• Marc Jacobs is "returning?" Well, if the designer can leverage his sex life into a New Yorker profile, he's probably a decent fit here, in the pages of the New Yorker's more fashion-conscious corporate sibling.
• Movie moguls Harvey and Bob Weinstein plummet to 87 from 41. But they're so used to sinking feelings they probably barely notice them anymore.
• Venture capitalist (and godfather to Google and Yahoo) Michael Moritz fell to 88 from 56. Is the shine off Google that badly?
• What an odd time to add Walter Mossberg to the list. The grossly overpaid Wall Street Journal technology columnist was recently replaced on CNBC by the Times' David Pogue, whose theater background and hammy stage personality make him by far the more interesting gadget czar in the era of Web video. (Mossberg moved over to Fox Business, owned by his paper's new owner.) Pogue doesn't make the list, probably because he doesn't have a big power conference like Mossberg's D - All Things Digital.
• Conceptual artist Damien Hirst debuts all the way up at 31??
• Bill Keller of the Times is hip now! Wait, what?
• Ha ha, nice knowing you, hedge fund guys! Wait, no, not "nice," the other thing. Awful!

Your comments on further strangeness are welcome in the comments, although really it's best not to think too hard about these things, which publishers change at random basically just to screw with you.

THE VANITY FAIR 100:
2007 ranking in parentheses

1. Vladimir Putin, Russian Prime Minister (new entry)
2. Rupert Murdoch, News Corp. (1)
3. Sergey Brin (3), Larry Page (3), and Eric Schmidt (new entry), Google
4. Steve Jobs, Apple, Disney, and Pixar (2)
5. Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway (5)
6. Jeff Bezos, Amazon (23)
7. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai (new entry)
8. Roman Abramovich, Millhouse Capital (30)
9. Angelina Jolie & Brad Pitt, actors, activists (new entry)
10. Al Gore, eco-warrior (19)
11. Bill Clinton, Clinton Foundation (6)
12. Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York, Bloomberg L.P. (9)
13. Bernard Arnault, LVMH (8)
14. Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks SKG (7)
15. Ralph Lauren, Polo Ralph Lauren (13)
16. Steve Ballmer, Microsoft (returning)
17. François-Henri Pinault, PPR (new entry)
18. Barry Diller & Diane von Furstenberg (15), IAC; Diane von Furstenberg (15)
19. H. Lee Scott, Wal-Mart (12)
20. Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs (new entry)
21. Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase (new entry)
22. David Geffen, DreamWorks SKG (16)
23. George Lucas, Lucasfilm (40)
24. Jerry Bruckheimer, Jerry Bruckheimer Films (26)
25. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook (new entry)
26. Ronald Perelman, MacAndrews & Forbes (31)
27. Jeff Bewkes, Time Warner (22)
28. John Lasseter (66), Andrew Stanton (new entry), and Brad Bird (new entry), Pixar, Disney
29. Herb Allen, Allen & Co. (21)
30. Miuccia Prada, Prada S.p.A. (44)
31. Damien Hirst, conceptual artist (new entry)
32. Sumner Redstone, Viacom, CBS (70)
33. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor of California (50)
34. Tom Hanks, actor, director, producer (32)
35. Robert Iger, Disney (36)
36. Bono, singer, humanitarian (28)
37. Larry Ellison, Oracle (20)
38. Larry Gagosian, Gagosian Gallery (84)
39. Howard Stringer, Sony (17)
40. Peter Chernin, News Corp. (24)
41. Philippe Dauman, Viacom (68)
42. Vivi Nevo, NV Investments (59)
43. Oprah Winfrey, Harpo Productions (14)
44. Jon Stewart, The Daily Show (89)
45. Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report (87)
46. Carlos Slim Helú, Teléfonos de México, América Móvil (11)
47. Karl Lagerfeld, Chanel (52)
48. Giorgio Armani, Armani Group (37)
49. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, Kingdom Holding Company (new entry)
50. Mike Nichols & Diane Sawyer, director; ABC News anchor (42)
51. Jacob Rothschild, financier (33)
52. Mickey Drexler, J. Crew (55)
53. Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Animation (38)
54. Leslie Moonves, CBS (25)
55. George Clooney, actor, producer, director, activist (27)
56. Jay-Z, hip-hop (47)
57. Oscar & Annette de la Renta, Oscar de la Renta (53)
58. Judd Apatow, producer, director, actor, writer (new entry)
59. Robert De Niro, Tribeca Enetrprises, Tribeca Productions (34)
60. Bill Keller, The New York Times (new entry)
61. Mick Jagger, the Rolling Stones (60)
62. Bruce Wasserstein, Lazard; Wasserstein & Co. (43)
63. Ted Forstmann, IMG Worldwide (new entry)
64. Anna Wintour, Vogue (new entry)
65. Brian Roberts, Comcast (57)
66. Brian Grazer & Ron Howard, Imagine Entertainment (65)
67. Mukesh & Anil Ambani, Reliance Industries, Reliance ADA Group (new entry)
68. Jeff Zucker, NBC Universal (returning)
69. Jeff Skoll, Participant Media (61)
70. Jonathan Ive, Apple (83)
71. William McDonough, William McDonough & Partners (new entry)
72. Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard (new entry)
73. Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo (new entry)
74. Matt Drudge, the Drudge Report (new entry)
75. Donatella Versace, Gianni Versace S.p.A. (77)
76. Diego Della Valle, Tod’s (63)
77. Henry Kravis, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (51)
78. Marc Jacobs, Marc Jacobs, Marc by Marc Jacobs, LVMH (returning)
79. Jean Pigozzi, investor, art collector (86)
80. Paul Allen, Vulcan Inc. (71)
81. Charlie Rose, Charlie Rose (80)
82. Frank Rich, The New York Times, HBO (82)
83. John Galliano, Christian Dior, Galliano (new entry)
84. Jann Wenner, Wenner Media (74)
85. Joel & Ethan Coen, movies (new entry)
86. John Malone, Liberty Media (69)
87. Harvey & Bob Weinstein, the Weinstein Company (41)
88. Michael Moritz, Sequoia Capital (56)
89. Steven Rattner, Quadrangle Group (97)
90. Arianna Huffington, the Huffington Post (98)
91. John Paulson, Paulson & Co. (new entry)
92. Vinod Khosla, Khosla Ventures (62)
93. Jerry Weintraub, Jerry Weintraub Productions (76)
94. Tobias Meyer, Sotheby’s (new entry)
95. Tom Brokaw, NBC News (returning)
96. Doug Morris, Universal Music Group (99)
97. Jimmy Buffett, Margaritaville (96)
98. Jeffrey Sachs, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Millennium Promise (new entry)
99. Steven Cohen, S.A.C. Capital Advisors (45)
100. Walter Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal (new entry)

