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Al Sharpton threw himself a star-studded birthday bash at the Four Seasons in Manhattan Wednesday night.

The civil rights activist and MSNBC host was loving the limelight as political and creative luminaries came by to shake hands and wish him a Happy Birthday.

Sharpton, who turns 60 on Friday, beamed as a White House representative read him a celebratory letter from Barack and Michelle Obama.

When former First Lady Hillary Clinton called him with best wishes Wednesday, he announced it in a press release. She congratulated him on his birthday and he congratulated her on daughter Chelsea Clintons new baby, he said.

Politicians in tuxedos and evening gowns migrated to the Four Seasons from the nearby Waldorf Astoria, where the white-tie Al Smith dinner benefiting Catholic Charities was held.

Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, resplendent in a black tux, stopped by to tease Sharpton about his dramatic weight loss before turning serious.

The Rev. is half the man he used to be ... but he still has that sense of outrage at injustice. Hes no longer New York Citys Sharpton, hes the nations Sharpton, said Cuomo.

Unlike Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio ditched his fancy ensemble before showing up at Sharptons party.

Hizzoner was distinctly underdressed in a blue shirt and necktie as he entered the glitzy ballroom, decked out in gold and silver balloons and festooned with life-size cut outs of Sharpton.

This is a birthday fit for a king! Al Sharpton has been a blessing for the city, he has been a blessing for the nation, de Blasio said.

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Rev. Al Sharpton throws star-studded 60th birthday bash

Al Sharpton invited a host of great names to his 60th birthday on Friday. They celebrated the birthday in the Manhattan hotel. The hotel was in Four Seasons and it was on a Wednesday night.

The MSNBC host was really excited for being in the limelight and we saw a lot of politicians and showbiz people at the event who wished him a Happy Birthday.

Al Sharpton is a white house rep. And he also got a celebratory letter from Michelle Obama and Barack Obama. Former first lady Hillary Clinton also wished him a Happy Birthday. Al Sharpton announced this news in a press release.

Hillary wished him a Happy Birthday and Al Sharpton congratulated her on daughters new baby. At the star-studded birthday bash, male politicians were seen wearing tuxedos while females were present in beautiful evening gowns.

Andrew Cuomo also came up to Al Sharpton and he joked about him losing weight. But he soon returned to a more serious discussion with Al. Andrew said that Rev. is half the man he used to be.

But he added that Al Sharpton still had a sense of outrage at injustice. Andrew Cuomo also said that there was a time when Al used to be New Yorks Al Sharpton but now he is the nations Al Sharpton.

Mayor de Blasio did not wear his fancy ensemble at Al Sharptons birthday bash while Hizzoner was underdressed for the event, according to NYDailyNews. He wore a necktie and a blue shirt as he entered the sparkling ballroom.

The ballroom was full of gold and silver balloons and there life-size cut outs of Sharpton were also present there. A lot of people said that it looked like a birthday bash of a king.

De Blasio said that Al Sharpton was a blessing in disguise for the whole nation. The mayor said that he loves Al Sharpton and that the more people criticize him, the more he wants to hang out with the legend.

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Al Sharpton Celebrates 60th Birthday in Manhattan

Billionaire Ken Langone saw Police Commissioner Bill Bratton on the dais at the annual Al Smith dinner, but he charged the real top cop was nowhere to be found.

I dont see the person in charge of the NYPD up here tonight -- Al Sharpton, he cracked in the most pointed zinger at the fund-raiser, which drew a host of city luminaries, including Mayor de Blasio and Gov. Cuomo, who subjected themselves to a ribbing to raise cash for Catholic Charities.

Bratton, seated behind the Home Depot founder on the dais full of notables in white ties and tails, took the joke with a hearty laugh.

Sharpton, for his part, was a few blocks away throwing himself a swanky 60th birthday party -- which Cuomo slipped out of the dinner to join for a bit before returning. De Blasio headed for Sharptons bash after the event wrapped up.

