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CONTENTS 120
The S pring S tyle Issue 88
dressing for new york
A portrait series of eight New York
women of style and distinction—and the fashions that fit their careers.
by
Daniel Cappello
photographed by
124
Hannah Thomson
104 a parisian in america A new book details the love affair between Christian Dior and his American audience. by Georgina Schaeffer
112 spain’s native son Traces of Cristóbal Balenciaga’s Spanish heritage can
be found in perhaps every one of his designs.
by
Georgina S chaeffer
114
114 it’s in the (belgian) bag A history of the exquisite and longstanding
leather-goods company Delvaux.
by
Georgina Schaeffer
120 dressing the best Ten fashion designers illustrate a spring look inspired
130
by their favorite leading New York women.
quest best dressed: the list
by
Daniel Cappello
Our second annual best-dressed list
highlights the women with the greatest fashions and most enduring styles.
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144
CONTENTS 68
C olumns 20
Social Diary
62 64
66 68 74
Chronicles of the social scene.
Social Calendar
by
D avid Patrick Columbia
Our guide to the month’s best benefits, balls, and more.
HARRY BENSON
Remembering a day with Giorgio Armani and his many cats.
observations
A view of Egypt from the West.
fresh finds
Our trend-setting picks.
by
by
Taki Theodoracopulos
Daniel Cappello
and
Elizabeth Meigher
fashion
Charlotte Kellogg designs for the well-heeled traveler. by Elizabeth Brown
fashion
Fiandaca celebrates sixteen years in Palm Beach with a new store.
film
78
80
Bill Cunningham debuts in a new documentary.
by
138 Appearances Rounding out the Palm Beach season. 140
young & the guest list
Georgina S chaeffer
by
Partying with the junior set.
H ilary G eary
by
E lizabeth B rown
68 144 snapshot Honoring the models who won the Battle of Versailles. by D aniel C appello
Tiffany Keys
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daniel cappello a s s o c i a t e a r t d i r ec t o r
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editor’s letter
Above: My mother and grandmother sitting at Fashion Week in the 1960s. The shift dresses shown in this clipping are as timeless as the women who wear them. Left: the poster for a new documentary film by Richard Press, Bill Cunningham New York, which opens at Film Forum this month.
Everyone remembers her first time—for me it was at
the Plaza Hotel in the ’80s. I sat second row behind my grandmother and mother at one of Adolfo’s fashion shows. It seemed pretty glamorous to me at the age of six; in fact, it seems pretty glamorous to me now. It occurred to me, standing this year in the entry to the tents at Lincoln Center, that the current experience of Fashion Week is not unlike an airport—complete with a self check-in kiosk, a Starbucks counter, security lines, and, of course, runways. Much has changed since my first fashion show—even more since the days when my mother was the head fashion coordinator at Saks, and designers showed in their atelier on Seventh Avenue to a handful of buyers, editors, and special clients. That said, after visiting Angel Sanchez in his atelier this season to view his fall collection, I returned to the office reaffirmed in my belief that classic fashion (and classic fashion designers) are alive and well in our rush-about world. Three of the features this month—one on Spain’s influence on Balenciaga, one on Christian Dior’s penetration of the American market, and a profile of the Belgian leather-goods company Delvaux—are steeped in history. These pieces add richness and depth to this issue, and, looking at them as a collective, they also bring a unique international flair. Still, in this fashion issue, the heart of Quest beats with something new and modern—and something distinctly New York. We open with Daniel Cappello’s cover story focusing on eight classic women dressed for New York. Beginning with 18 QUEST
Allison Aston’s breakfast meeting at Monkey Bar and concluding with Quest’s own Hilary Geary Ross, ready to cover a black-tie ball at the Plaza, we take you through their days. Each subject, including our cover girl, Punch Hutton, approaches fashion with a unique style befitting her career and life. Elsewhere in the issue, we asked ten leading New York fashion designers to create a design for a woman who inspires them. From Ralph Lauren’s timeless look for Blair Husain to Naeem’s Khan’s flirty number for Linda Fargo, these illustrations also remind us of what is a constant in fashion: creativity. Finally, we offer our annual best-dressed list. Best-dressed lists are not a new invention. Flipping through my grandmother’s scrapbook, I found many clippings from the 1960s that felt as if they could have appeared in last week’s Women’s Wear Daily. And while fashion, by its very nature, changes, the essence of a well-dressed woman is enduring. These stories all focus not only on the fashion of today, but also highlight the women of today. No one documents the fashion and women (and men) of today better than the subject of a new film opening at Film Forum this month. Bill Cunningham New York is a fabulous documentary about a great New Yorker. During the film, Cunningham says, “I like fashion as an art form of dressing the body. If we all went out dressed like a slob like me, it would be a pretty dreary world.” The counter-argument comes from Iris Apfel, who says, “Now see, I think Bill is very stylish. He has a look. It’s individual…” Real style is having your own individual look that fits your life—whether that means a glamorous hautecouture creation or a street sweeper’s smock like Cunningham. Style is about knowing yourself. So, while I hope these pages are inspirational, take them as a mere jumping-off point. Go out and have some fun and get creative. Feel the street-side energy that this city has always been and always will be famous for. It’s what keeps New York—and New Yorkers—forever in style. u
Georgina Schaeffer
on the cover: Vanity Fair's Punch Hutton photographed at work in a dress by Carolina Herrera and pearl earrings by Tiffany & Co. Hutton is one of the women featured in Daniel Cappello's cover story, "Dressing For New York: Eight Women of Substance and Style," photographed by Hannah Thomson.
D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A
David Patrick Columbia
NEW YORK SO C IAL DIARY February seemed like a
quiet month at the time: midwinter in the city, cold and icy, snow banks everywhere. It seemed quieter than normal… until I went back and looked at my calendar. On the second night of the month, Elizabeth Peabody hosted a small birthday dinner (menu by Glorious Foods) at her apartment overlooking the
East River for Liz Smith, the Aquarian’s Aquarian. Long the belle of the Broadway beat and savior of literacy, Liz personifies all kinds of encomiums, which might sound like a press agent’s hype, but is nevertheless true. Within reason of course. There were ten of us, including old friends Rex Reed, Sean Driscoll, Iris
Love, and Joe Armstrong, as well as newer friends, such as Valentina Fratti, Annie Berlin, Bill Stubbs (of “A Moment of Luxury” on PBS), and this writer. Old or new, with Liz, friends are friends, and conversation at the dinner table was rife with one guffaw-inducing story after another, mainly about show business characters now,
then, and forever. After decades of reporting on the comings and goings of society, Broadway, Hollywood, as well as all those actors, authors, artists, and such, there is damned little this famous scribe hasn’t seen or heard or experienced. And, at the end of the day, a lot of it inspires laughter. Happy Birthday, Liz; thanks for all the memories,
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A and here’s to many more. That same night, Susan Rockefeller and Dr. Kristian Parker, chairman of the board of Oceana hosted a cocktail reception, with a reading of the forthcoming book Oceana by author Ted Danson at the home of Susan Rockefeller and her husband David Rockefeller, Jr. The week before, Susan Rockefeller also became a member of the Oceana board of directors. She has been an active and dedicated environmentalist for a long time and most recently chaired Oceana’s ocean council. The Rockefellers will also host the second annual Christie’s Green Auction: A
Bid to Save the Earth, which will be held on March 29. Susan Rockefeller and Ocean Council member Lois Robbins will also co-host the Hamptons Splash Party, another fundraiser for Oceana this summer on Long Island. On another very cold wintry day at the beginning of the month, I went down to Michael’s to meet with Gillian Tett, the U.S. managing editor of the Financial Times. Michael’s was jammed with the boldfacers. At table one, Al Gore was lunching with several gentlemen, including Mark Rosenthal and Keith Olbermann, the newest addition to Gore’s Current Media (Mark
Rosenthal is its CEO), the cable network founded in 2005. Yesterday’s luncheon was a celebration of the new association. Olbermann, now sporting a fresh beard, will produce and host a nightly live news show. His title will be Chief News Officer. Some faces around the room: Joe Armstrong with Deeda Blair; Henry Kravis and a friend; Barry Diller with Andrew Tobias; Herb Siegel with Frank Gifford; Fredi Friedman; Hugh Freund; Bonnie Roche-Bronfman; Dan Wassong; Christine Taylor; Joe Versace; Kate White; venture capitalist and international mystery man Vivi Nevo; Mike Ovitz;
Harold Holzer of the Met; Diana Taylor; Lewis Korman; Catie Marron, Sherrie Westin; Randy Jones; Paul Wilmot; Chazz Palminteri; Marilyn Crawford; Derek Johnson; Michael Kassan; Jeanine Pirro; Morris Levy; Gerry Byrne; Neal Shapiro; Ralph Baruch. Beverly Hills chef Alex Hitz was hosting Hiram Williams, Peter Vaughan, and Brooke Hayward, who has just re-issued (by Vintage) her 1977 no. 1 best-selling memoir Haywire. This was the first time meeting with Tett, who began her professional life (after graduating with a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge) as a social
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Linda Fairstein
anthropologist. Now married with two young daughters, she previously worked in Tajikistan during Perestroika, when she started writing for the Financial Times. In 1997, she was posted in Tokyo where she became bureau chief, returning in 2003 to London to write the paper’s “Lex” column. After her Japan experience, she wrote the highly praised Saving the Sun: How Wall Street Mavericks Shook Up Japan’s Financial System and Made Billions. I started reading her when she took over the daily “Lex” column and began filing a financial column on Fridays. I was struck by her incisive 24 QUEST
Bob Friedman and Lizzy Plapinger
reports, which were easy to comprehend for this nonfinancial person, and by her good looks. Yes, it’s true, a smart, good-looking woman is impressive to me, and even daunting at times—as sexist as I know that might sound. In 2009, she was named Journalist of the Year at the British Press Awards, and her book Fool’s Gold: How Unrestrained Greed Corrupted a Dream, Shattered Global Markets, and Unleashed a Catastrophe won Financial Book of the Year at the Spear’s Book Awards. Three years before, in 2006, she had predicted the financial crisis. Oh, and she also
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speaks French, Russian, some Japanese, as well as Persian. See what I mean? So what did we talk about at lunch? I wanted to know the difference between a “social” anthropologist and a plain old anthropologist. The answer, in short: one studies tribal behaviors and the other studies a specific tribe. Tribe is a word that comes into her conversation easily in referencing contemporary behavior as defined by nations, politics, and borders. The Financial Times, she told me, like a lot of British newspapers, moves their journalists around to give them a larger sphere of interest
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and a broader expertise. They moved her into the financials quickly, first by assigning her to learn and write about currencies. Following the currencies in the world, she soon learned, is the first lesson in How It All Works. We talked a great deal about the worlds we live in now. She is currently living on the East Side, near midtown, and although she likes it, she misses easier access to a place to run (she’s doing that by machine these days). By the time we finished, Michael’s had nearly cleared out, except for Gore’s table. As he was departing at the same time we were, we all got
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A to say hello. I introduced him to Gillian, informing him of her business. He told her the Financial Times is among his daily reading. That same evening, at 583 Park, the International Women’s Health Coalition (IWHC) held its annual gala dinner honoring Dr. Paul Farmer, who is a medical anthropologist (that word again), a physician, and a founding director of Partners in Health, an international non-profit organization that provides direct health-care services and undertakes research and advocacy activities on behalf of those who are sick and living in poverty.
Dr. Farmer is also the Presley Professor of Social Medicine and chair of the department of global health and social medicine at Harvard Medical School, as well as chief of the division of global health equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and the United Nations deputy special envoy for Haiti, under special envoy Bill Clinton. He’s one of those amazing individuals who accomplishes much in the world in a day and yet seems energized afterwards. The terms we heard several times at the dinner was “gender equality” and “gender equity.” The IWHC understands better than most of us that the most
important road out of poverty and ill health is via those routes. Developed countries are well aware and in many ways adapted to women’s rights. Developing countries are far behind. The solution to breaking the grip of poverty is simple but difficult to achieve: education for women and health care. This is charter of the IWHC. HIV is rampant in the developing world. Its victims are mainly young women, many of whom have no choice or medical assistance to avoid disease. For example, cervical cancer, Dr Farmer said, kills more women in the developing world than any other disease, and yet there is
now a vaccine available. There is not yet a cure for HIV, but it is now a treatable disease. Dr. Farmer told us about a Haitian girl he has known since birth. She was born with HIV—her mother died of AIDS—and now she is twenty. He ran into her recently on one of his trips to Haiti. The young woman has grown up educated about gender equity and equality. He asked her what she wanted to do with her life. She told him she wanted to start a business, to be independent, to determine her own future outside the binds of a maledominated social structure. Marlene Hess, an IWHC board member was emcee.
