NBC News threw a party last night, celebrating the 20th anniversary of its primetime newsmagazine “Dateline.”

While the mood was celebratory, it was hard to escape the elephant in the room. In an address to guests at the event, senior EP David Corvo paid tribute to a number of former “Dateline” staffers, including former anchor Ann Curry who bid farewell to the “Today” show earlier in the day.

“Ann had her own sweet, persistent way of coming into my office, day after day, trying to push us to do certain types of stories that we weren’t doing,” Corvo said. “Her legacy probably on the show more than anything else is ‘America Now,’ which has gotten a lot of awards, was fun to produce and made a difference in some people’s lives, which is what Ann is dedicated to.”

Dateline EP Liz Cole likened the party to a “family reunion,” and it did feel that way. TVNewser spotted Hoda Kotb (who at one point danced in the DJ booth), correspondents Chris Hansen, and Keith Morrison, original anchor Jane Pauley (but not Stone Phillips) and former “Dateline” correspondent and current Fox News anchor Jon Scott. The event, held at Catch in New York’s Meatpacking District, was the second 20th anniversary party for the series in less than a year (see our report from the first one, here). Former NBC News president and “Dateline” EP Neal Shapiro was there, as was current NBC News chief Steve Capus, who praised the program:

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TVNewser stopped by an event in celebration of the 20th season of NBC’s “Dateline” last night. The party, which had a mystery theme, was held at Manhattan’s Griffou.

Attendees — including Chris Hansen, Hoda Kotb, Dennis Murphy, Keith Morrison, Josh Mankiewicz and “Dateline” executive producer Liz Cole — had their mugshots taken and uploaded to Twitter using the hashtag #howdoyoudateline.

Also in attendance was NBC News President Steve Capus, who was spending his birthday with the “Dateline” crew (they had a chocolate cake in his honor). He told TVNewser that earlier in the day he received a “Put On A Happy Face” singing telegram at his office.

More mugshots after the jump. Read more