The crowd was small, our spy reports — "about 20-30 people, mostly TechCrunch50 finalists." SearchMe.com was one of the finalists — "some woman even Twittered that they got in." Arrington drives a gray Porsche, and "left with a ladyfriend, didn't get to see who." (Anyone know who he's dating? Do tell!) On to the pictures!

Arrington, even as host, never could seem to crack a smile:

TechCrunch CEO Heather Harde watches from the sidelines:

Arrington and Del Conte catch up:

Arrington desperately wants to sell, that's for sure. But a Fox Interactive-TechCrunch linkup makes little sense on the surface — Fox Interactive chief Peter Levinsohn is said to loathe Arrington, or at least dislike him. And yet Levinsohn, who has practically no control over Fox Interactive's largest business, MySpace, might conceivably be eager to buy a tech blog which gives him, if not traffic, some industry clout. After all, that's why Murdoch owns the reportedly unprofitable New York Post.

But the biggest problem with an Arrington deal is, well, Arrington. Recent rumors had AOL acquiring TechCrunch for $30 million. That deal didn't go forward, we're hearing, because AOL worried about Arrington's mental stability and doubted whether the brand would survive if the mercurial blogger left. As one prospective buyer put it: "We're worried about buying it and him leaving, and we're worried about buying it and him staying." Before being acquired by CBS, CNET, too, took a long look at TechCrunch, only to decide too much of its value was tied up in the volatile blogger.

Arrington is ready to check out. He was recently heard talking about plans to retire to Hawaii; other Valley sources say he's been spending a lot of time up in Tahoe. It would be the height of irony if Arrington's willingness to let go was what finally greased the wheels for a deal.

But without Arrington, is TechCrunch worth anything? That's the question. And that's why everyone's still talking. Arrington, a master of the deal-gossip game, could well be floating these rumors himself — both talk of a deal with News Corp., and signs of his pending departure — to get AOL to come back to the table. Will it get his company sold? Maybe to AOL, a company gullible enough to buy an also-ran social network like Bebo. But not to News Corp., home to the ultimate media spinner.

... a bulldog chaser?

Thanks, Jason. Everything's better now. See y'all next week.

Several Valleywag readers have noted that Mullenweg has been going steady for a year with his girlfriend, who is both undeniably comely, and if friends' reports are accurate, likely to "string him up and gut him" if he were to stray. Harde, too, is known to take her professional image very seriously, and therefore, confidants believe, unlikely to put herself in a situation where one might perceive even a glimmer of something amiss. All of which makes the very rumor of a dalliance at The Lobby more eyebrow-raising.

Mullenweg commented below and also emailed Valleywag to deny that he was alone in the bar with Harde: "I was no 'closer" to Ms. Harde than to Garrett Camp or Erika Arone or Chris Sacca." (Our sources never said, nor did we report, that he and Harde were alone.)

If you ask Mullenweg, in other words, his answer to the question posed in this item's headline is an unequivocal "no." An eyewitness source, however, insists he saw Mullenweg "all over" Harde. At 1:30 a.m.

(Photo by True Ventures)

So, how was the crowd? Michael Arrington was there, of course, holding court and greeting well-wishers. TechCrunch CEO Heather Harde overviewed the event. Lots of TechCrunch40 presenters and DemoPit participants showed up, including Powerset CEO Barney Pell, who declined to take credit for his company's vodka giveaway, though he was a fan of the fun schwag.

I asked Pell about his company's participation in TechCrunch40. Powerset has gotten a fair bit of press in the past year. Wasn't the whole purpose of the conference to show off undiscovered companies? Pell told me that the conference organizers had actually come to him and asked Powerset to present. Interesting.

I, unfortunately, missed MC Hammer, though fellow TechCrunch40 "panel of experts" member Sarah Lacy (pictured above, with Arrington) was there. No Jason Calacanis, though. When asked about his partner's whereabouts, Arrington guessed Calacanis skipped the event. Running a conference does tend to tucker people out. So much for his treadmill workouts.

As the night went on, the over business agendas came out. One startup founder talked to me about his desire to sell for "at least $20 million" and started strategizing about potential buyers to target. Another presenting company was a bit more level-headed about the event. When asked about his reaction to being selected as one of the 40 lucky ones, he demurred. "It's not going to make us or break us, but it's nice," he said. Nice. Oooh. That hurts. Somehow I doubt, of all the words Calacanis and Arrington might be hoping to have carved on their tombstones, "nice" was on the list.

It was the same small talk, the same pitches, and the same scanning of nametags before faces as any other Valley networking event. With one small hitch — partygoers were asked to fill out their own nametags, and most neglected to include their company information. That omission perplexed at least one venture capitalist in attendance. "I feel like I'm walking socially blind," he confessed. "I don't know how important these people are to me." You mean Arrington's velvet rope-holders let in some hoi polloi who aren't worth your time, let alone your capital? Quelle horreur!

Still with a headcount inching towards quadruple digits, there were bound to be a few gems in the crowd. MySpace cofounder Chris DeWolfe was on hand to support Fox Interactive alumna Heather Harde, now TechCrunch CEO (and proud owner of a a blinged-out TechCrunch rhinestone nameplate necklace). Ning CEO Gina Bianchini, while sampling the samosas, warned me away from the sickeningly sweet frozen margaritas doled out by an overeager PR firm.

But for the most part, it was midlevel business developers trolling the crowd for victims. The pitches from official TechCrunch9 sponsors and invited guests mostly went ignored, but it was harder to miss some pushier in-person come-ons. One annoyed CEO told me, "Three times I've been talking to people and interrupted by pitches. These people just don't get it!"

Confession time: Yes, I went to the party even though I was technically disinvited. I thought it was a cute Valleywag tradition, but apparently Mike wasn't kidding about taking my name off the list. Other guests were well aware of this, and commented on my presence, often, once I graced the patio. One guest half-jokingly said to me, "Arrington's right there, I can't be seen talking to you." At least, I think he was joking. As soon as he pronounced that, he turned and bounced away to the next conversation. Wanker. I'm hoping he got cornered by biz-dev types in blue shirts for the rest of the evening.