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She introduced Aryeh Neier, the human rights activist who is president of the Open Society Institute and former director of Human Rights Watch, and was standing in for George Soros, who could not attend. The International Women’s Health Coalition is relatively unknown to our American everyday world, yet it is leading global and local actions to secure every woman’s right to a just and healthy life. When you sit in on one of these dinners, among serious thinking, concerned citizens, and listen to men and women like Dr. Farmer, Marlene Hess, Aryeh Neier, and Adrienne Germain (president of IHWC), you realize that despite all we read and hear about politics and economics and warfare, everything is irrelevant without the vision of the IWHC, which is focusing on the survival of all societies on this planet. And, with it, comes hope. It starts with women and girls. Visit
Veronica and Alexis Mersentes
their site, iwhc.org, and find out how you can participate. The following night, in the Celeste Bartos Theater at MoMA, there was a screening of Vidal Sassoon: The Movie, which is set for a limited release here in New York and on the West Coast this weekend. This screening was organized by Peggy Siegal. I’m old enough to remember when Vidal Sassoon came onto the scene in a big way in the 1960s, along with the Beatles and the British fashion invasion, led by Mary Quant, who is featured in the film, and had a tremendous impact on fashion and the way we saw ourselves. Vidal Sassoon made a splash in the early 1960s with his “geometric” haircuts that became the rage both in Britain and here in America. By the mid-1960s, every fashionable young woman was wearing a Sassoon cut or something similar. A few years later, he went national with a hair products line—the first
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A c h r i s d e l g at to h o st e d c f d a m e m b e r s at t h e c i r c a l o u n g e d u r i n g fa s h i o n w e e k
Marcy Warren and Gayle Sobel
hairdresser to market his own brand of products. My friend Peter Rogers, then a major advertising executive here in New York, created the slogan for it: “If You Don’t Look Good, We Don’t Look Good,” and Vidal Sassoon became a household word readily found in every bathroom cabinet and shower shelf across America, eventually grossing in the hundreds of millions annually. The film, which played to a rapt audience the night I saw it, tells the story about this boy from the East End of London who, by chance and serendipity, by natural talent and force of personality, with a pair of scissors, became 30 QUEST
Angelina Chen and Steven Kolb
a major part of the cultural revolution of the 1960s that is still with us today. The man himself, who was there with his wife, Ronnie Sassoon, revolutionized his profession and created what is now a multi-billion-dollar annual industry, never for a moment forgetting where he came from and who he was. The film is an inspiration for many and a life lesson for all of us. After the screening, there was a cocktail reception (with an abundance of hors d’oeuvres) at Michael’s. A big fashion crowd attended: from Grace Coddington, Alexandra Kotur
Leah Karp, Cindy Cleary and Alexandra Lebenthal
Jen and Dan Fishman
with her mother (whose first professional haircut when she was a young woman was by Sassoon in his London salon), and Eve McSweeney of Vogue to Marisa Berenson with David Croland, Hamish Bowles (one of the hosts), Jim Reginato, Ann Caruso, Scott Buccheit, Poppy de Villeneuve, Todd Eberle, Austin Hearst, Frédéric Fekkai, Jamie Figg, Zani Gugelmann, Yigal Azrouël, Lisa Airan, Sabine Heller, Genevieve Jones, Kiera Chaplin, Jonathan Becker, Tamara Mellon, Bonnie Morrison, Nigel Barker, Philip Bloch, Buck Jensen, Sante D’Orazio, Lauren Remington Platt,
Veronica Webb and Alia Varsano
Olivia Sandelman, Rachel Roy, Antony Todd, Selita Ebanks, Domenico Vacca, Candy Pratts Price, Marina Rust Connor, Alison Sarofim, Stuart Parr, Jeff Sharp, Doug Steinbrech, Peter Bacanovic, Pierre Alexandre de Looz, as well as the director, Craig Teper, and producer Michael Gordon (who once worked for Sassoon in the early days and went on to create Bumble & Bumble). Mid-month was Fashion Week in New York, as you may have noticed—and noticed and noticed. On a Wednesday afternoon I went over to 583 Park for Oscar de la Renta’s fall collection.
Ne i l s o n B a r n a r d
Elie Tahari, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, Chris Del Gatto and Rebecca Minkoff
MERE ET ENFANT - 31 X 39 IN., OIL ON CANVAS
LE PHO (1907 - 1997)
WA L LY F I N D L AY G A L L E R I E S I N T E R N AT I O N A L N E W Y O R K • PA L M B E A C H • B A R C E L O N A
1 2 4 E A S T 5 7 T H S T R E E T, N E W Y O R K , N Y 1 0 0 2 2 • P ( 2 1 2 ) 4 2 1 5 3 9 0 F ( 2 1 2 ) 8 3 8 2 4 6 0 W W W . W A L L Y F I N D L A Y. C O M
EST. 1870
ART WALLY FINDLAY
D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A 583 Park, the landmarked Delano and Aldrich-designed house of worship is now a venue for charitable events and Oscar de la Renta’s collection shows. De la Renta made the exclusive deal when Louis Rose, the impresario of 583 Park began managing it. Oscar’s show is kind of the Jewel in the Crown of the collections. He is, after all, the remaining major American fashion designer of his generation. He has outlived or outlasted all of his peers. Furthermore, he has done it with a kind of panache that has a patina, if that is possible. I know that sounds like some kind of Valentine, but it is there for anyone to see. The show was spectacular, but typical. His stuff is just beautiful to look at. And there’s always a dash of
shimmer and glint to the eye, and it’s never de trop. Perhaps that is the Lanvin-Castillo in his early apprenticeship. What is and will be seen as amazing about de la Renta, when they finally write the book about him— and no doubt one day they will (and it won’t be boring) —is how he managed to become his own classic. And “managed” is the key word. It is a total image that reflects a way of life, a view of life, and its self-expression as reality. To the businessman, it is brilliant, to the artist it is completion—an integration of all the elements so as to be one. Ralph Lauren immediately comes to mind. Oscar de la Renta is the textbook example. In that business, it is the ultimate accolade. His mentors had it
and, indeed, he has it too. If you want to know what highly distilled ambition in the human spirit looks like, have a look, there it is. History will take note, and respectfully. His collections also draw a bevy of some of the bestdressed women in New York, including Barbara Walters, Stephanie Krieger, Emilia Saint Amand, Helene Martinez, Gaetana Enders, Shirley Lord Rosenthal, Lally Weymouth, Toni Goodale, Linda Wachner, Oscar’s wife Annette de la Renta, Mica Ertegun, and Jamee Gregory, almost all wearing an Oscar, paying homage with their seating tactfully supervised by Oscar’s sales director, Boaz Mazor. That same night, Beth DeWoody had a birthday dinner at her Gracie Square
apartment for her friend George Farias. About fortyfive attended, all friends of George’s, including Will and Laura Zeckendorf, Anne Bass and Julian Lethbridge, Jay and Tracy Snyder, Debbie Bancroft, Susan Stroman, Alina Cho, Tim McInerney and Anne Hearst, Alison Mazzola, Calvin Tomkins and Dodie Kazanjian, Virginia Coleman, Carlton DeWoody, Susan Gutfreund, Arch and Judy Cox, Wendy Stark in from L.A., telling me she’s thinking of spending more time in the Big Apple, Alex Papachristidis, Scott Nelson, Billy Rudin, Gayle and Charles Atkins, Craig Starr, Bettina Zilkha, Maria Tuttle, also in from L.A., Nan and Gay Talese, Carol Mack, Bronson van Wyck, Patrick McMullan, and a score more just like ‘em.
w i l l i a m r . e u b a n k s c e l e b r at e d t h e a m e r i c a n f r i e n d s o f b r i t i s h a r t i n pa l m b e ac h
Mary Mahoney, Carolyn Buckley and Tara Tobin 32 QUEST
Monique Ogilvie and William Benjamin
Molly Stringer, Wyatt Koch and Christina Urena
A view of the William R. Eubanks showroom
Rick Moeser and Mitchell Brown
Missey Condie and Stephanie Rockwell
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Michael Ridgdill, Lord Charles Townshend and William Eubanks
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A t h e R ya n L i c h t S a n g B i p o l a r D i n n e r D a n c e at c l u b c o l e t t e i n pa l m b e ac h
Christine and Alan Curtis
The menu was pure Zarela, who was present in the kitchen and in the living room. Everybody ate a lot. The room was in a talkative mood. You don’t always find that at a party. I think it could be said that it’s what happens when George gathers his friends around—a lotta talk. However, as I told him last night, all of it was very interesting. And, I’m sure: a happy birthday for George. The following Sunday night, Katherine Bryan invited me to a little dinner she had for Martin Summers and his wife. Martin is a prominent international fine-art dealer who works out of London (although, from the sound 34 QUEST
Didi Shields, Sheila Fine and Liza Pulitzer Calhoun
Becky and Giles van der Bogert
of it, he knows how get away for a while). I’d heard of him, but had never met him. He’s a very cool guy in presentation. He looks like he might have hung around with guys like Cary Grant and David Niven. Or Ian Fleming, had he been a contemporary of those men. He’s famous in London art circles with a long list of friends and clients, from English lords to American movie stars to rock stars and South American playboys. He’s right out of Central Casting for that role. I don’t know how we got on the subject, but he told me about spending time at SPiN while hear in New York. SPiN is a club where
Sasha Lickle, Bobby Leidy and Amanda Boalt
you can play ping-pong. It is located in the Flatiron District. It’s huge—13,000 square feet, sixteen courts, a bar, a restaurant, private rooms, events, tournaments, and Susan Sarandon as one of the partners. (There are also SPiNs in Hollywood, Milwaukee, and Toronto.) Ping-pong, in case you didn’t know, is now a very chic indoor sport. Summers has a group in London that meets at appointed times to play in a private club. One night on his travels, he was seated next to a very beautiful Korean woman—a girl really. He was taken with her beauty. When inquiring about
Susan Keenan, Barry Goldwater III and Alexandra Corcoran
Joyce and Dusty Sang
her, she asked him if he played ping-pong. Well, as a matter of fact, he began… “And do you?” he asked. “Number three in the world!” she replied, returning to her soup. I googled SPiN that night too: “SPiN New York Membership Philosophy is to create a global community of people, socializing, exercising, and fantasizing together, thanks to a 2.7gram, 40mm, gas filled, celluloid, ricocheting round ball...with a coefficient restitution of .88.” On a sunny and cold February Wednesday in New York, I went to lunch at
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Harry Loy and Inger Anderson with Denise and Dan Hanley
D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A Michael’s with Kitt Shapiro. We met through Susan FalesHill. She and Kitt are old close friends, as were their mothers, Eartha Kitt and Josephine Premice. They both went to Lycée Français here in New York when they were kids. Eartha Kitt, the legendary chanteuse, became famous in the early 1950s with the song “C’est Si Bon,” which she introduced in Leonard Sillman’s “New Faces of 1952” on Broadway. She was twenty-five then and already had almost a decade of show business in her C.V. Eartha Kitt had one husband and one daughter. Her life was a saga, horrendous to most of us, although not altogether uncommon in that day and age for a little African-American girl living in South Carolina.
She was born a child of a rape—her mother was AfricanAmerican Cherokee and her father was probably German or Dutch. She was so lightskinned that other children used to beat her up for it—tie her to a tree and whip her with sugar canes. Someone had the wherewithal to send her to live with an aunt here in New York “before someone killed her.” In case you’re wondering what poverty is. Her “aunt,” Mamie Kitt, turned out to be Eartha’s real mother. She began dancing with the Katherine Dunham Company when she was sixteen. Her daughter, Kitt, is writing a book about her mother and their life. Eartha worked all her life. When she lay dying in early December of 2008, she knew
that she was not going to perform again, that her days were numbered. She then canceled several engagements she had booked for the coming year. She would have been 82. Blessed and blessing. On a wet and snowy night in New York, one of the best parties of the year took place at the Plaza—the director’s council of the Museum of the City of New York hosted its twenty-fifth annual Winter Ball. This evening, which is the baby of Mark Gilbertson, the now-veteran social impresario of the once-upon-a-time junior social set of New York. It is interesting to have observed the coming of age of the core of this group who’ve all grown up. Many of its members have been
active on the social and gala benefit scene since their early twenties, when many of them were still single. This is a very popular party and has grown more popular as the council members have gotten...ahem...a little older. It is also, comparatively, one of the lowest priced tickets for this crowd ($500, and it sells out early). Aside from the funds raised for the museum, it is otherwise a dressy, blacktie dinner dance, which begins with a mass cocktail. The museum is one of the city’s secret treasures. Part of its secret has been its location: 104th Street and Fifth Avenue, across from the park. The director’s council, however, has worked hard at raising funds and marketing the museum, and with great success.
the annual ballet ball in houston
Lester and Sue Smith 36 QUEST
Nancy Rutherford and Katie Cullen
Linda and Walter McReynolds
Nick Florescu and Dominique Sachse
Phoebe and Bobby Tudor with Céron
Becca Cason Thrash
F u lto n Dav e n p o rt of P W L S t u d i o
Rose Cullen, Jo Furr and Harry Cullen
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A Steppin’ in Show Business Society. Last month’s issue of Vanity Fair, about Hollywood, has an article by Matt Tyrnauer on Janet de Cordova, who died two years ago this September. Janet’s husband, Freddie de Cordova, who for years had been Johnny Carson’s executive producer, died in 2001 at age ninety. Janet and Freddie were, like me, frequent dinner guests of Edith Mayer (Edie) Goetz, the eldest daughter of Louis B. Mayer, who had become the closest thing that Hollywood had to a dowager queen. At that time there was still a social set in the film colony that resembled a model based on the society that once existed in New York. Although they rarely, if ever, socialized with other wealthy groups in Los
Angeles, Hollywood had a social hierarchy not unlike New York’s. There were different tiers, but all related to the film and television business. The de Cordovas, in the early 1980s, were charter members of the then aging A-List—meaning those directors, producers and stars remaining from the “Golden Age.” They were also, because of Freddie’s connection to Johnny Carson, invited by a lot of the younger hostesses. Although they were being “replaced” as new generations always succeed, the “aging” group still reflected the style of earlier times when the studios reigned and controlled the community. Like so many things under the studio system, the rigors of entertaining were
taken very seriously. They were developed in the late 1930s, early 1940s, when the motion picture industry was burgeoning and half the population was going to the movies every week. Fortunes were being made by the players and the stars. They built big houses, employing important architects. Some collected art in what would become a major way. Others acquired race horses (Fred Astaire, among them), ranches, as well as income-producing real estate. And they entertained, mainly at home. There were different social cliques. Veteran film people (including stars) had very little to do with the television people. Robert Wagner (always known fondly as R.J.) was an exception.