Langone also protested that his much-criticized remarks comparing rhetoric on income inequality to Nazi Germany was taken out of context.

I was just saying the world should be wary of German populists -- but enough about Bill de Blasio, he quipped.

De Blasio was roundly mocked for losing his grip on groundhog Staten Island Chuck, a fumble that may have contributed to the animals death a week later.

Having the mayor here tonight means one thing -- the citys groundhogs are safe, said emcee Alfred Smith IV, great-grandson of the dinner's namesake former governor. By the way, this never would have happened to Mayor Bloomberg -- the groundhog wouldnt have fallen far.

Smith then turned his attention to Cuomo, noting, The governor just got back from Afghanistan -- the only place more hostile than Albany."

"By the way, is Rob Astorino here?" he asked of Cuomos badly trailing Republican opponent, who was in fact in the room. "Seriously, I don't know what he looks like."

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Ken Langone zings Bill Bratton, says that Al Sharpton is the top cop

On Wednesday night, political power-dining in New York was a tale of two Als.

The 69th Annual Al Smith Dinner was held in the grand ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria. Two and a half blocks away, Al Sharpton threwhis 60th birthday party at the Four Seasons restaurant. The events had their differences, yet spoke to each other.

The Alfred E. Smith dinner began with official introductions as the white-tie worthies fill the seats of a four-tier dais. "The honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, 56th governor of the state of New York," intoned an announcer in an upbeat basso profundo. "Dr. Henry A. Kissinger, former secretary of state, United States of America."

Reporters watched from a sequestered spot in the balcony.

At the Four Seasons, Al Sharpton rolled up in a tailored blue suit with girlfriend Aisha McShaw on his arm. The first thing he did was hit the press scrum to take questions, including one about his influence on New York City policy since the election of Mayor Bill de Blasio.

"I don't think it's really as strange as a lot of people want to try to make it, he said of his newfound insider status. If you have a constituency and can show and deliver that constituency, people are going to respond." He then ascended stairs to The Pool Room to mingle with well-wishers, eat sushi, and await the arrival of celebrities like Spike Lee and Aretha Franklin.

Back at the Waldorf, this years Al Smith honoree was Home Depot founder Kenneth Langone, a billionaire and major Republican fundraiser, whodelivered the event's traditionally cutting after-dinner speech. "What a crowd tonight, he said near the top. Although I don't see the person in charge of the NYPD up here tonight: Al Sharpton."

Langone delivered the line, which got a big laugh, with de Blasio and police commissioner Bill Bratton sitting nearby. It was a reference to the mayor's consultations with Sharpton after Staten Islander Eric Garner died in a police chokehold in July. And it was proof, in a way, that Sharpton has joined the establishment. No one at the high-powered Al Smith dinner bothers to take shots at you unless you've got some clout.

De Blasio would say later, after leaving the Waldorf and dropping in at the Four Seasons, that, "The more people criticize Al Sharpton, the more I want to hang out with him." He mightve said more nice things but Sharpton cut him off. "I don't usually interrupt the mayor, but the Queen is in the room," Sharpton said, meaning of course the one and only, Aretha Franklin.

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Al Sharpton Vs. Al Smith

The Rev. Al Sharpton turns 60 this week, reaching a milestone in both his professional and personal life. Once known primarily as a polarizing civil rights leader, Sharpton is at the height of his influence, advising some of the most powerful leaders in the nation President Barack Obama and Mayor Bill de Blasio and bolstering his position as thego-to voice for African American community leadership.

Peniel Joseph, professor of History at Tufts University and the author of several books about the civil rights movement, said Sharpton continues to be a catalyst for action.

"Hes transformed the discourse, because 20years ago, we weren't talking about putting cameras on every single cop, where as now we got a mayor and police brass who are willing to talk to somebody like Al Shapton about ways that police-community relations can be better in a matter that they wouldn't have in a previous historical context," Joseph said.

He spoke to WNYC's Amy Eddings about Sharpton's career evolution.

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Al Sharpton Turns 60: From Flamethrower to Power Broker