

Please send comments and corrections to DianeClehane AT mediabistro Dot com and lunch at mediabistro DOT com.