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Mariah Carey was the undeniable hit of a dinner party Saturday night to celebrate the Cannes film festival screening of her new movie Precious – even if she did arrive fashionably late.
Guests at the party at Nikki Beach, where cocktails were served at 8 p.m. and dinner followed at 9, had given up hope after the star earlier canceled her scheduled appearance, then sashayed in with husband Nick Cannon at 11:30.
According to one guest, the glamorous Carey, 40, lit up the crowd, with many fellow diners holding cellphones aloft to snap a shot. "She was shaking everyone's hands, having kisses, saying 'thank you' for everything. She said the premiere was fantastic," a fellow diner says. Carey greeted friends around the table, including Precious director Lee Daniels.
"She looked a little tired from all the press junkets and so on," says the source, "but she had a happy face on seeing everyone."
Cannon, 28, was by her side throughout a brief stay at the party, where, according to another source with a peculiarly French way with words, Carey "was perfect in a perfect pink world."
The couple left after about 20 minutes, bound for a party on designer Roberto Cavalli's yacht.
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