The top tier was run by wives who gave the dinner parties and had the proprietary guest list, which, before the breakup of the studios, the guest list was related to the studio. At the top were the stars, producers, directors, and occasionally a choreographer or costume designer. Rarely a writer. “How it was done,” how one gave an excellent dinner party, was no small matter. Style was as important as costume, makeup, and set decoration. Each woman had her style but it was acquired through good and clever eyes and ears. There were standards. There was good china, good crystal, good silver. And it was served properly, according to the rules of “How it is done,” by the right butler, with the right chef in the kitchen.
a m b a s s a d o r j o h n l o e b h o s t e d a w i n e a n d a r t d i n n e r at v e r s a i l l e s i n g r e e n w i c h
Bob and Sue Stone 38 QUEST
Mary Ann Ast
Steve McMenamin, Rasa Lavigne and Mark Stitzer
Jorge and Marta Jasson
Scott Frantz and Ingrid McMenamin
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Hombeline and Patrick Baugier with John Loeb and Sharon Handler
"It always seems that spring is so near, yet so far......"
The
Commissioned Private Residences
D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A g i l l i a n m i n i t e r c e l e b r at e d b e s t i n s h o w by k a r e n l e f r a k at t h e c o r n e r b o o k s to r e
Susan Fales-Hill and Gillian Miniter
By the time I came upon this mother lode of late twentiethcentury Los Angeles culture and social habit, Hollywood was well into its transition from the “Golden Age.” It was run by a new generation which even included several women in powerful executive roles, led by Sherry Lansing, the first woman president of a studio. The richest man in town was television producer Aaron Spelling, who lived with his wife and children in the biggest house in town, where they rarely, if ever, invited another soul to dine. The studios no longer ruled. The agents and the stars did. The wild times of the 1960s and early ’70s brought drugs onto the scene, which brought a relaxing of the rules of 40 QUEST
Muffie Potter Aston and Amy Fine Collins
Karen LeFrak with Mikimoto and Gem
behavior and fashion. The de Cordovas had a front-row seat to it all. Janet loved it the way you love a good drama. She tasted the wines adequately, and had an eye and ear for the comic subtexts as well. She always told her stories with amusement. For example, she had a friend, a mother of a movie star and wife of a famous performer, very genteel and diffident, now widowed. And alone. Her friends wished she could find a man. Wealthy, still beautiful, but practically a virgin, friends felt sorry for her, for the poor lady. One afternoon, Janet told me that she’d just learned (from her hairdresser) that the lady wasn’t a “virgin” after all—this “lonely” widow—but, instead, was
having a wild international affair with her daughter’s brother-in-law, a married man several years her junior. She was a perfect character out of a Hollywood novel, the other side of Nathaneal West lore. Small-town girl, goodlooking, young, and blonde goes to Hollywood looking for a career. Classic twentiethcentury Americana. Some make it onto the big screen. Some make it to the altar with a rich man, a movie star, a director, producer, or studio head. Some end up working the counter at Norm’s. Janet married four times, finally settling down with a guy who was never quite “big,” but still knew how to work it. Together they made a very good life and were always great
Vanessa Trump with Kai
Aviva Drescher with Hudson
fun to be around. There was often laughter, sometimes even raucous, such as when Freddie was at Edie Goetz’s very formal table. He was irreverent, sometimes bombastic (in his sly irresistible way), but with the timing of a wit. It was well-known that Freddie, several years before he married Janet, had a long relationship with the wife of a star. A son was born of that union, although the woman remained married to her husband, who gave his name to the child. One night, at Edie’s dinner table, the subject came up because the son was working in Washington and Freddie mentioned that he had talked to the young man that day about what a great job he had. Someone at the table
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Marta Radzyminski with Alesia and Karen Klopp
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A jokingly asked him when he was going to acknowledge that the boy was his. Freddie was quiet for a moment, and then began to deny it when Jimmy Stewart’s wife, Gloria, said “oh Freddie, that’s the worst kept secret in the history of Hollywood.” Over the years I went up to the de Cordova house a few times to interview Janet for different profiles I was working on. At 3 in the afternoon, she would be in bed, in a pretty white bed jacket, underneath the lacy white duvet. Hair and makeup perfect. Ready for her close-up. Freddie was sometimes in the house, I was told, although I didn’t see him. Gracie, her famous maid, was only present when necessary. I knew very little about their relationship except that Gracie rolled all
of Janet’s joints for her, and did a perfect job. On her bedside table, Janet kept a large black and white photograph of Tommy Thompson the writer whose book Blood and Money caused a big sensation a few years before. Thompson, who died of AIDS shortly thereafter, was one of her best friends. The subject of Edie Goetz, one of the great characters of old Hollywood, often came up. Many passed harsh judgment on Edie because her level of pretension. She really seemed to believe she was the princess in what was, for a long time, her father’s kingdom. She lived “like royalty” in her Delfern Drive mansion with her staff of ten, surrounded by her huge art collection of Degas, Cézanne, Picasso, Gauguin,
Vuillard, van Gogh, Manet, Monet, and Modigliani. She had lost her crown, however, about ten years before when her beloved husband, Billy Goetz, died ten years before at 66. Everyone loved Billy, a popular man with a broad sense of humor and an inner elegance that flattered his wife and amused his friends. One afternoon, Janet recalled to me the time that Lauren Bacall, newly widowed, had been having an affair with Frank Sinatra when he suddenly dropped her for an Englishwoman, Lady Adelle Beatty. One night, shortly after the breakup, Janet de Cordova recalled, she was in the ladies room at Romanoff’s, the Beverly Hills restaurant, at the same time
as Bacall, when Edie Goetz came in with Lady Adelle. Edie was effusively and loudly congratulating her ladyship on “how wonderful she (versus Bacall) was for Frank, and what a changed man he was since she started dating him, and how good it was for him, etc.” At this point, Bacall was behind a closed door and out of sight, where she remained until Edie and Lady Adelle had departed. The next morning, Janet called Edie to tell her that Bacall happened to be in the powder room at the same time and heard everything! “I know darling,” replied Edie, “That’s why I said it.” Hollywood. It was never a script. That was Janet de Cordova’s life. She lived it, every moment she could of it.u
t h e da n a - fa r b e r c a n c e r i n st i t u t e ’ s t w e n t i e t h a n n i v e r s a r y d i s c o v e r y c e l e b r at i o n i n pa l m b e ac h
Keith and Debbie Banks
Jamie and David Schwartz with Kayla and Charlie 42 QUEST
Robert Korff and Nina Stuart
Jason and Katina Taylor
Charles and Myra Biblowit
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Myra and Bob Kraft
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A the societ y of memorial sloan-kettering’s a s s o c i at e s c o u n c i l l u n c h eo n at r o u g e tom at e
Palmer O’Sullivan and Natalie Leeds Leventhal
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Michelle Smith and Heather Leeds 44 QUEST
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A t h e n e w yo r k b ota n i c a l g a r d e n ’ s o r c h i d d i n n e r i n n e w yo r k
Laura Vinroot Poole
Carmen and John Thain with Marjorie Rosen 46 QUEST
Gregory Long
Julia Merck and Martha Stewart
Charlotte Burton and Richard Davis
Donald and Barbara Tober
Coleman and Susan Burke
Barbara Schumacher and John Rosselli
Marvin and Mary Davidson with Leslie and Peter Jones
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Buck and Linda Margold
Legends live on...
returning to Lincoln center this June
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dAvid H. KocH tHeAter, LincoLn center June 23–26, 2011 TICKETS: 800-818-2393 | www.ChineseArtsRevival.org Based in New York, Shen Yun Performing Arts is the world’s premier Chinese dance and music company.
D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A t h e i n t e r n at i o n a l r e d c r o s s b a l l i n pa l m b e ac h
Vic Damone
Arturo Sarukhan, Nicole Marcus, Veronica Ross and Jeffrey Marcus 48 QUEST
Asa and Per-Olof Loof
Princess Madeline of Sweden, Donald Trump and Camilla Olsson
Kurt Sylvia with Grace and Bill Nelson
Howard Bernick and Nancy Brinker
Mary and Mark Freitas
George and Anne Lichtblau
Bonnie McElveen-Hunter with a cadet
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Michele and Howard Kessler
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A the san francisco ballet’s opening night gala
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A a c e l e b r at i o n o f s h e n yu n p e r fo r m i n g a r ts d u r i n g t h e c h i n e s e n e w ye a r at r a d i a n c e t e a h o u s e
Allan Valdes, Shirley Dai, Christy Zuo and Steven Norris
Ping-yi Lee, Frank Figarella, Gail Rachlin and Damon Noto
Patrick Harvey and Sandra Navidi
Jane Bulkley, Pennie Alexitch and Catherine Green 52 QUEST
Carl and Evelyn Abruzzo, Yun Song, and Vera Fairbanks
Colette and Wayne Fox
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D AV I D PAT R I C K C O L U M B I A t h e avo n t h e at r e f i l m c e n t e r ’ s a n n ua l g a l a i n sta m fo r d
Robert and Gale Lawrence
Charles and Georgette Mallory 54 QUEST
Patricia and John Chadwick
Carrie and Ted Pryor
Chris and Michael Zimmerman
Terry and Diana Betteridge
Tracy and Mark Holton
Michael Kovner and Jean Doyen deMontaillou
Paul Rinaldi and Lynne Haven
Robert and Gale Lawrence
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Jesse Kester, Christopher Marcellin, Michael Sellman and Neil Edward St. Clair
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Rachel and Ara Hovnanian
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Bill and Norma Tiefel
Rand and Jessie Araskog 60 QUEST
Myrna and John Daniels
George and Carla Mann
Marc Rosen, Lauren Duffy, Nick Roldan, and Somers Farkas
Grace Meigher and Tom Quick
Dennis Melchior and Nancy Paul
Ann Downey and Mona deSayvre
Marc Ackermann and Arlene Dahl
Bob Nederlander and Pat Cook
lu c i e n c a p e h a rt
Frances Scaife and Tom McCarter
ROBERTA.McCAFFREYREALTY ROBERTA.McCAFFREYREALTY Garrison • Cold Spring, NY • 60 Mins NYC Westchester,Putnam,DutchessMLS Garrison • Cold Spring, NY • 60 Mins NYC Westchester,Putnam,DutchessMLS
GARRISON, NY - Enjoy the ultimate in condo living in THE CASTLE, a well-known landmark high above the Hudson River. This luxurious 2 floor, 2 bedroom unit offers breathGARRISON, NY - Enjoy the ultimate in condo living in THE CASTLE, a well-known taking views from Bear Mountain Bridge to Newburgh Bay. It has huge open rooms, 12 to 15 landmark high above the Hudson River. This luxurious 2 floor, 2 bedroom unit offers breathfoot ceilings, 4 fireplaces, gourmet kitchen, and sumptuous baths. It also offers outdoor spaces, taking views from Bear Mountain Bridge to Newburgh Bay. It has huge open rooms, 12 to 15 central air conditioning, and garaging for 2 cars. Offered at $2,999,999 foot ceilings, 4 fireplaces, gourmet kitchen, and sumptuous baths. It also offers outdoor spaces, central air conditioning, and garaging for 2 cars. Offered at $2,999,999
LaGrangeville, dutchess county - This authentic Georgian Colonial was originally constructed cc 1770, with additions made in the 1800’s and 1975, and renovated in 1982. Fireplaces warm the drawing room, library, lower level family room, and formal dining room. Other features include original wide-board floors, large country kitchen, 5 bedrooms. The almost 9 acre property is partially wooded and offers a barn with garaging for 2 vehicles, a beautiful inground pool, screened porch and brick patio GARRISON, NY - Spacious and open country home with for warm weather relaxation. Offered at fabulous HUDSON RIVER VIEWS to the west and north to Storm King Mt and Newburgh Bay. The living room features GARRISON, NY - Spacious and open country home with fabulous HUDSON RIVER $1,175,000 cathedral ceiling and stone fireplace, and all living areas enjoy the views and access to stone ter-
VIEWS to the west and north to Storm King Mt and Newburgh Bay. The living room features races. 4 bedrooms and 2 ½ baths, includes huge master suite privately located on its own level. cathedral ceiling and stone fireplace, and all living areas enjoy the views and access to stone terThe in-ground pool and cabana further enhance the 5.6 acre property. Offered at $1,995,000 races. 4 bedrooms and 2 ½ baths, includes huge master suite privately located on its own level. The in-ground pool and cabana further enhance the 5.6 acre property. Offered at $1,995,000
143MainStreet,ColdSpring,NY10516 143MainStreet,ColdSpring,NY10516 Tel:845.265.4113•www.mccaffreyrealty.com Tel:845.265.4113•www.mccaffreyrealty.com info@mccaffreyrealty.com info@mccaffreyrealty.com
East Fishkill, Dutchess county - This beautiful home, on over 7 parklike acres, combines a unique rustic character with large open spaces and classic design elements. The 1920 stone house is sited on the bank of a flowing stream with a functioning 12 foot water wheel. Inside natural light highlights the high ceilings and gleaming wood floors. The updated chef ’s kitchen with stone fireplace is the hub of the home. Four private bedrooms and 3 custom designed baths provide for family and guests. Decks and terrace accommodate outdoor relaxation and entertainment. With easy EAST FISHKILL, Dutchess County, NY - Wiccopee Circa this 1894, home this beauaccess to area amenities andHouse. activities is tiful estate on 17.6 acres, includes the 7000 square foot Georgian style main house featuring EAST FISHKILL, Dutchess County, NY - Wiccopee House. Circa 1894, this beauideal. Offered at $1,300,000 6 bedrooms, gleaming wood floors, multiple fireplaces, period details and a gourmet
tiful estate on 17.6 acres, includes the 7000 square foot Georgian style main house featuring kitchen. Additional features include a 100’ x 30’ barn with a 2 bedroom apartment, pad6 bedrooms, gleaming wood floors, multiple fireplaces, period details and a gourmet dock, pool, and tennis court. Offered at $2,495,000 kitchen. Additional features include a 100’ x 30’ barn with a 2 bedroom apartment, paddock, pool, and tennis court. Offered at $2,495,000
COLD SPRING, NY - Masterfully designed contemporary offers massive two story entry, living room and dining room sharing a grand floor to ceiling stone fireplace, large COLD SPRING, NY - Masterfully designed contemporary offers massive two story chef’s kitchen and 4 bedrooms. Walls of French doors lead to deck cantilevered over rushentry, living room and dining room sharing a grand floor to ceiling stone fireplace, large ing mountain stream. Delightful details and high quality materials are evident throughout chef’s kitchen and 4 bedrooms. Walls of French doors lead to deck cantilevered over rushthe home which is sited on almost 5 acres. Offered at $1,875,000 ing mountain stream. Delightful details and high quality materials are evident throughout the home which is sited on almost 5 acres. Offered at $1,875,000
East Fishkill, dutchess county- Wiccopee House. Circa 1894, this beautiful estate sited on 17.6 acres, includes the 7000 square foot Georgian style main house featuring 6 bedrooms, gleaming wood floors, multiple fireplaces, period details and a gourmet kitchen. The well proportioned rooms and classic styling invite a gracious country lifestyle. Additional features include a 100’ x 30’ barn with a 2 bedroom apartment, paddock, pool, and tennis court. Offered at $2,495,000 GARRISON, NY - Courtside. This rustic stone barn, whose distinctive architecture sets it apart from the ordinary, has been converted into 10,000 square feet of luxurious GARRISON, NY - Courtside. This rustic stone barn, whose distinctive architecture living space. The home features large public rooms, country kitchen, 7-8 bedrooms and sets it apart from the ordinary, has been converted into 10,000 square feet of luxurious a separate 2 bedroom apartment. The beautifully landscaped 4 acre property also offers living space. The home features large public rooms, country kitchen, 7-8 bedrooms and a tennis court and gunite pool. Offered at $1,650,000 a separate 2 bedroom apartment. The beautifully landscaped 4 acre property also offers a tennis court and gunite pool. Offered at $1,650,000
Putnam Valley, NY - Lovely country retreat on almost 5 acres. This C. 1935 home offers 4356 square feet, 5 bedrooms, 4 ½ baths, 2 working fireplaces, hardwood floors, and numerous Putnam Valley, NY - Lovely country retreat on almost 5 acres. This C. 1935 home offers window seats, nooks and crannies for added character. The glorious backyard features an in4356 square feet, 5 bedrooms, 4 ½ baths, 2 working fireplaces, hardwood floors, and numerous ground pool with spa and sizeable barbeque and patio area. The property also includes a forwindow seats, nooks and crannies for added character. The glorious backyard features an inmer dairy barn and pond. Offered at $1,300,000 ground pool with spa and sizeable barbeque and patio area. The property also includes a former dairy barn and pond. Offered at $1,300,000
Member of Westchester/Putnam, MLS • Mid-Hudson MLS (Dutchess County) Greater Hudson Valley MLS • (Orange, Rockland, Ulster, Sullivan Counties) Member of Westchester/Putnam, MLSand • Mid-Hudson MLSmany (Dutchess County) Greaterand Hudson • (Orange, Ulster, Sullivan Counties) For more information on these other listings, with full brochures floor Valley plans, MLS visit our website:Rockland, www.mccaffreyrealty.com For more information on these and other listings, many with full brochures and floor plans, visit our website: www.mccaffreyrealty.com
CALENDAR
MARCH
On March 3, “Photography: Cuba & India 2010” will open at Gallery 307, part of the Carter Burden Center’s program to give a voice to professional older artists, self-taught artists, and artists with special needs. The exhibit, featuring artwork by seventy-six-year-old Sara Pettit, will run through the 24th. For more information, call 646.400.5254.