[Vanity Fair]

• Amy Winehouse was rushed to the hospital after maybe mixing up some "medication" she is on to fight drug addiction. The basketcase British singer was released within 24 hours.
• For some reason Page Six is reporting that Marc Jacobs did marry Lorenzo Matrone, even though two of Jacobs' PR reps denied the story to Fashion Week Daily.
• In other weird denied-gossip news, Lindsay Lohan is still refuting reports she was struck by a motorcycle Saturday, but supposedly she is simultaneously acknowledging to friends she went to the hospital around that time. "But [she] won't tell anyone why. It's really odd." [R&M]
• Chace Crawford and roommate Ed Westwick, both of Gossip Girl, stayed within a foot of each other throughout a recent Ting Tings show. They also supposedly ignored a bunch of "flirty girls." [R&M]
• Rosie O'Donnell was going to be in Les Miserables? And now she's not because her kid broke his wrist?? The tigers really do come at night. [Showbiz Spy]
• Indiana Jones star Shia LaBeouf wasn't just busted for driving drunk — he was also busted driving around at 3 am with actress Isbael Lucas, aka the girlfriend of Entourage star Adrian Grenier. [Daily News]
• Now you've gone and forced Britney Spears to make another reality show. Sigh. [X17]
• Jerry Seinfeld's TV mom doesn't even has his phone number. Right, because she's his TV mom, not his real mom. Get in line, lady! [P6]
• Sad George Michael was delayed by weather on his jet trip to Boston for his concert tour, then had to wait for Sting and Bruce Springsteen to take off first. [P6]

• Staffer in Louis Vuitton press office, Paris: "He's here right now."
• Manager, Marc Jacobs Palais Royal boutique, Paris: "He was not in the Paris store this weekend, but sometimes it happens when he is in town... I don't know about his private life."
• Salesperson, Marc Jacobs store on Bleecker Street, New York:"We have no reports or anything like that... I am sure they would have sent something out. But one of my friends told me about the marriage. I have no idea if it's true or not."
• Davé Cheung of Marc's regular chinois restaurant Davé: "I don't know about this... We cannot get married in France yet—here, we have not yet passed such a law. In Spain, yes. In San Francisco, yes. But not Paris. To get married here is impossible—unless it is to a lady. They can have a celebration but not a legal marriage."

