Gawker: robert pazornik

Bachelors of Silicon Valley Remind Ladies What They're Not Missing

Owen Thomas — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 20:05:29 EST

The Nob Hill Gazette, a San Francisco "society" publication, has come up with a list of area eligibles, including a wife beater and more than one gay man. Hard to be a straight woman here!

Which tech industry notables are on the list, and what's the catch with these supposed Silicon Valley catches?

Arjun Gupta, a venture capitalist best known for being accused of beating his former wife. A restraining order filed in the case was due to expire next Sunday.

Christian Oestlien, a Google product manager with his own startup. Makes his own wine, practices "Brazilian jiujitsu," and occasionally deejays. Which means he just doesn't have time for you, ladies.

Robert Pazornik, the Yale-educated former CEO of LicketyShip, a package-delivery startup. Oh yeah, I said it: a package-delivery startup. Extremely hot and given to wearing tight T-shirts, but unemployed since May, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Jason Pressman, managing director, Shasta Ventures. We haven't heard anything salacious about Pressman (if you have, do tell), but the Gazette says this "avid scuba diver" "enjoys planning bachelor parties."

Jeremy Stoppelman, the seriously hunky Yelp cofounder. Nothing bad about this one, except the continued mystery of why he's single. Rumored to have shared at least one ladyfriend with famous Web 2.0 playboy Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg (not at the same time, dirty minds). When we asked Stoppelman about said companion at a party, he greeted the question with stony silence. Which was kind of dashing, really!

There's one techie on the Nob Hill list whom we're leaving off. Why? He's a bachelor, but of the confirmed sort, and we didn't want to get anyone's hopes up. Sorry, ladies. In San Francisco's tech industry, except for the above five, they really are all taken or gay!

Speaking of taken, a tipster noticed that filthy rich YouTube founder Steve Chen dropped off the list this year. Does this mean he's secretly gotten hitched?

Pete Cashmore, more, more

Nicholas Carlson — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:00:52 EST

Speaking for the masses, commenter Zoo responded to our poll on tech's most eligible bachelors, "Why is Pete Cashmore even mentioned if he isn't in the option pool?" Fine. For Zoo, StyleHive's Patricia Handschiegel and the rest of you who found yourselves forced to vote for Mr. Robert "I Wear Extra Medium" Pazornik — here's another healthy dose of Pete, courtesy of Tech Soup.

If these are the four most eligible men in tech, we have a problem

Nicholas Carlson — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 16:40:14 EST

Mashable's Pete Cashmore may be a looker, but is he the best Silicon Valley can do? Seems so. Take a look at the Google toppers, for example: Larry? Taken. Sergey? Taken. Eric Schmidt? Taken. Taken. Taken. But don't worry, the Nob Hill Gazette has you covered with its latest "annual roundup of the Most Desirable, Most Adorable, Brainy and Brassy" bachelors. It's a long list, but of course there are only four tech representatives. Vote for your favorite in our Valleywag poll.

Lotus Vodka offers release from the tech scene

Megan McCarthy — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 19:45:10 EDT

A tip for those of you trying to mingle with successful entrepreneurs and VCs: Attend more than just the standard tech meet-and-greets. The people who are really in a position to help you with your startup never go to them anyway. So where to go instead? Check out events like last night's Lotus Vodka release party at SoMa's Euro-inspired restaurant Supperclub. You'll find founders and the moneymen behind them willing to chat and unable to prejudge you based on your nametag. Refreshing. Bonus: The nontech people who attend these things make for a far better-looking crowd. Far better-looking. The full report, and a gallery of photos, follows.

So, what does vodka have to do with tech? Rob Bailey, founder of Delicious Brands, maker of Lotus Vodka, is an ex-Yahoo business-development exec who came up with the idea of creating a vitamin-infused vodka after mixing the spirit with Glacéau Vitamin Water. It's sort of like disintermediation, except with alcohol! After quitting his position at Yahoo, he cashed in a bunch of stock options and started up Delicious Brands. He also convinced a few techie friends, like Jonathan Abrams of Friendster and Socialzr fame and Saar Gur of Charles River Ventures, to invest or advise.

Who would you have seen if you squeezed onto the packed invite list and made it out to Supperclub on Harrison Street? The uberconnected Auren Hoffman, pictured above, arrived in crutches, the result of a nasty soccer injury. He got plenty of sympathy. Yelp's pretty-boy founder Jeremy Stoppelman and his model brother Michael showed up. The newly 30 and effortlessly charming Jared Kopf came out with his team at yet-to-launch Adroll, his stealth advertising startup. Other people spotted in the crowd: venture capitalist Eve Phillips from Greylock Partners, OpenDNS founder David Ulevitch, Foundation Capital VC Mike Brown, Robert Pazornik from LicketyShip, and Jeff Hammerbacher, Facebook's guy in charge of data.

Supperclub is rarely, if ever, the scene of a dotcom party. There's a large circular bar by the entrance, making the room crowded, stuffy, and difficult to maneuver around. And it's loud, too. Lotus hired DJ Solomon to spin tunes and keep the crowd moving all night, making it all but impossible to hear in sections of the bar. Not exactly the best setting to give an elevator pitch, but perfect for learning if your VC is someone who knows how to get down.