2
literary legends
Poets & Writers will present several awards at “In Celebration of Writers” at 6 p.m. at Capitale. For more information, call 212.226.3586. protect and serve
research luncheon
The National Organization for Hearing Research Foundation will hold a luncheon at 12:30 p.m. at Cafe L’Europe. For more information, call 610.664.3135.
4
take a break
The National Committee on American Foreign Policy will hold “Securing the City, Securing the Nation” at 7 p.m. at the Plaza. For more information, call 212.678.0231.
The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach will host a dinner at 7 p.m. at The Breakers. For more information, call 561.832.0731.
3
we are family
mommy dearest
The American Cancer Society will host its Mothers of the Year luncheon at 11.45 a.m. at the Plaza. For more information, call 212.237.3888. worth 1,000 words
“Photography: Cuba & India 2010,” featuring artwork by Sara Pettit, will open at The Carter Burden Center’s Gallery 307. For more information, call 646.400.5254. 62 QUEST
5
The Young Professionals Committee of Big Brothers Big Sisters will hold its “Big Night Out” at 9 p.m. at Cipriani Wall Street. For more information, call 212.994.7701. a league of their own
New York Junior League’s Winter Ball will take place at 7 p.m. at the Plaza. For more information, call 201.519.9144.
6
wish upon a star
The Make-a-Wish Foundation will
host an afternoon picnic at the Mar-a-Lago Club. For more information, call 954.967.9474.
at FAO Schwarz. For more information, call 212.639.7389.
7
art for art’s sake
eat your heart out
Gay Men’s Health Crisis will hold “Savor” at 7 p.m. at Gotham Hall. For more information, call 212.367.1557. hit a home run
The Hospice of Palm Beach County Foundation will host a reception at 5:30 p.m. at Wally Findlay Galleries. For more information, call 561.655.2090.
9
tibi or not tibi
The Jackie Robinson Foundation will host its awards dinner at 6 p.m. at the Waldorf=Astoria. For more information, call 212.290.8600.
The Urban Assembly New York Harbor School’s fund-raiser, with auction items donated by Tibi, will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the New York Yacht Club. For more information, call 212.458.0800.
midtown meet-up
10
The Guild Hall Academy of the Arts will hold a dinner at 6:30 p.m. at Cipriani 42nd Street. For more information, call 631.324.0806.
8
gather ’round
The Palm Beach Round Table will hold a luncheon with Edward E. Elson at Mar-a-Lago. For more information, call 561.832.6418.
hop to it
learning tree
The Associates Committee of the Society of Memorial SloanKettering Cancer Center will hold its annual Bunny Hop at 6 p.m.
The Center for Creative Education will host its annual “Back to Our Roots” luncheon at 11:30 a.m. For more informtion, call 561.805.9927.
CALENDAR
On March 14, the School of American Ballet will host five hundred guests at the David H. Koch Theater for its Winter Ball. The evening will begin with a one-time performance by the School of American Ballet’s advanced students, followed by a dinner and an after-party, “The Encore.” For more information, call 212.769.6610.
11
pretty in pink
Susan G. Komen for the Cure will hold its Perfect Pink party at 7 p.m. at the Mar-a-Lago Club. For more information, call 561.376.5829.
paving the way
The United Way Alexis de Tocqueville Society will host a dinner at Club Colette. For more information, call 703.836.7112.
15
judge a book
The New York Public Library will hold its President’s Council dinner at 6:30 p.m in the Steven A.
Schwartzman building. For more information, call 212.930.0630.
28
fashion forward
philadelphia freedom
Nate Berkus will act as co-chair at Jeffrey Fashion Cares, at 7:30 p.m. on the Intrepid Aircraft Carrier. For more information, call 404.420.2997.
The Young Friends of the Philadelphia Museum of Art will host its winter gala at 7 p.m at the museum. For more information, call 215.235.7469.
APRIL 2
12
hole in one
The Bascom-Palmer Eye Institute will hold its annual Evening of Vision gala at The Breakers. or more information, call 561.515.1527.
The American Cancer Society’s Orchid City ball will take place at 7 p.m. at the Trump Inter-national Golf Club. For more information, call 561.650.0127.
14
9
The School of American Ballet’s Winter Ball will begin at 7 p.m. at the David H. Koch Theater, followed by dinner and an after-party. For more information, call 212.769.6610.
The New York City Opera’s “Where the Wild Things Are” will take place at 1:30 p.m. at the David H. Koch Theater. For more information, call 212.870.5595.
see and be seen
visions of sugarplums
hit a high note
On March 7, Bill Cosby will host the Jackie Robinson Foundation’s annual awards dinner at the Waldorf=Astoria. The event will honor Sean “Diddy” Combs, Ingrid Saunders Jones, and Joseph R Perella. For more information, call 212.290.8600.
MARCH 2011 63
H A R RY B E N S O N
IT SEEMS LIKE YESTERDAY As we walked into Giorgio Armani’s home in Milan— which we might refer to in Britain as the house above the store—a giant, beautiful, long-haired cat jumped onto David Bruel, the founding editor of European Travel & Life, whom I was shooting the story for. Armani came running over and said, “He’s very friendly. He’s very friendly.” He continued, “You will see more cats in my home than in the whole of Milan, which is just full of cats.” Armani was extremely affable. I liked him personally and, over the years, I have photographed him many times. He once told me, and I’m going to repeat it, however self-serving, “I like you photographing me, you have such energy.” As I had come a long way, I didn’t want to go back to New York with just mediocre photographs, so I was working hard to get the best I could in as many situations as possible—in his atelier, where he was sketching his next collection; in his home; and outside in the streets of Milan. Armani loved all of his cats, and for the life of me I can’t remember this one’s name, but it was his favorite—the cat with the long, long whiskers. We stayed for coffee and David interviewed Armani. 64 QUEST
Then, we continued on our way to visit Versace, Moschino, Valentino, and Gianfranco Ferre, as the story focused on several Italian couturiers who were prominent at the time. Armani had some rather amusing off-the-record anecdotes
Giorgio Armani at home with one of his many cats, in 1987.
about a few of the others I was going to photograph. It was strange, as I don’t go out of my way to make friends with people I photograph but, over the years, you become a distant friend of sorts to some of your subjects. When
you meet on occasion, you have a pleasant conversation and there is a certain middle-ground of respect. I felt that with Giorgio Armani, and I think of him as a true artistic genius and as a true gentleman. u MARCH 2011 65
Ta k i
the wrong Side of history Did you know that under the Shah of Persia, Iran was one of the most liberal societies in the Muslim world? People were free to live their lives in peace as long as they didn’t politically oppose the Shah. Western intellectuals, however, always on the wrong side of history, advocated modernity and other such crap, and helped bring to power the biggest foes of modernity, the mullahs. Now Egypt is supposed to be the future, but beware of answered prayers—they rarely turn out the way we wished. Here’s a brief history lesson for those among you who still believe those tenured oafs, whose opinions fools still take seriously. We Westerners have for the past five hundred years learned to think of ourselves as anything but Christian. Pick up most history books or watch the history channels and all you will find is European aggression against the Middle East and the crimes committed by Crusaders. Very little is mentioned about what provoked the Crusades, and the non-stop attacks of Islam against Christianity. Mehmed II took Constantinople in 1453, then turned against Belgrade in 1456. In the fifteenth century, only the Pope, a few brave Hungarians, Wallachians, and the Serbs were willing to stand up to the Turks. The grotesque Venetians were supporting the Muslims with money, in a similar manner to how Uncle Sam and the vile Saudis are presently funding both sides of the war in Afghanistan. Mehmed attacked the Serbs with 150,000 troops. His guns
From left: a statue of Cosimo de Medici; the recent demonstrations in Egypt. Below: the aftermath of a roadside bomb in Kosovo. Opposite: a painting of the Sixth Crusade.
were were manned by Westerners, as his own men were too unable to handle them. But Serbian archers wiped out the rabble, and after a very bloody battle, the invaders were chased out and massacred. While Serbia was under attack the French and English were fighting each other in the Hundred Years’ War, and the French even joined the Sultan Suleiman against Charles V in the infamous alliance of the Crescent and the Lily. So far so bad. This French-Ottoman alliance not only prevented the Habsburgs from recovering the Balkans in 1683, it also aided Suleiman’s campaign to take Vienna and also receive northern Italy as payment. Only the great Polish King Jan Sobieski put the kibosh on those plans by wiping out the Turks in front of the Vienna gates. Throughout all of this, the intellectuals of the time were trying to re-establish paganism. Cosimo de Medici was among the leaders of that movement. Some of those useful idiots even wrote to Mehmed advising him that as the conqueror of Constantinople he was the heir to Ceasar and deserved the right to claim the Western Empire. The descendants of these idiots are the ones who today use political correctness to stop people like myself from denouncing the Fifth Columnists among the Muslims in America and in Europe. Charles Martel in Tours in 732, Don John in Lepanto in 1571, Jan Sobieski in Vienna in 1683, and Djuradj Brankovic, the Serbian Despot, in 1456 are the true
European heroes who have saved Western civilization. And, of course, Tamurlane, in 1402. The baddies are not the various sultans and Ottoman strongmen, but people like Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, and Madeleine Albright, who bombed a Christian country for seventy-five days in order to establish an Albanian-Muslim corridor in the middle of the Christian heartland of the Balkans in 1999. It now transpires that the leader of the Kosovars, a thug by the name of Tajik, a favorite of Albright’s, not only deals in drugs, but was recently exposed as also selling human organs, which his Albanian mafia collects from unfortunate Serbs and even from their own Albanians. Instead of attacking the Muslim infiltrators of Kosovo, the Bush-Blair gang attacked the only secular state in the
Middle East, Iraq. We armed and trained Bin Laden in Afghanistan, we forced Saddam out of Kuwait so they could raise the price of oil, we protect the ghastly Saudis so they can spend billions in madrasses in Pakistan, which teach youngsters that the great Satan is Uncle Sam, yet complain that all over the world America is looked upon as an interfering bully who always backs the wrong side. As Mubarak fell, the newspapers were filled with articles by so-called Middle East experts preaching that Arab countries are not inhospitable to democracy, but that the institution has not caught on because of Western interference and protection of dictators. What rubbish. We had selective democracy in Athens 2,500 years ago and it worked just fine because it was selective. As long as America required voters to own property and to be able to sign their names, the country worked perfectly. Now, in the era of the common man, with every bum, criminal, or drunk in the street having the same vote as, say, a great man like Ron Paul, the nation is not only deadlocked, it looks as helpless as a certain Eyeless in Gaza strong man of long ago. He can only bring down the temple, but can build nothing. America should bring the troops back, mind her own business, stop invading countries under orders from Likud, and require her leaders to read history and not listen to the pundits who know nothing, and have learned even less from a subject they never read. u M AR C H 2 0 1 1 6 7
Quest
Fresh Finds b y d a n i e l c a p p e l l o AND e l i z a b e t h m e i g h e r
march marks our annual Spring Style Issue, which means that
we’ve got our eye on the greatest fashions, jewelry, and accessories of the season. With warmer weather around the corner, we’re looking at short skirts for women and breezy suits for men. We’ve also found some new shades for him, chic spring bags for her, and some products that will help spruce up your home and freshen up your face. Ralph Lauren’s large fringe
Spice up any outfit with
bag with conchos in calfskin will
Paloma’s Marrakesh black
serve well on every adventure,
onyx tassel pendant with
Westward or elsewhere. $3,995.
diamonds and emeralds by
Ralph Lauren: ralphlauren.com.