Next time ask his yoga instructor! Or, you know, his rentboy.

[Fashion Week Daily via Cityfile]

• Marc Jacobs is maybe getting married! To the upmarket man, Lorenzo Matrone, in Paris. Will former rentboy and perpetual Jacobs ex Jason Preston attend Y/N??! [Gay Socialites]
• Harvey Weinstein allowed his name to be taken off the Emmy nomination for Project Runway, a major moneymaker his company produces. For this selfless gesture, he is considered a real mensch. [P6]
• Another embarrassing Eliot Spitzer item in the Post, this time claiming someone on the street heckled his "Attorney General" t-shirt. Yesterday he was being snickered at in his gym. He's either getting out more or pissing off the Post. [P6]
• Heather Mills' publicist, who apparently does not read much in the way of press, has discovered that Heather Mills is "impossible." God, even the Times covered that story, and they're not much for vicious celebrity news. [Us]
• Shanna Moakler threw a drink on Kim Kardashian and called her a whore for flirting with her ex-husband back before they broke up. Which sounds damatic, but they both have reality shows, so this is how they make smalltalk. [P6]
• Poor Alex Rodriguez was harrassed by beautiful women at a rooftop bar and had to leave. But he was there with "two male buddies," so he was kind of asking for it. [P6]
• After saying Britney Spears is not a "puppet," the singer's record collaborator Keri Hilson adds that Spears "never mouths off" and "takes direction very well." So not a puppet in strictly the literal sense, then. [Showbiz Spy]

A small group of people - stylists, photographers, hairdressers, make-up artists, designers - are, I've come to the conclusion, having a great deal of fun, and making a great deal of money at our expense.

These people do a very skilled and persuasive job: they bully us into buying more stuff.

No!

They are peddling the myth that if we only scrape together enough money to buy the things in the adverts and the fashion shoots they construct for us, we will be cool, just like them. We will be accepted, and beautiful, and happy, and liked.

Illusion-shattering!

It isn't wrong to love clothes, whether they are from designer stores or from the High Street. My advice is to buy something because you love it, not because you think it will give you a better life.

And not because you think it will gain you acceptance by the cool kids.

This is why everyone should wear Hanes t-shirts, exclusively. Good sentiment, but perhaps Jones should find another beat.

But yes: ridiculous ads.

[via Daily Mail UK]

Menswear designer Thom Browne, a quiet and elegant man by all accounts, says (with an eye roll, apparently): "I don't have a Facebook page. I have no interest in people knowing my personal life." Noble! Though we may know one small detail about Browne, despite his efforts. Reportedly, like Jacobs, he's had his own younger (lots younger) fella in the past, a Columbia University dreamboat who was a springy 19-years-old to his 42. Though, Browne wouldn't necessarily recognize the parallel: "I have no idea what's going on with Marc Jacobs," he says. "I hope he's having a good time." Heh. Oh, he is.

Another geigh fashionmaker, Michael Bastian, uses Jacobs as a model of what not to do: "Well, I don't have a Facebook account for that exact reason!" he crows. But, he does concede that there is a kind of attendant notoriety that comes with Jacobs' level of success. "But you also don't have a choice at a certain point," he says. "When you become such a superstar like that—I'm nowhere near that—that's part of the price that you pay. Either you don't give a shit and you roll with it, or you don't live your life." Yet another 'mo, Liz Claiborne designer John Bartlett, was scared away from the public eye years ago and has no intention of returning. After reading about a difficult breakup in Page Six, an experience he found "horrifying," he is now happily and quietly "married." Oh, good.

So these boys just don't need the damn Facebook and are perhaps better off for it. Maybe when the inevitable Robot Wars come and we're all forced to sign up for Facebook as some sort of government conscription initiative, those three can just leave the relationship status space blank or something.

Menswear Designers Roll Eyes at Marc Jacobs' Facebook Exploits [NYO]

[via BryanBoy]

Of course, because most 24-year-old shop clerks don't have sixty-five grand just lying around, Avila never showed up with the money. So the other manager called the fuzz and the arrest was made. Such a pity that a young Kansan's dreams of the big city were so quickly dashed. Maybe he just couldn't afford his Manhattan lifestyle and was too proud to move to one of the boroughs? Or maybe he (justly) felt that Marc's prices were too high and was performing a bit of selfish Robin Hood-ing? We may never know, and Avila has been charged with grand larceny, meaning he could be looking at the low double digits as a sentence (though doubtful) if convicted. Crime doesn't pay! And neither does Marc Jacobs. Well, not enough, apparently.

