Real Weddings: Amanda & Andrew
Catering: Fresh Flavors Catering | Entertainment: Manhattan City Music | Event Rentals: Bermuda Party Rentals
| Hair: Xavier Salon | Invitations: Greenwich Letterpress | Reception Site: Fireplace Farm | Tent: Wine Country Tents
When Amanda Ingersoll and Andy Rothman first met, both were working at CBS News, Amanda as an intern and Andy as a producer. Andy was assigned to help Amanda and her team create a winning Evening News–style piece in competition with other teams, but neither had any idea that what they would end up creating instead was a love story.
After winning the competition for best news piece, Amanda and her fellow interns bought Andy a gift certificate to a local restaurant to thank him for his help. Andy kindly invited the group to join him at the restaurant, but by that time most of the interns had already left town after finishing their stint at CBS. Amanda, however, was living in Manhattan and gladly took Andy up on his invitation. The pair hit it off at dinner, talking for hours before happily walking 70 blocks home together — in the rain. It was all the convincing either one of them needed, and soon they were inseparable.
Four short years later, Andy told Amanda to keep her Friday night free — they were going on a date. They met in front of the main entrance of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, the famous “30 Rock,” since Amanda works at NBC, and went upstairs to the Top of the Rock observation deck to watch the sunset together. Leading her to the edge of the building, overlooking the twinkling city lights, Andy told Amanda he had something for her. “He opened a velvet box, but didn’t get down on one knee, which I still pick on him about,” says Amanda, “and asked if I would marry him.” The couple had recently seen the film The Time Traveler’s Wife, in which there is a proposal scene where the main character takes a long pause before answering with a jubilant “yes!” “I thought it might be funny to do the same thing,” says Amanda. “For future reference, it’s not funny when you do it in real life — he still picks on me about that.”
Andy owns a home in East Hampton, and Amanda had often accompanied him there. As she fell in love with Andy, she also fell in love with the East End. When they got engaged, they knew they had two choices for a wedding: City Hall and lunch in Chinatown, or a big party in a stunning setting. Ultimately the big party won, and the couple embarked on planning a wedding at Fireplace Farm in East Hampton.
After almost a month of record-breaking high temperatures, the couple’s wedding day dawned warm, sunny, and perfect. Their laid-back soirée was rich with festive summer colors. Present at the celebration was Andy’s vintage 1968 Mustang Convertible, and Amanda chose an assortment of antique vessels for flowers, adding some additional vintage flair. They also named each of the tables after their favorite local beaches and chose stones gathered nearby for their guests’ place cards. Tragically, Andy’s mother was unable to attend the ceremony after being diagnosed with cancer just a few weeks prior, so Andy, always the television producer, arranged to broadcast the ceremony online for her. One of their favorite memories of the day came when their friend Steve, who rented land on Fireplace Farm, suggested they take a few minutes in the morning to plant some seeds. “We switched gears from planning to planting for a few precious moments,” says Amanda, who saw the planting as a symbol of their putting down their own roots as a couple.
That evening, after the vows, dinner, and cake, their guests danced under a starlit summer sky. As the evening wound down and Amanda and Andy shared a quiet dance, they knew that a new chapter in their love story was just beginning.