Paloma Picasso for Tiffany & Co. $18,500. Tiffany &Co.: 800.843.3269 or tiffany.com.
It’s like having diamonds on the soles of your shoes with the Midinette shoe in gold with silver trim. $325. Belgian Shoes: 212.755.7372 or
You’ll look good enough to eat in Dennis Basso’s light sorbet neoprene back-ruffle dress. Dennis Basso: 212.564.9560 or 765 Madison Avenue. This pair of vintage deco earrings with green stones from House of Lavande will surely make her grin from ear to ear. $548. House of Lavande: 561.802.3737 or 340 Royal Poinciana Way, #332, Palm Beach. 68 QUEST
e l i z a b e t h b ro w n ( h o u s e o f l ava n d e )
110 East 55th Street.
The Bulu clutch in Natural Frost from Eric Javits is made of natural
David Yurman’s Safari sunglasses are masculine
Squishee® straw shot
yet luxe, featuring
with silver lurex.
gator-textured temples.
Perfect for poolside
$495. David Yurman
cocktails or dinner.
Townhouse: 212.752.4255
$300. Eric Javits:
or 712 Madison Avenue.
ericjavits.com.
Rolex’s Oyster Perpetual Datejust timepiece, featuring a bezel set with sixty diamonds and mother-of-pearl diamond dial, isn’t the slightest “tick” out of style. $31,250. Rolex: 800.36.ROLEX or rolex.com.
This 20.52-ct. prasiolite and gemstone oval ring promises to jazz up any cocktail. $899. Rarities: Fine Jewelry by Carol Brodie: jewelry.hsn.com.
Spring forward in J.Crew’s Quorra peep-toe booties in soft amber. The name, derived from the Italian word for “heart,” confirms it—we’re in love. $275. J.Crew: 800.562.0258.
An entrance in Elie Tahari’s Throw an Ankasa linen square pillow with cord flowers in any room for a punch of color. $432.
Tamara dress in gold will make you feel like a million bucks. Elie Tahari: 212.334.4441 or 417 West Broadway.
Picket Fence: thepicketfence.com. MARCH 2 0 1 1 6 9
Fresh Finds
The Bobo medium platinum handbag in silk and python by Be Inthavong is a carry-all that will carry you through all of life’s events. $1,895. Be Inthavong: 212.695.2900.
You won’t need to fish for compliments when wearing Mikimoto’s Starlight earrings with 13-mm. white South Sea cultured pearls. $58,000. Mikimoto: mikimotoamerica.com.
You’ll bloom in hibiscus silk faille and floral Impressionist jacquard. Price upon request. Carolina Herrera: 212.249.6552 or 954 Madison Avenue.
Scully & Scully’s amethyst and gold bracelet will make you feel like absolute royalty. $6,950. Scully & Scully: 212.755.2590, scullyandscully.com, or 504 Park Avenue.
Write like a pro with Montblanc’s Patron of Art Edition 2011—
Chopard’s Imperiale watch with mother-of-pearl dial ensures that you’ll never be late for any date. $7,590. Chopard: 800.CHOPARD or chopard.com.
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Gaius Maecenas 4810 Edition fountain pen. $2,700. Montblanc: 212.223.8888 or 598 Madison Avenue.
Splash up your bathroom with the Sherle Wagner basin set, handcrafted of Jasper stone with English silver metal finish. $6,374. Sherle Wagner: 212.758.3300 or sherlewagner.com.
Pieces from Gracious Home’s Newport Collection range in price from $30 for a boudoir sham to $415 for a king duvet cover. The Newport floral blue pattern will beautify any bed, be it in Rhode Island or anywhere else. Gracious Home: gracioushome.com.
Beauty experts know that Malin + Goetz does a body good: body wash and moisturizer Gift Box ($56) and eucalyptus deodorant ($18). Malin + Goetz: malinandgoetz.com or Barneys New York.
A white-hot look from Roberto Cavalli’s SpringAdd a bit of sparkle with Asprey’s figure of eight cufflinks with yellow diamond center and yellow enamel surround. $5,250. Asprey: 212.688.1811, asprey.com, or
Summer 2011 menswear collection, dressed up with brown leather accessories. Roberto Cavalli: 212.755.7722 or robertocavalli.com.
853 Madison Avenue.
MARCH 2011 71
j e w e l ry
This page: CIRCA’s Chris Del Gatto at the CIRCA Lounge at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Opposite, clockwise from top left: Boucheron earrings; a 20-ct. diamond ring; an exquisite Van Cleef & Arpels brooch; Del Gatto with CIRCA polo team member Magoo Laprida.
circa
value & History circa is the leading global buyer of fine jewelry, diamonds, and watches from the public, and it is the only global buying house that provides a truly liquid market for previously owned jewelry. Established in 2001 by Chris Del Gatto and co-founder Jeffrey Singer, CIRCA has quickly become the only luxury brand in the jewelry buying business. Del Gatto’s goal is to satisfy his clients by delivering value, service, and the best prices available. “The service is discreet, reliable, and always dedicated to the client’s best interests. A client is not a number, but a relationship to be cherished and respected,” Del Gatto says. The company approaches a 1-ct. diamond engagement ring with the same attention to detail as a collection of rare artdeco pieces. CIRCA looks to acquire jewelry made by famous makers, such as Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Tiffany & Co., and for watches made by Rolex, Patek Philippe, Vacheron, and Breguet. But they also keep an eye out for pieces without identified pedigree and insist that no item is too large or small. Founded on being consumer advocates first and foremost, their policy focuses on transparency during the process to ensure that professionalism and honesty prevail. With offices in New York, Chicago, Palm Beach, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Barcelona, and Hong Kong, CIRCA works with clients across the country and around the
globe. Clients meet with an expert CIRCA buyer who assesses each piece individually, noting its value and history, with payment offered on the spot. There is no predetermined limit or minimum price and no commission charges or fees applied. As Del Gatto says, “CIRCA understands that selling your treasured items is a very emotional process and we take this responsibility seriously. There is nothing more important to CIRCA than your satisfaction when it comes to price, service, and integrity.” u M ARCH 2 0 1 1 7 3
the finest fabrics B y E l i z a be t h b r o w n
like my suitcase to be packed so that, at any opportunity, I can just grab it and go,” she says. These far-flung adventures have no doubt inspired her clothing company, with pieces designed to be retrieved from the bottom of a bag—in Palm Beach, Panama, or Paris—and worn without a wrinkle. Since opening her store on Palm Beach’s Worth Avenue in 1998, Charlotte Kellogg has offered basic styles in natural fabrics. The business has now expanded to two locations, one selling silk, the other selling linen. Charlotte credits some of her success to word of mouth. “A lot of business in Palm Beach is through referrals,” she says. “We’re starting to see younger customers who have learned of us through their mothers. They like our pants, whether it’s our silk pants or our two-way stretch pants. They’re all popular.” The brand’s raison d’etre, perhaps, is the fact that the pieces were designed for travelers, and inspired by traveling. “It’s not unusual for me to go to Vietnam when I need fine craftsmanship, or India for a week or so. I go by myself to Paris or Milan to research fabrics, and then I bring everything back and work on the styles,” she says. The product of her efforts? Brightly colored pieces made of finest materials in the world, appropriate for every occasion, from a picnic to a dinner party. “It’s funny,” she says. “We have a lot of customers who come to us in order to coordinate with finds from their trips. Where else are you going to find a pair of lavender pants?” This only adds to the allure of the mix-and-match line. Over the years, Charlotte Kellogg has only become a better version of itself. From season to season, its clothing is simply chic, expanding but staying true to its original sensibility. “I go to the fabric shows, not the fashion shows,” says Charlotte. “We’re not over the top. I’ll take the best fabrics and use them to create the most timeless styles.” u 7 4 Q U EST
J ac e k G a n c e r z
charlotte kellogg has always been a globetrotter. “I
FASHION
The Palm Beach-based line’s colorful silk pants are a wardrobe staple. Opposite, from top: Charlotte Kellogg in her own designs; the Worth Avenue store front.
a very posh tea descendants of lighthouse International’s founding
families were honored in February at the Plaza in the first of a new series of POSH Teas. The Lighthouse was founded in 1905 by sisters Winifred and Edith Holt with the goal of making the world a better place for people without sight. Many of the families who supported the Lighthouse in its early years were on hand at POSH Tea to be honored. Among the honorees was Samuel Hopkins, a descendant of Lighthouse co-founder Edith Holt, and Thomas S.T. Gimbel, a devoted Lighthouse board member and visionary philanthropist. “Blindness and vision impairment are extremely difficult conditions, and the
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Lighthouse has been helping people deal with them for over a hundred years,” says Gimbel. Gimbel’s grandmother, Alva Gimbel, and other friends joined the Holt sisters as board members and patrons. They included many prominent ladies, including Mrs. Louis Comfort Tiffany, Mrs. J.P. Morgan, Mrs. Andrew Carnegie, Mrs. Hugh Auchincloss, Mrs. John Frick, Mrs. Felix Warburg, and Mrs. Joseph Pulitzer. “The Gimbel family has been an involved supporter for most of that time over three generations. “Fern Tailer and Kim Campbell, my mother and godmother respectively, pioneered the early POSH sales for the Lighthouse. Having heard about the good deeds of
charity
This page, clockwise from top left: Current Lighthouse chairs Arlene Dahl and Somers Farkas with chairman emeritus Iris Apfel; “A festive night” at the New York Association for the Blind in 1913; Sarah Paul, Marc Rosen, and Carole Holmes McCarthy; Winifred Holt, Lighthouse co-founder. Opposite, clockwise from top left: the Warburg family with Lighthouse president Mark Ackerman; Lighthouse co-founder Edith Holt; Samuel Hopkins, Whitney Miller Douglass, and Tom Gimble; Winifred Holt in France.
Lighthouse for my entire life, personal involvement started as an outside investment manager in 1999, and I became a board member in 2003.” says Gimbel. The POSH Tea also kicked off Lighthouse International’s annual POSH season. For nearly forty years, the Lighthouse POSH Sale has been the East Coast’s leading fashion fundraiser, offering new and gently worn designer clothing, accessories, and footwear for women, men, and children. During POSH Tea, Mark G. Ackermann, president and CEO of Lighthouse International, announced that the 2011 POSH Sale would be held at the Plaza for the first time. “We are delighted that the Plaza has made this generous offer
to the Lighthouse. It is an opportunity of the rich history of these two organizations to come together. As the Plaza begins its future, and we look toward our future, we look forward to working together,” says Ackerman. He went on to say, “Today underscores the extraordinary history of the Lighthouse and brings it full circle. As we continue to achieve the mission of our founders, we look forward to a future that will open new doors to clinical services and research that will minimize vision loss and help to make richer, happier lives for those afflicted.” u For more information about Lighthouse International, call 212.821.9445 or visit lighthouseinternational.com.
fa s h i o n
a new era “my muse changes from time to time, but I know my lady, her lifestyle, and her needs,” says designer Alfred Fiandaca. During his sixteen years in Palm Beach, Fiandaca has evolved with the seasons. Throughout his career, dressing everyone from Audrey Hepburn to Pauline Pitt, he has always created fresh fashions that are still unmistakably “Fiandaca”—graceful, sophisticated, and with an ever-brilliant silhouette. This year, the company has grown with the renovation of Worth Avenue, having relocated from Via Mizner to a larger, more visible space at 351 Worth Avenue. Through redecorating, the brand has also been redefined. The store suddenly feels more refined, more evocative of the spectacular clothing that it has always carried. Fiandaca is not only a line, but a lifestyle. This is now truer
This page, clockwise from top left: Lime double face wool jacket with plaid wool challis pleated skirt; black faille and antique satin gown with ostrich feather detail; an older, bright pink Fiandaca look. Opposite, from top: the relocated Worth Avenue store defines a new era for Fiandaca; designer Alfred Fiandaca has been a presence in Palm Beach for sixteen years.
than ever. Alongside the ready-to-wear clothing, the company now carries accessories from a variety of different designers, offering clients a complete look through its collaboration. “It’s a place that can constantly change and evolve with innovative and interesting ideas,” says Dorothea Xanthakis, director of operations at Fiandaca. Fiandaca will also be designing more frequently than in years past. “Alfred now will design several collections per year, having a continual freshness and excitement in the store,” says Xanthakis. “The same concept will apply for all the merchandise. Always evolving.” It truly is a new era for Fiandaca, a company that continues to build a following of fashionable fans, tastemakers from Palm Beach to Boston and New York City. u MARCH 2 0 1 1 7 9
film
straight shooter By georgina schaeffer
“if you don’t take money, they can’t tell you what to do, kid. That’s the secret to the whole thing,” says Bill Cunningham in a new documentary film by Richard Press, debuting at Film Forum this month. Bill Cunningham New York is a poignant and intimate portrait of an artist, who, using his camera “like a pen,” has documented the fashion world for more than fifty years. In a statement, Press writes that it took him ten years to make the film—“eight to convince Bill to be filmed and two to shoot and edit the film. Had it been any different, Bill wouldn’t have been true to who he is or nearly as interesting as a subject to film.” The film follows Cunningham on his daily routine, from his Carnegie Hall artist-studio apartment, into the offices of the New York Times, and, most importantly, —Kim Hastreiter, out onto the street for a rich portrayal of a New York icon. “The best fashion show is definitely on the street. Always has been and always will be,” he says. “I don’t decide anything. I let the street speak to me.” With his two weekly columns in the New York Times— “On the Street,” where he identifies fashion trends, and “Evening Hours,” which covers the often dizzying world of charity events—he “really does address the whole spectrum of what we are as New Yorkers,” said Costume Institute curator Harold Koda. Carmen dell’Orefice tells filmmakers how Cunningham captured her jumping a puddle, just like Avedon did, but in a “much less painful and much more natural way.” Annette de la Renta says, “He is incredibly kind. I don’t think we have ever seen a cruel picture done by Bill.”