Crime of Fashion [NYP]

Martone was described by a Gawker commenter (we pretty sure s/he was alluding to Martone) as "warm hearted (such a lovely, generous spirit) and emotionally grounded (not one for the spotlight)." He sounds like, um, a respectable catch. Which, sadly, is more than some of the more prudish could say about his last few gentlemen callers. Former rentboy Jason Preston, porn star Eric Rhodes, and MySpace somebody-or-other Austin A. don't exactly come across as successful careerists or people who aren't "for the spotlight." This new development is troubling, if only for the people who, um, make their living poking fun at Jacobs' love life. We were hoping for a bridge dweller or Chris Crocker or something! This is just shameful. Shamefully tasteful.

This all starts roughly in early 2006, and continues through to today.
Jason Preston

• A former "rent-boy," Preston famously tatooed the Marc Jacobs logo on his arm.
• The pair kept breaking up.
• And getting back together.
• Then getting engaged.
• Then breaking up again (for good?).
• Meanwhile, they were having dirty, dirty threesomes with...
• 
  Erik Rhodes
  
• Emerging in Jacobs' life early this year, he is kind of dumb, but likes to fuck. He does porn! And used to be a hooker too!
• But, oh no, he is sad.
• Rhodes is kicked to the curb at some point, probably because he left to play Moose Mason in an Archie On Ice show or something. Enter:
• 
  Austin A.
  
• A mysterious fellow, he had lots of MySpace anger.
• He was able to define "Boy Toy" for the rest of us idiots.
• And he almost got in a fight with poor, rejected Jason.
• Somewhere along the line he seems to have disappeared, making room for this new fellow.
• 
  Phew! That is a lot. And I am sure there is much, much more.

  Image via Bauer-Griffin.

The Times said Holmes was "looking perfect," but Fabsugar, even while catching the Superman reference in the outfit, wrote, "hot mess... just too reminiscent of '80s prom."

Here's comedian Sarah Silverman, "wearing a polka-dot teacup skirt from Dolce & Gabbana, paired with filthy black-and-white fingerless knit gloves, which she described as 'flair from my backpack that I bought at one of those mall stores for $9... The woman from Dolce & Gabbana said, "Please don’t wear those." I did.'"

News Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch (background, left) with wife Wendi. Australia's The Age: "Love the colours and the fabric... it's the shape that worries me. It's a bit ''tip me over, pour me out."

Designer Marc Jacobs leaving with Sofia Coppola, because if he'd taken a boy it would have just ended in a big pissy fight over three-ways. No one dared to say anything mean about their outfits.

USA Today (ever the fashion source): "Dolce & Gabbana decked out Scarlett Johansson, who made news on Monday when she announced that she and actor Ryan Reynolds were engaged. Although she wasn't flaunting her engagement ring as she walked the carpet holding hands with her designer hosts, it was probably one of the most-talked-about accessories of the evening."

I recently had a very candid conversation with Austin A, the guy being tagged as Marc Jacob's new "boy toy." Much to my surprise, I discovered what seems to be an everyday gay just looking for fun and life-long happiness...

Austin says the media has really blown the whole thing out of proportion.

Marc, of course, is abroad working with Louis Vuitton; and Austin is currently in L.A. Austin says he spoke with Jacobs a few days ago but admits that they haven't been together since the infamous Los Angeles trip.

"The timing of that trip," Austin says, "was horrible." He says he and Marc met each other in New York but weren't ever spotted in public together. It wasn't until they went to L.A. that their relationship went public.

[GaySocialites]

Marc Jacobs had a bad childhood, his dad died, and his mother had a poor sense of style.

"I hate the term 'bad taste,' but my mother wasn't, like, a very chic person," he says. "Jane Fonda in Klute was definitely one of her role models, much to my father's dismay. But when I'd watch my mother getting dressed up to go out on dates and she'd be putting on three rows of false eyelashes and some hideous fox-trimmed brocade coat with a wet-look miniskirt and knee-high boots, I thought she was fabulous."

He doesn't talk to her any more. If he did, they would probably have to talk about working out, because that is what Marc Jacobs talks about. His trainer Easy is now his main man.

By the time they met, Jacobs was already dieting. "I never saw the bigger Marc," Easy says, behind aviator shades etched with mj, a Louis Vuitton gym bag at his feet.

"The fat guy that I kicked?" says Jacobs.

