SHANNON’S 70th: The sports stars were amazing, the movie stars were hot and the politicians were A-list.

But the biggest name in St. Louis on Sunday night was an unassuming man by the name of Franklin L. Hagenbeck. If you don’t know the name, don’t be surprised. But Hagenbeck happens to be one of only 10 four-star generals in the United States Army.

Hagenbeck is the superintendent of West Point Academy. He was hanging out and looking casual – or at least as casual as a man can look with a shoulder full of stars and a breast full of military badges – at Mike Shannon’s 70th birthday bash at the Four Seasons Hotel.

Hagenbeck, 59, was there with his son, Kelly Hagenbeck, a major in the U.S. Army. He said he has been friends with Shannon since he was 11 years old and was a bat boy for the Cardinals during Stan Musial’s last season on the team. Hagenbeck’s father, Carl, was a native of St. Louis and the younger Hagenbeck said he grew up in Jacksonville, Fla., listening to the St. Louis Cardinals.

He was only one of the big boys at Shannon’s party. Bob Costas was there with his son Keith, a new graduate of Webster University; Bill Bolster senior was there, holding forth with his son, Bill junior and his wife, Trish; Don Wolff was in one corner; Sen. Claire McCaskill, her husband Joe Shepard and mother were chatting with friends in another; Tim Dorsey from KTRS was on hand; Margie and Herschel Price were schmoozing with pals; KTRS sports personality Mike Claiborne was in the house; as were John Rooney’s wife and daughter.

Shannon’s daughter, Pat, and grandson Gary Van Metre were keeping guests happy, while son Dan was spotted squiring around his gal pal, Cheresse Pentella. Some latecomers to the party included MLB Commissioner Bud Selig; Cardinals owner Bill Dewitt Jr.; Cardinals Hall of Famer Red Schoendienst; Cardinals broadcaster, former player and downtown saloon owner, Al Hrabosky; and Pulitzer-Prize winning columnist and avid baseball fan, George Will.

Fortune smiled on Shannon with good weather, enabling the outdoor party at Cielo, the Four Seasons 8th-floor restaurant with an unmatched view of St. Louis. The event went without a hitch, compared to miserable weather that led to a four-hour or more delay in the future All-Stars game and the Celebrity Softball game at Busch Stadium.

While waiting for the rain delay to be called off, reporters milled around with movie, sports and musical stars in the stadium’s lower levels.

I spotted the oh-so-sighable Jon Hamm standing alone in a corner and asked why I was the only one gushing over him. He grinned and said that maybe the Cards ballcap he was wearing had thrown people off.

Billy Bob Thornton - a serious resident of Cardinals nation – said he took batting practice at about 2:30 and then just hung around waiting for some action. He was totally decked out with a Cards shirt, hat and chest-high white athletic pants.

James Denton was worried that the game wouldn’t get underway before he had to leave to catch a flight out of town, while Annie Wersching was concerned that she would be able to handle the rigors of catching the game.

“But Tommy Johns gave me some throwing tips so that went well,” Wersching noted.

Andy Richter was prowling the hallways looking for a laugh; Carl Edwards of NASCAR fame was slightly out of place with his Bosox hat; while Ginuine admitted he was there mainly because he is signed to Ira DeWitt’s (wife of the Cardinals prez Billy DeWitt) music label, Notifi. “But I’m actually starting to like it,” said the rapper, seeming to be genuinely surprised.

Nelly was particularly interesting – participating in Major League Baseball’s Junior RBI program – which is intended to get youngsters interested in baseball. He told two groups of kids who had participated in the program here not to look to celebrities for role models but to look to their churches, their families and their schools.

And with that, Nelly walked out of the room and hoisted his young son — Cornell Haynes lll –  in the air, living the role he had just been talking about.