But perhaps what is even more impressive is that Cunningham treats all of his subjects equally. “I’m interested in clothes,” he says during the course of the film, “I’m not interested in celebrities and their borrowed dresses.” He seeks to capture people “discreetly. Quietly. I think ‘invisible’ is the word,” he says. And, indeed, anyone who has seen Cunningham at work would agree he is discreet and quiet—but he’s not invisible. As Vogue editor Anna Wintour says in the film, “We all get dressed for Bill.” The description most befitting came from Paper’s Kim Hastreiter who says, “he’s like a war photographer. He will do anything for the shot.” The film follows Cunningham to Paris when he was awarded the rank of Chevalier in the Order of Arts and Letters of France. Didier Grumbach remarks, “He doesn’t Paper Magazine believe he deserves it, and that’s why he deserves it even more.” The film is jammed with interviews from uptown fixtures to downtown eccentrics, each of whom attempt to explain what is at the heart of this Schwinn-riding cultural anthropologist who has dedicated his life to his work. But, in the end, he says it best himself: “I just try to play a straight game, and in New York that’s very...almost impossible. To be honest and straight in New York, that’s like Don Quixote fighting windmills. Shut up, Cunningham. Let’s get this show on the road.” u
“Bill’s fingerprints are
all over everything he does because he has
never, ever, ever, sold out
8 0 Q UEST
Opposite, clockwise from top left: Bill Cunningham at work at the New York Times; shooting on the street; the movie poster; shooting Anna Wintour; Hastreiter says he “shoots like a war photographer;” on his classic Schwinn; an earlier shot of the New York photographer.
z i e tg e s i t f i l m s
one inch of anything.”
P hoto C r e d i t Go e s H ERE
Name
MO N TH 2 0 0 8 0 0
r eal E state
industry insiders als becomes more widespread. Specific market knowledge translates into a savings of time and money. It’s not uncommon for brokers in our office to show a customer just two properties and make a sale as our brokers truly understand their markets. That’s not to say that one cannot go to a Prudential Douglas Elliman or a Brown Harris Stevens and locate a house; it’s simply that our specialization means that a customer doesn’t need to see ten houses. Any broker can do an internet search. But Garfield brokers bring such a comprehensive market knowledge that they can match a customer with the right property immediately.
Jed Garfield (right) and his father, Leslie Garfield, of Leslie J. Garfield & Co., Inc.
In this edition of “Industry Insiders,” Quest sits down with Jed Garfield of Leslie J. Garfield & Co., Inc. to discuss the uptrend of the real-estate market.
As a top boutique firm in town, what specific advantages are you bringing to buyers and sellers? Everyone in our firm excels at two things—understanding a specific asset (be it a residential or commercial townhouse), as well as understanding a specific neighborhood (Upper East, Upper West, East Village, West Village, Midtown East, Chelsea, etc.). It is the minutia that make a difference in a long-term acquisition, and it is having a handle on the minutia that can translate into a more efficient sales transaction. We also genuinely have good people in the office. We don’t do much lateral hiring as I truly believe that what we teach brokers—and the way we teach brokers to interact—is not something a lot of people just have. At most
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large firms, you might have a big name, but you can also find a larger number of lower-quality brokers. Also, with the internet, boutique firms have a competitive advantage in that overall marketing costs decline as dissemination of materi-
How does today’s market compare to what you saw two or three years ago? Certainly two years ago there was little or no market to speak of. Fortunately for all of us, we’ve had a small flurry of transactions in the sub-ten range, as well as the sale of 19 East 71st Street for $31 million. There is once again a floor to the market. And we’re hopeful that this trend will continue. Can you talk about some of your recent record-breaking sales? We’ve had several, all of which requested
Lydia Rosengarten and Matthew Provda are part of the family at Leslie J. Garfield & Co, Inc.
What types of upgrades and renovations do you recommend? When proceeding with a renovation, create a classic layout. There is always someone in the market looking for a renovated house with a kitchen and dining room on the ground floor, a living room and library on the second floor, and bedrooms above. I also advise customers to put in a real staircase to the roof. It’s useful and creates the illusion of greater space. What neighborhoods are performing best right now? The Upper West Side has been doing very well. The blocks between Central Park West and Columbus always seemed to trade at too great a discount to Fifth and Madison avenues. That gap has narrowed in a very significant fashion.
A spectacular Upper East Side property, located on Fifth Avenue, has a clear view of Central Park.
and received confidentiality agreements; however, they are fairly obvious. Can you talk about the unique family dynamic (father, son, and cousins) of the firm and what advantages that provides? We’ve got a fantastic firm. It so happens that I work with my father, and I’m extremely fortunate that I receive the benefit of his good name and the reputation that he has built over his forty years in the business. My cousins Matthew Pravda and Lydia Rosengarten also work with me in the business. I think that that foundation gives the other outstanding people in the office—Matthew Lesser, Francis Oshea, Jill Bane, Rick Pretsfelder, Kathie Watkins, and Lindsay Cresta—a very effective platform. We don’t have the intra-agency squabbles, bickering, or every-person-for-himself attitude that you might find at many of our competitors. What advice do you have for anyone selling a house right now? Selling houses—and all residential real estate—comes down to basics. Price
the property aggressively but not foolishly. As virtually all transactions fall within a market range, give or take five to seven percent, an owner needs to educate himself about the market. There are numerous resources for doing this—publications, the internet, and, ultimately, the broker. Too many owners are wooed by an agent in search of “getting the listing at the highest price.” This same broker is also thinking, “The owners will eventually get weary and sell the property at a market price, and I’ll earn my fee.” The second thing I would and do say is to use a specialist. You wouldn’t have your trust and estate attorney represent you in a divorce, nor would you have your real estate attorney represent you in a trust and estate matter. A specialist brings something to the table that gives the owner a better quality of service—and a better financial result. I personally hired a broker who specializes in apartments to sell my apartment before I moved into a townhouse. It was worth it.
What do you see happening over the next twelve months? We’ll continue to see overall firming in the market as we’ve seen over the last three months. There have also been a number of new listings to the market, and I think that will continue. My only concern is that owners might start flooding the market by putting properties up for sale. u For more information, call 212.371.8200 or visit lesliegarfield.com.
A townhouse on East 90th Street boasts a beautiful façade with an arched entryway.
MARCH 2011 83
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80 MASON STREET . GREENWICH, CONNECTICUT 06830 GREENWICHFINEPROPERTIES.COM . 2 0 3 . 6 6 1 . 9 2 0 0 KATHY ADAMS . JENNIFER BENEDICT . LISA BILHUBER . BERDIE BRADY . ANN BRESNAN . BONNIE CAIE . LESLIE CARLOTTI . JULIE CHURCH . BARBARA CIOFFARI . JOSIANE COLLAZO . PATRICIA COUGHLIN JEFFREY CRUMBINE . MAUREEN CRUMBINE . EVANGELA DALI . BLAKE DELANY . VIRGINIA DOETSCH . CANDY DURNIAK . JACKIE EKHOLM . LEE FLEISCHMAN . JOYCE FOWLER . JANIE GALBREATH KATHERINE GEORGAS . JANE GOSDEN . MARY ANN GRABEL . SARA HOLDCROFT . JEANNE HOWELL . ROBIN KENCEL . SHARON KINNEY . ELIZABETH KOLDYKE-BOOLBOL . GILA LEWIS SALLY MALONEY . VILMA MATTEIS . DEBBIE MCGARRITY . CINDY MEEKER . JIM MEEKER . ERIN MOODY . ELLEN MOSHER . LAUREN MUSE . CONNIE NORSWORTHY . LIZ OBERNESSER . MARGARET RYDZIK MARIANNE SCIPIONE . FIFI SHERIDAN . LAURIE SMITH . DOUGLAS STEVENS . LYN STEVENS . TORY THORMAN . TYLER TINSWORTH . BEVERLEY TOEPKE . JOE WILLIAMS . MIHA ZAJEC
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Mill Pond Farm - A true Gentleman’s Farm. Circa 1700’s Colonial Estate with addition by McKim, Mead and White. Gracious rooms with period details. Five Bedrooms. Truly exceptional 24-acre setting overlooking the Stone Hill River and Mill Pond. Pool and Pool Pavilion. Charming Mill House overlooking the pond and rushing waterfall. Three Bedroom Caretaker’s Cottage. Stable and farm buildings. Chicken Coop. $6,500,000
Turn-of-the-Century Grandeur - Majestic Stone and Shingle
Highmeadow - Long, gated drive to seven private acres in one of Bedford’s finest estate areas. Gorgeous grounds with Silver Maple, Chestnut and Magnolia. Pool. Stately Country Colonial built in 1928. Fifteen main rooms with classic detailing and seven fireplaces. Formal Entrance Hall. Cyprus-paneled Library. Six Bedrooms. Separate Cottage. Barn. Heart of horse country on the Bedford Riding Lanes. $4,800,000
Circa 1900 Gatehouse - Four beautiful acres in the heart of one of Bedford’s finest estate areas. Absolutely impeccable Country House with gleaming hardwood floors, two fireplaces and period charm. First floor Master Bedroom Suite. Two additional Bedrooms. Separate Two Bedroom Guest House with Recreation Room. Gently rolling lawns, majestic evergreens and incredible Weeping Cherry. Lap Pool. $1,595,000
Colonial. Morning Room with Fireplace. Gracious Living Room with Fireplace. Music Room. Formal Dining Room with Fireplace. Butler’s Pantry. Country Kitchen. Seven Bedrooms. Wine Cellar. Gated drive to 22 private acres with towering Sycamore. One of Bedford’s finest estate areas. Flowering gardens overlooking the Pool. Caretaker’s Cottage. $3,150,000
Natural Rock & Water - Phenomenal backdrop for entertain- English Country ing and everyday living on the grand scale. Absolutely exquisite landscape--dramatic waterfall to perfectly sited water feature surrounded by spectacular Japanese gardens and native rock outcroppings. Verdant lawns lined by towering evergreens down to the lake. Superbly constructed Country House with breathtaking water views. Pool. Spacious Two-Story Guest Cottage. Garages for six cars. $3,900,000
(914) 234-9234
Magnificent flowering gardens and native stone terraces. Long, gated drive to manicured setting. Stunning Stone and Shingle House reminiscent of the great estates of the English countryside. Sixteen main rooms with high ceilings, gleaming wood floors, extensive millwork, oversized moldings, French doors, and custom lighting treatments. Five Bedrooms. Screened Dining Porch. Pool with Spa. Minutes to Bedford Village and Greenwich. $2,950,000
493 BEDFORD CENTER RD, BEDFORD HILLS, NY SPECIALIZING IN THE UNUSUAL FOR OVER 60 YEARS
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Allison Marianna Aston President, Allison Aston Communications. A onetime brand ambassador for David Yurman and Roger Vivier, Aston founded her own public-relations and marketing firm in 2010. She is an active committee and board member of New Yorkers for Children, ASPCA, and the Whitney Museum, among others. Photographed here at Monkey Bar in a black linen blazer and shorts and white Swiss dot tie blouse by Veronica Beard. 88 QUEST
Dressing For New York: Eight Women of Substance and Style. By Daniel Cappello P H O T O G R AP H E D B Y H a n n a h T h o m s o n
Punch Hutton Deputy Editor, Vanity Fair Magazine. Hutton, who plans and edits the Fanfair and Fairground sections of Vanity Fair, was recently named Deputy Editor. When not keeping her finger on the pulse of American culture for Vanity Fair, she co-chairs the New York Public Library's Cubs Program and Family Benefit, and this summer will be launching a collection of shift dresses called, naturally, PUNCH. Photographed here at the Vanity Fair offices in a dress by Carolina Herrera and Roger Vivier's Belle de Nuit pumps. Makeup by Shiko Vun for Valery Joseph Salon. MARCH 2011 91
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff Director of Fashion, Lincoln Center. When, in 2010, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York relocated from Bryant Park to Lincoln Center, Wolkoff was tapped to be the first-ever fashion director of Lincoln Center. As if her fashion plate weren't full enough, she's also committed to several charities, including the Food Allergy Initiative, Baby Buggy, and the Central Park Conservancy. Photographed here in her Lincoln Center office in a shirt by Derek Lam, pants and belt by Michael Kors, Lanvin necklace, Hermès cuff, and Bruce Winston Gems ring. Hair by Ashley Ohman for John Barrett Salon and makeup by Joe Hubrich.
MARCH 2011 93
Eliza Osborne Vice President of Client and Business Development, and Auctioneer, Sotheby's. In addition to fostering client relationships and expanding business, Osborne also serves Sotheby's as an auctioneer—and mostly for charity. Last year, she led almost thirty auctions and helped to raise over $32 million for charities, including the Robin Hood Foundation, the Africa Foundation, and the Society of Memorial Sloan-Kettering. Photographed here at the Sotheby's York Avenue headquarters in a dress by Loro Piana, earrings by Buccellati, and Miu Miu heels. Hair by Eyal Berger and makeup by Shiko Vun, both for Valery Joseph Salon.
