NEW YORK — It was diva time in the best possible way Thursday morning as Fashion Week kicked off with Heart Truth’s Red Dress Collection 2008.

"Nothing draws attention like a little red dress," first lady Laura Bush said in her introduction (though she was wearing a white Oscar de la Renta suit).

Then, bam, out came a lineup of stellar stars in red dresses that quite simply rocked the house. Oh, if the rest of the upcoming fashion shows could be such joyous affairs. Lisa Rinna, wearing a fringy flapper Michael Kors number, was over-the-top sexy. "Grey’s Anatomy" actress Sara Ramirez proved that curves can be smoldering in an Angel Sanchez satin mermaid job and Heidi Klum, who obviously knows how to make it work, did just that in a Marc Jacobs apron-like mini.

Long Island, N.Y.’s, own Ashanti saucily strutted in a fitted Tracy Reese frock and Camryn Manheim was playfully irreverent in a satin gown by Ali Rahimi. She wore sunglasses and actually applied lipstick at the end of the catwalk.

Top honors, however, go to the old gals: Rita Moreno in Lily Samii, and her huge red headdress owned every dazzling step she took down the runway. And then there was Liza (as in Minnelli) wearing a razzle dazzle original Halston pants ensemble. Naturally, she got a standing ovation for belting out her classic rendition of the city’s favorite song, "New York, New York."

This was one case when every fashionista in New York was wearing the exact same thing: a smile.