Archive for March, 2010

I recently met a man while on a jaunt in the romantic city of Bruges, the Belgian town of quaint cobblestone streets, chocolate shops, and even a Lake of Love. I was delighted to meet an American guy who graduated from one of those ultra-snotty institutions frequented by the characters of Fitzgerald novels. He invited [...]

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Ever since Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen stopped shooting kids’ movies and Full House episodes, they have created a sensation in the fashion world due to their artful ability to layer sleep clothes with street clothes. This “homeless chic” look seems to result from their lifestyle of constant jet-setting, which forces them to wear some of [...]

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I was delighted and dismayed to realize that Kathryn Bigelow was the first woman in history to win the Oscar for best director. 2010 strikes me as a late date to start recognizing the creative artistry of women in cinema, but such is life.
Kathryn Bigelow strikes me as a person with her head on straight. [...]

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The new sexy psychological thriller Chloe subverts a few conventions of mainstream romantic cinema. The waifish blonde escort girl is played by Mamma Mia’s doll-faced Amanda Seyfried, but instead of following around a married older male benefactor, her character follows around an older married female benefactor (who also happens to be a gynecologist, which seems [...]

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While hovering on the Parisian sidewalk with my pro-health signs up against the crowds of fashion editors, photographers, and models, a man shouted out to me, “Size zero kills — I have to disagree. Designers should be able to do whatever they want!” I argued with him, rambling on about the fact that top designers [...]

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My experience on the fashion frontlines at the Karl Lagerfeld show in Paris was full of unexpected good fortune from strangers. After an hour of lying frozen in the same position on the ground of the Tuileries Gardens, wearing nothing but tights and a few trash bags, my limbs were trembling and I had lost [...]

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Today I am doing a performance art piece in the Jardin des Tuileries Espace Ephémères, outside of the Karl Lagerfeld show for Paris Fashion Week. I will be lying on the ground feigning death, my body partially covered in black trash-bags crisscrossed with white ribbons and mesh covering my eyes. My face will be painted [...]

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In the Marilyn Monroe classic, Some Like It Hot, there were a few of my favorite things: train travel, cross-dressing, and big boats. But these days, not even a classic yacht off the coast of Florida satisfies the appetite of a high roller. And that’s why the international yacht man du jour, Luca Bassani Antivari, [...]

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"shabby people"

04Mar10

While skiing in the French Alpine resort town of Val-d’Isère, I encountered many a Slim Aarons situation. From the lounge chairs at the foot of the slopes, to the Frenchies drinking mid-afternoon red wine in those lounge chairs, it was a surreally elegant ski experience.
From my early years, I recall awkward moments at ski school [...]

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Jet setting is the best, especially if it is on the arm of a dashing man or woman who has piles of money to spend on plane tickets and lavish hotel suites. In theory. In the movies, that is.
A flight attendant friend of mine makes a lifestyle out of meeting men in the first class [...]

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