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Justine Durrett Director, David Zwirner Gallery. The Swiss-born, multi-lingual, Ivyeducated Durrett knows no borders in the world— or in the world of art, for that matter. She builds collections for private clients and museum curators alike, coordinates international art fairs, oversees the gallery's sales department, and manages a selection of the gallery's artists herself. Photographed here in the offices of the David Zwirner Gallery on 19th Street in a Richard Ruiz dress. Hair and makeup by Eyal Berger for Valery Joseph Salon. MARCH 2011 97
Celerie Kemble Interior Designer, Kemble Interiors, Inc. As one of the most decorated designers around, Kemble is as indemand as she is au courant. When not dividing her time between uptown and downtown projects in New York, Kemble can be found with global clients from the Middle East to islands of the Carribbean. Photographed here in her Manhattan offices in a dress by Lela Rose, Sergio Rossi heels, and a vintage wood-and-gold serpent bracelet (thought to be Bulgari). Hair by Eyal Berger and makeup by Shiko Vun, both for Valery Joseph Salon. 98 QUEST
Lauren Bush CEO, Creative Director, and Co-Founder, FEED Projects. Bush, an honorary spokesperson for the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), launched FEED Projects after visiting WFP foodaid operations around the world. She designed a burlap-and-cotton bag that, in its first year of sales, fed more than 37,500 children. Today, FEED Projects raises millions of dollars for hunger and education programs through the sale of FEED bags, bears, t-shirts, and accessories. Photographed here at the New York FEED Projects office in a dress by Ralph Lauren. Hair by Valery Joseph and makeup by Shiko Vun, both for Valery Joseph Salon. 100 QUEST
Hilary Geary Ross Mother, wife (of Wilbur Ross), author (of the forthcoming New York, New York), Quest and New York Social Diary columnist, and philanthropist. A fixture in both Manhattan and Palm Beach, Ross is the president of the board of the Blenheim Foundation and serves on the board of the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach. Photographed here on the grand staircase at The Plaza Hotel in Naeem Khan's palm frond green beaded gown and Snowflake diamond necklace and bracelet by Van Cleef & Arpels. Hair by Tiffany Kaljic for Pierre Michel and makeup by Eunice Martinez for Warren-Tricomi at The Plaza. 102 QUEST
a parisian in america By Georgina Schaeffer
This page: A Christian Dior-clad model posing for photographer Lillian Bassman during a Harper’s Bazaar shoot. Opposite: black faille “petit diner” dinner dress, which belonged to American artist Willie Newman, from Christian Dior’s Fall/Winter 1948 collection.
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on a cold and dank February morning in Paris, in 1947, a design newcomer fortuitously put out a first collection that would come to mark a new era in fashion. Harper’s Bazaar American editor Carmel Snow, who would lead the charge in Christian Dior’s metoric rise, told him: “It’s quite a revolution, dear Christian. Your dresses have such a new look.” And thus, the designer was forever annointed into history. In the recent book American Dior (Assouline), Kate Betts tracks the love affair between the French designer and his American audience. Originally calling the collection “Corelle,” after the botanical term for a circlet of flower petals, Dior told Time: “We were leaving a period of war, of uniforms, of solider-women with shoulders like boxers. I turned them into flowers, with soft shoulders, blooming bosoms, waists as slim as vine stems, and skirts opening up like flowers.” Somehow, sixty years later, the collection still feels like a breath of fresh air. u MARC H 2 0 1 1 1 0 5
This page: “I make clothes for real women—not for myself, not for mannequins, and not for fashion magazines,” said one-time Dior designer Marc Bohan. Left: A Bohan sketch for Christian Dior from October, 1964. Opposite: The New York Times reported in 1963, “Ask the average American woman what name she thinks of when she thinks of high fashion and she will probably say Christian Dior.” This fashion sketch by Kenneth Paul Block illustrates the sentiment, originally labelled with “Dior original and
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copies submitted to the master.”
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Lillian Bassman photographed model Mary Jane Russell wearing Christian Dior at Le Pavillion, a French restaurant in New York for Harper’s Bazaar in 1950. Inset: This Harper’s Bazaar cover from 1997 celebrates the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Christian Dior exhibition, entitled “The New Look: Christian Dior 1947-1957.” 1 0 8 Q U ES T
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This page: a sketch from Dior’s New York ready-towear collection in 1950. The designer once said, “Now that my house has conquered New York, I have the impression I am almost as much an American designer as I am a Parisian designer.” Opposite page: Scruggs Vandervoort Barney of St. Louis advertise-
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ment for Christian Dior styles in Vogue, 1949.
Spain’s native son
diana vreeland once said that Balenciaga “brought the style of Spain into the lives of everyone who wore his designs.” In the new book Balenciaga and Spain (Rizzoli), Hamish Bowles explores the relationship of this venerated designer with his native country. The book is published in conjunction with a Bowles-curated exhibition opening this month that highlights the influence Spain had on Balenciaga’s designs through 120 accessoried couture ensembles, on view at the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco until July. Cristóbal Balenciaga designed cutting-edge clothing from the opening of his Paris Fashion house in 1937 until his retirement in 1968, and he transformed the way women dressed. “Balenciaga’s ceaseless explorations and innovations ensured that his work was as intriguing and influential in his final collections as it had been in his first,” writes Bowles in the introduction. And it was his impeccable standards that brought him the best-dressed women in the world as clients, including the Duchess of Windsor, Gloria Guinness, Pauline de Rothschild, Mona Bismark, Princess Grace of Monaco, Doris Duke, and Queen Fabiola of Belgium. Throughout his work, Balenciaga references Spain’s religious and ceremonial dress, royal and regional costumes, dance traditions, and, perhaps most important to the Spanish culture, the bullfight. As Vreeland said, Balenciaga “was the true son of a strong country filled with style, vibrant color, and fine history.” u
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By georgina schaeffer
This page: Balenciaga’s cocktail dress of fuchsia silk Shantung and black lace from the summer of 1966, on view this month at the Fine Arts Museum in San Francisco. Opposite: Cristóbal Balenciaga; the“Infanta” evening dress from the winter of 1939, photographed by George Hoyningen Huene. M AR C H 2 0 1 1 1 1 3
it’s in the (belgian) bag By georgina schaeffer
This page: The stamp of Belgian leather goods company Delvaux, now more than 180 years old. Opposite: a 1973 magazine advertisement for Delvaux.
founded in 1829, the house of Delvaux pre-dates the founding
of the country from which it hails, Belgium, by one year. An icon of Belgian style, the luxury leather company was introduced to the U.S. for the first time at Barneys this past fall. Like Hermès, Delvaux has no assembly line. Each bag is hand-made from start to finish by a team of three craftsmen—a master and two apprentices. Hours of intensive hands-on labor go into each piece. Only 15,000 handbags are made each year, and each comes with a card and serial number bearing the signature of the lead craftsman. The oldest fine leather goods house in the world, Maison Delvaux has a long and distinguished history. It begins with a trunk maker, Charles Delvaux, who added a
shop window to his leather goods studio on Rue de l’Empereur. It was the industrial age, and customers quickly came to admire the quality of these hand-crafted trunks. Soon, Delvaux had opened three shops in Brussels. Inspired by his new success, Delvaux created a line of luggage, boxes, suitcases, and accessories for the modern traveler. The company became a warrant holder to the Court of Belgium in 1883, a title it continues to hold today, making it one of the oldest members of a small and prestigious circle. The “Edison Trunk” was registered in 1898 by the House of Delvaux, and at the beginning of the twentieth century, the company introduced its first collection of ladies handbags. Then, in 1933, a young agricultural engineer named MARCH 2011 115
This page, clockwise from top left: the “Edison” trunk, designed in 1898; tobacco-colored leather case from 1946; a promotional brochure from 1964 with the Andree bag; cutting the leather at the Delvaux workshop, 1951; a magazine advertisement from 1975; pages in the Livre d’Or (Gold Book), in which all of Delvaux’s early designs are registered. Opposite page, clockwise from top left: a promotional photograph from 1961; a magazine advertisement in 1986; a Delvaux shop in 1935; a bespoke “Brillant” bag in alligator sits on a table for completion; a bill from 1911; Delvaux’s logo hardware (the signature “D”) in the windows at Barneys.
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“Delvaux’s modern and elegant sensibility transcends the era in which it was created, and becomes something that can only be described as a timeless classic.”
Schwennicke took over the hundred-year-old company from the last of the family line, Edmond Delvaux. Schwennicke created the first seasonal collections in the ’30s, in the haute couture tradition that continues today. He also began keeping a “Livre d’Or” or “Gold Book” of designs for Delvaux, recording a detailed description of each bag and its designer since 1938. As international travel became more popular during the 1950s, Delvaux reached an increasingly international clientele, and hired Sacha Guitry to act as the brand’s first international ambassador. Then, for the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair, Delvaux created a new handbag called the “Brillant,” (which, along with the “Tempête” (1967), “Le Pin” (1972), and the “Givry” (1977) form the Heritage family and was brought to Barneys New York last year). Designed by Paule Goethals, a former student of Henry Van de Velde, the bag closed using a strap with a buckle in the shape of a “D,” and the logo for the company was born. It was Schwennicke’s widow, Solange, who expanded Delvaux even further when she took over the company after her husband’s death, in 1970. Under her leadership, the brand flourished. She strengthened the creativity and craft of the 118 QUEST
house and established the brand as a trendsetter for clients who appreciated elegance. She even signed the first commercial agreements to bring Delvaux to Japan. In the 1990s, her son, François Schwennicke, came on board and continues to serve today as the executive chairman. Today, even throughout nearly two centuries of history, the philosophy of the house remains distinctly the same. Each piece is still created by hand and the company is still passed down through the familial ranks, but it is the designs themselves that serve as the company’s true legacy. Delvaux’s modern and elegant sensibility trancends the era in which it was created, and becomes something that can only be described as a timeless classic. u This page, above: the window display at Barneys; Belgium’s cultural ambassadors at the World’s Fair in 1958. Opposite, clockwise from top left: leather tools in the window display; three of the “Heritage” collection bags—the “Brillant GM,” a modern version of Delvaux’s iconic Brillant bag, originally designed in 1958 for the World’s Fair, the “Givry” bag (1972), and the “Tempête” bag (1967), all available at Barneys.
Ralph Lauren Ralph Lauren, the ultimate American fashion designer, has built an empire that stands for timeless beauty. This spring, that classic American beauty can be identified as Blair Husain—the perfect muse for this beaded long dress of embroidered tulle.
dressing the best In the spirit of spring fashion, we’ve asked ten designers to illustrate looks inspired by their favorite ladies about town. By daniel cappello
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Dennis Basso Dennis Basso is the king of fur, but he is also sought after for his fashion-forward designs and dresses, which are regularly spotted on the most fĂŞted women on the Manhattan gala circuit. This black silk tulle dress is a natural fit for the ever-elegant Ivanka Trump.
Carolina Herrera Known for her elegant, sophisticated style, Carolina Herrera has been adored by the likes of everyone from Jacqueline Onassis to Nicole Kidman. Here, Herrera has designed an etched organza gown with black faille Korean bow for the impeccable Julia Koch, one of New York’s greatest supporters of the arts—and one of the best dressed, at that.
J. Mendel Gilles Mendel, fifth-generation heir apparent of J. Mendel, transitioned the family fur house into ready-to-wear in 2003. He’s been the go-to master of draping ever since. Here, he has designed a tiger lily washed crêpe-de-Chine strapless gown with skirt peplum for New York’s stylish Dr. Lisa Airan.
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Douglas Hannant Douglas Hannant, who is often accompanied by the social and celebrity women for whom he designs, was inspired here by Marisa Berenson. And who better than Berenson, the ever-chic model and actress—who’s also the granddaughter of fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli—to pull off this midnight crêpe back satin dress?
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Katie Ermilio Katie Ermilio, whose family has dressed everyone from Bouviers to Eisenhowers, designed this pink silk faille dress for the trend-setting Pop editor Shala Monroque. “Nobody mixes modern and retro better than Shala,” says Ermilio. “This dress pays homage to her classic taste and uniquely feminine style.”
Christian Cota CFDA/ Vogue Fashion Fund-nominated Christian Cota is one of the most talked-about young designers, and a favorite of style maven Lauren Santo Domingo, for whom he designed this spring look, which he describes as “an urban garden...deconstructed flowers, fuchsias, yellows, and saturated prints.�
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J.Crew This one-shoulder silver metallic tulle dress with silk tulle overlay sprayed with antiqued bugle beads and sequins would be the perfect fit for British-born model and It-girl Poppy Delevigne. This chic knee-length dress was designed by Tom Mora, J.Crew’s Weddings & Parties Collection designer.
Angel Sanchez For this steel-silver micro-sequins dress, Angel Sanchez, a master of feminine form, was inspired by New York legend Susan Fales-Hill. “I imagined Susan in a longsleeved, all-sequins gown, with luxurious cutout embroidery on the side,” he says. “It is sexy but glamorous at the same time.”
Naeem Khan Here, Naeem Khan designs a flirty cocktail dress for Bergdorf Goodman’s Linda Fargo. As Khan says, “Linda is confident and has a luxurious sense of style, embodying the qualities of the Naeem Khan woman. It is not just about wearing a dress—it is about having an experience and making a statement.”
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QuesT BEST Dressed: THE LISt
2011
the truly fashionable, Cecil Beaton once said, are beyond fashion. The women on Quest’s second annual best-dressed list prove as much; each of them has an innate sense of style all her own.
Grace Kelly (this page) and Audrey Hepburn (opposite), who once said, “My look is attainable. Women can look like Audrey Hepburn by flipping out their hair, buying the large sunglasses, and the little sleeveless dresses.� M AR C H 2 0 1 1 1 3 1
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2011 There are those who are well dressed, and those who are best dressed. To be best dressed, a woman must have a sense of style that is apparent in all that she does—from the way she dresses to the way she lives her life. We care about her as much for what she’s wearing as for what cause or business she’s working on in life. Yves Saint Laurent once remarked, “Over the years I have learned that what is important in a dress is the woman who is wearing it.” We invite you to follow in these pages the women on our second annual best-dressed list (in no particular order).
