Gayle M Anderson

When a prime minister or royalty visits Orange County, Gayle M. Anderson has the duty of being the first to greet him or her. As chief of protocol, Anderson deals with 87 consulates in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco. These days, the job has taken on a new significance in helping local companies establish trading contacts abroad. An Anaheim resident, Anderson is a former apparel shop owner and real estate saleswoman. She recently spoke with Times staff writer Chris Woodyard.

They are the fashion victims of Orange County's social scene: There's the society matron who overdresses for every opening night at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. There's the woman who attends an opera ball looking like she just left the office. And there are a few female guests who turn up at the Newport Harbor Art Museum's Black and White Bash every year and impress the crowd not by what they're wearing, but by what they're not wearing.

They are the fashion victims of Orange County's social scene: There's the society matron who overdresses for every opening night at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. There's the woman who attends an opera ball looking like she just left the office. And there are a few female guests who turn up at the Newport Harbor Art Museum's Black and White Bash every year and impress the crowd not by what they're wearing, but by what they're not wearing.

When a prime minister or royalty visits Orange County, Gayle M. Anderson has the duty of being the first to greet him or her. As chief of protocol, Anderson deals with 87 consulates in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco. These days, the job has taken on a new significance in helping local companies establish trading contacts abroad. An Anaheim resident, Anderson is a former apparel shop owner and real estate saleswoman. She recently spoke with Times staff writer Chris Woodyard.