1. Somers Farkas 2. Kathy Rayner 3. Blair Husain 4. Nicole Hanley 5. Emilia Saint-Amand 6. Minnie Mortimer 7. Jamee Gregory 8. Christy Turlington Burns 9. Amy Fine Collins 10. Susan Fales-Hill
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2011 “I always think the best way to dress is when the person notices you first and the dress after.” —Oscar de la Renta
1. Julia Koch 2. Diana Taylor 3. Cristina de Caraman 4. Amanda Burden 5. Cynthia Lufkin 6. Lauren Santo Domingo 7. Dylan Lauren 8. Blaine Trump 9. Candace Beinecke 10. Hilary Geary Ross
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2011 “Style is primarily a matter of instinct.” —Bill Blass
“Fashion is about beauty and the search for beauty; I think it’s a fundamental thing.” —Miuccia Prada
1. Lauren duPont 2. Marjorie Gubelmann 3. Carolina Herrera 4. Amanda Brooks 5. Aerin Lauder Zinterhofer 6. Joanne de Guardiola 7. Tory Burch 8. Eleanor Lembo Ylvisaker 9. Meredith Melling Burke 10. Audrey Gruss
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palm beach heats up by hilary geary
From left: Christina de Caraman and Kenneth Jay Lane at the Norton Museum; Dom Telesco at Club Colette; Jerry Seay, Tom Quick, and Audrey Gruss at Quick’s Valentine’s Day dinner.
New York City may have been snowy
and bitter cold last month, but that never slows down the social whirl. One of the highlights was the black-tie dinner celebration of the Van Cleef and Arpels “Set in Style” exhibition at the Cooper Hewitt. After peeking at displays of more than 350 dazzling jewels, many of which had been owned by various stars of stage and screen, we stepped into a beautiful, glowing tent, decorated by the brilliant Bronson Van Wyck to feast on a sumptuous five-course dinner by the one-andonly Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Then it was off to Palm Beach, which 138 QUEST
at long last was seasonally warm—seventy degrees or more—all I can say is, “whoopee!” In fact, it has been just perfect down there: clear, sunny, and toasty warm with no humidity. Palm Beachers have tossed away their sweaters, packed up their furs, put down the roof on their convertibles, and are basking in the sunshine. It is a new year and the Palm Beach Centennial is being celebrated all over town with banners decorating the streets and window displays. This time of year the whole world shows up in our little town. My pals Jamee and Peter Gregory came to stay
with me as Jamee had a signing for her book New York Parties: Private Views, and she gave a sold-out lecture at the Palm Beach Preservation Foundation. The next week, Boaz Mazor arrived with his beautiful collection of Oscar de la Renta clothing. Boaz has a big fan club so there were non-stop dinners in his honor, including a cozy one at Pauline Pitt and Jerry Seag’s beautiful waterfront house. Michele and Howard Kessler also toasted him at a dinner after the Oscar de la Renta fashion show at Neiman’s for the supporters of the Preservation Foundation Ball, which Michele is chairing this month.
Top row, from left: Judy Taubman and Robin Hamrbo; Ambassador Nancy Brinker with Howard Bernick; Mila Mulroney and Pepe Fanjul. Bottom, from left: Dr. Jim Walsh and Lucy Musso; Hillie Mahoney and Rupert Hambro; Karl Wellner and Diana Ecclestone; Lauren Veronis and Lesly Smith; Conrad Black and Frank Chopin.
Last week, the handsome Douglas Hannant drew a big crowd at Neiman’s with his lovely feminine dress collection and brand new fragrance, Douglas Hannant de Robert Piguet. He also had a fashion show at Petra Levin’s house in honor of Caron Renaissance. The following Sunday, Kenneth Jay Lane arrived to stay at Judy and Alfred Taubman’s Mizner palazzo, as he was having a big show at the Norton. You must head to the Norton Museum in West Palm Beach to take in his dazzling “jewels.” Everyone is crazy about Kenny so there was one fête after another, starting with Cynthia Boardman’s little, but ever-so-glam dinner at her oceanfront abode. The house is right on the water, and who can ever forget the dazzling pool from the cover of Slim Aarons’s Once Upon a Time? The following night, Emilia and Pepe Fanjul gave a dinner for him, too. Our talented Kenny is one popular fellow! I have to mention the fabulous dinner dance that Susan Telesco gave for her husband Dom’s birthday at Club Colette. Susan, along with the talented party planner, Bruce Sutka, magically transformed Club Colette into Capri—limoncello and all! No kidding, the first thing you saw when you walked in the door was a photo of Capri, surrounded by flowers, lemon vines, and greenery. It felt as if you had
just stepped off the plane into paradise. Everything was perfection, from the antique centerpieces filled with flowers to the live band GDO Enterprises. Another night, we joined Donald and Melania Trump, Karen and Richard LeFrak, and Tina and Terry Lundgren for an al fresco dinner at Mar-a-Lago. What a treat that was! We sat under the stars and feasted on grilled steak, lobster, ice cream, and more. Come Superbowl time, we headed to Darlene and Jerry Jordan’s Sunday bash at their beautiful palazzo to watch the game under a crystal clear tent overlooking the Intercoastal Waterway. I cannot think fo a better way to watch this game,. The following weekend, Mila Mulroney and Tom Quick gave a seated dinner at Tommy’s beautiful house for about thirty on Valentine’s Day to celebrate that sweet holiday. The round tables had red, pink, and white flowers, of course, plus goodies such as Valentine-themed heart necklaces, adorable little stuffed animals, chocolates, and more. Most of the gals wore short red to celebrate this special day. Among the group were our houseguests Deborah Norville and Karl Wellner, plus John and Lauren Veronis, Lucy Musso, Ambassador Nancy Brinker, former Palm Beach Mayor Lesly Smith and Dr. Jim Walsh, Emilia and Pepe Fanjul, Grace
and Chris Meigher, Eileen and Brian Burns, Cynthia Boardman, Kate Ford, Frank Chopin, Ambassador Earle Mack and his wife Carol, Audrey and Marty Gruss, Percy Steinhart, Pauline Pitt and Jerry Seag, Michele and Howard Kessler, Llwyd and Diana Ecclestone, Barbara and Conrad Black, and more. The next week we headed to the Emerald Isle Dinner Dance at the Breakers and were treated to a surprise performance by Christopher Mason. He brilliantly composed a song saluting each and every one of the eleven honorees— what a feat! The following eve we popped into the Flagler Museum for a drinks party in celebration of the beautiful coffee-table book Ballyfin: The Restoration of an Irish House and Demesne, by Kevin V. Mulligan, hosted by the Irish Georgian Society, Desmond Fitzgerald, the Knight of Glin, and Kay and Fred Krehbiel. The book is all about a glorious Regency house in the center of Ireland, originally designed by Richard and William Morrison, and now reincarnated as a fabulous deluxe hotel that will open in the early summer. After thumbing through this glorious book, I immediately made a reservation! We then headed to Pat and John Rosenwald’s heavenly lakefront abode for a cozy dinner of about a dozen pals. It’s true, heaven is Palm Beach! u M ARC H 2 0 1 1 1 3 9
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THE YOUNG & THE GUEST LIST Check out the latest Cinema Society screenings, plus a benefit with the New York Rangers and dispatches from another frenzied Fashion Week, as Elizabeth Brown goes behind the scenes with Manhattan’s freshest young faces. by Elizabeth Brown
During New York Fashion Week, Wildfox presented its Fall 2011 collection at the Hudson Hotel, with music by The Misshapes.
Alex and Keytt Lundqvist attended the Cinema Society screening of Vanishing on 7th Street.
Amy Sacco and Nick Graham at a Cinema Society after-party at Beauty & Essex. Models wore pieces from the Fall 2011 collection by Wildfox at a Fashion Week soirée.
Milly sponsored an event for the Society of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Wildfox designers Kimberly Gordon and Emily
Jacob Latimore, Eve, Russell Simmons, and
Faulstich with Jimmy Sommers.
Hayden Christensen at a Cinema Society party.
patrick mcmullan
Charlie Sheen once said, “I’m sorry, man, but I’ve got
magic. I’ve got poetry in my fingertips.” As I write my column, I sort of wonder how I measure up to the actor. Here’s my attempt at poetry, from my fingertips... In January, Juliet Izon of Life & Style and I celebrated the launch of the limited-edition DKNY for “Clicquot in Snow” boots at the Bryant Park ice rink. Rather than skating, we cozied up in the Clicquot-branded lounge wearing our new rubber footwear. Then, the next day, the East Side House Settlement hosted the Young Collectors Night at the Winter Antiques Show. The event’s sponsor, Elie Tahari, dressed Q's Elizabeth Meigher in black leather and me in gold tulle. Every Upper East Sider who is anyone was there, from Fred
and Stephanie Clark to Luke Morgan and Kim Bevan. After browsing the booths, my evening continued at Orsay with Sam Dangremond of Town & Country, as we discussed important things, like Lauren Santo Domingo and the Upper East Side. In February, the Cinema Society and HBO Films hosted a screening of The Sunset Limited, followed by a dinner at Porter House. (I love steak.) The next day, I attended the Ruinart Interpretation Lunch at Blue Hill Restaurant. There, I experienced the scents that comprise a champagne’s bouquet, like pink peppercorn and verbena. We drank Blanc de Blancs with our meal, as I learned the French do. That night, Emily Fincke and I stopped at 840 Madison Avenue where Gucci was celebrating the launch of its made-to-order bamboo serMARCH 2011 141
vice with Christie’s, attended by Blair Husain and Bettina Prentice. Later that week, Quest’s Georgina Schaeffer invited me to “A Mid-Winter’s Eve,” an event hosted by the Young New Yorkers of the New York Philharmonic. My table, which included Kelechi Odu and Alexandra Papincolaou, polished off a bottle of wine while trying not to interrupt the musical performance by a string trio. Before long, I joined Micaela English of Town & Country and others on the dancefloor. At another Cinema Society screening, Alex Polkinghorn of Vanity Fair and I attended the after-party for Vanishing on 7th Street at Beauty & Essex. I sipped Appleton Estate Rum, hoping for the nerve to approach Hayden Christensen. Alas, that did not happen. The next day, I joined the Society of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center for the Associates Council Luncheon at Rouge Tomate. I bumped into What2WearWhere’s Lara Glaist-
Tinsley Mortimer and Brian Mazza toast Veuve Clicquot; Mia Moretti and Caitlin Moe at the launch of new limited-edition DKNY boots.
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Skjong, both of Gotham, at Blue Hill; Ruinart Blanc de Blancs.
er before I was seated with Eugenie Niven Goodman and Natalie Leeds Leventhal. From them, Alessandra Codinha of WWD and I learned about the Pediatric Family Housing Edowment, a fund that provides accomodation to those receiving care at the Department of Pediatrics. Fashion Week, for me, began at a soirée for Wildfox Couture, with music by The Misshapes. Then, a swirl of Luca Luca, Charlotte Ronson, Jill Stuart, Cynthia Steffe, Tibi, Naeem Khan...accompanied by lots and lots of tweeting. (Follow us @QuestMag!) I stopped by the Cinema Society and Altoids screening of Cedar Rapids, and the after-party at Salon Millesime. Then, a couple of days later, I attended New York Rangers Casino Night to benefit the Garden of Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit charity that works closely with Madison Saquare Garden to “make dreams come true for kids in crisis.” I posed for a picture with Henrik Lundqvist and told Bravo’s Andy Cohen that my job was to write about the real “Real Housewives of New York City.” I’m sure he was very impressed. u
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Anne-Marie Guarnieri and Ingrid
New York Ranger Brian Boyle and Bravo’s Andy Cohen at “Casino Night.”
Ashley Harris and Natalie Bentley at the launch of Gucci’s made-to-order bamboo service.
Henrik Lundqvist, goaltender for the New York Rangers.
Irina Shayk at the HBO Films and Cinema Society screening of The Sunset Limited.
Brandon Dubinsky at an event benefitting the Garden of Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit charity to “make dreams come true for kids facing obstacles.”
Ed Helms and John Hamm at the Cedar Rapids after-party at Millesime.
Members of the New York Rangers joined fans to raise
Alexa Winner at a preview of the Christie’s
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First Open Contemporary Art Sale. MARCH 2011 143
S NA P S HO T
Right: Amina Warsuma, Norma Jean Darden, Pat Cleveland, the designer Stephen Burrows, Charlene Dash, Alva Chinn, China Machado, Billie Blair, and Bethann Hardison are honored this year for their 1973 tour de force at Versailles (above).
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stage. The Americans, with nothing more than a minimal black backdrop, opened with Liza Minelli singing “Bonjour Paris.” She was followed by a multicultural rainbow of thirtysix American models, who, in a mere half hour, tapped into their own Studio 54-era energy and dazzled with a dynamic, vibrant, and seductive exuberance that caused the audience to erupt in cheers and stomping. The Americans, it was clear, had won, and with this victory set the new standard for runway presentations and editorial layouts for years to come. Earlier this year, the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art hosted a luncheon to honor ten of those models, who reconvened for the first time since the battle of ’73. At the luncheon, they took their rightful bows for having elevated American fashion to the international stage—and for making it as powerful as they were on that night. —Daniel Cappello
r i g h t: c l i n t s pau l d i n g / pat r i c k m c m u ll a n
thirty-seven years ago, the legendary fashion publicist Eleanor Lambert teamed up with the Versailles curator Gerald van der Kemp to stage a fashion show that would raise funds for Versailles’s aging Theatre Gabriel. On the day, November 28, 1973, the media focus was on the gala for that night, which attracted eight hundred fashion and aristocratic elites. The real story of the evening, however, was the fashion battle that would go down in history— between French and American style, pitting ancien régime French couturiers Christian Dior, Pierre Cardin, Hubert de Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, and Emanuel Ungaro against American arrivistes Bill Blass, Stephen Burrows, Oscar de la Renta, Halston, and Anne Klein. The French, true to form, presented their collections in a two-hour series of elaborate vignettes worthy of the opera
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