"The fat guy that we'd beat up if we saw him on the street," Easy laughs.

"The soft, blubbery Marc Jacobs," says Marc Jacobs.

Ha, screw your old self! But Easy is more than just a friend; he's a dawg.

Easy hesitates, then offers his wrist, which boasts a gold Rolex—a birthday present from Jacobs. On the back, it's inscribed love you dawg, mj. "I'm really proud of it," Easy says quietly.

As well you should be. At the end, Marc Jacobs sums up the philosophy that has enabled him to become a millionaire and worldwide celebrity:

"It's like saying, 'I want to look hot.' That is such a dumb thing to say," Jacobs notes. "But what's so cool about it is that you can say it. Yeah, I want a bunch of muscle queens at David Barton Gym to think that my body looks dope."

[pic via Arena Homme]

Tuesday, March 25, 2008


Marc & I
Current mood: betrayed
Category: Life

I just want to say that I appreciate everyone’s support & finding out from the source what is fact and what is fiction. To those of you who just started messaging me after many months and/or years please stop I will not respond. I know there are alot of things being said & this is a hard time for me being scrutinized by so many people just for living my life. I care for Marc regardless of his "celebrity" status. If people say that Marc’s (others) are just with him for who he is, than he would always be alone. Marc Jacobs is an amazing man & deserves someone by his side. If there is anything in the future that you (my friends) are unsure about, do not hesitate to ask. Love you all who love me =)

"Charlotte arrived, and I was totally starting to sweat. She said, ‘Now what are we going to do?’ I said, ‘I’m going to show you what I’m going to wear.’ So I went into the bedroom, and I came out in these silver underpants. And she said, ‘What the hell is that?’ ”

At this point, as Ms. Rampling howled, Mr. Teller said, he was having grave doubts about the rest of his plan. “I was smoking my cigarette, breaking out in a sweat. I said, ‘Well, I was just thinking I could kiss you and fondle your breasts.’

“She sat down and got herself a cigarillo. She didn’t say anything. The whole room was quiet for what seemed like months. I was, like, Oh my God, that is the most stupid thing I’ve ever said, how stupid was that? She just dragged on the cigarillo and crossed her legs, and she said: ‘O.K., let’s go. I’ll tell you when to stop.’ I thought, Oh my God, genius. I can’t believe I’m getting away with it.”

Mr. Teller paused. “So that was the ad.”

This scene took place in a Paris hotel suite, and the crazy part is that Rampling, a friend of Teller's, didn't want to endorse anything so probably didn't even get paid. Hopefully she at least got some shoes out of it.

Why anyone would enter a Facebook relationship is a mystery of human nature. Sure, there's some joy in the beginning, when your names pop up in the mini-feed with a small heart, alerting all your friends (and more importantly, random acquaintances) that you are capable of love, and of being loved by someone else, preferably someone who photographs well. And what joy those first few weeks are, what with old friends inquiring publicly on your wall about your love life.

That feeling wears off after a few weeks. Soon enough, that person becomes just another outclick on your profile. And you start to wonder, "do the people quietly stalking me care about me, or just care about judging my relationship?" No longer "interested in random play," you start to think about all the late night searches you've been excluded from, and all the awkward sex with strangers you've missed out on.

You start going out less, you're tagged in fewer pictures together. Sure, that Saturday night you stayed in and ordered Chinese food and watched Garden State was all right. But sometimes you miss hanging out with your friends and poking other people. You start to wonder if your Facebook profile is defined by your relationship status, if your relationship has taken over your life. Things start getting complicated, but you can't say that. Sure love is complicated, but there's no reason for everyone to know that your love is complicated.

Eventually, you're just miserable. You've heard every story and know every Facebook interest. That little heart has long dropped from your mini-feed. The joy is gone. It's time to break up. And then it's time to Facebook break up. A broken heart appears beside your name. And you're ashamed. Maybe you never were capable of love, capable of the sacrifices that being in a Facebook relationship demands. And then you're on your own. Single. Interested in dating or whatever you can get.

[image via Manhattan Offender]

Ryan, what's up, this is Jason Preston calling. Umm, I'm calling on behalf of, I guess the column or whatever in Gawker.com, I guess you sent something in saying you saw me on the street today with a whole bunch of shit.

First of all, I just had my gym bag, that's all I had, a little, small, little Louis Vuitton gym bag.

And number two, my boots, they are $2,0000 fucking [unintelligible brand] boots, brah.

And three, as in the words of Lil' Kim, you should get your facts straight or Shut Up, Bitch, because you don't know what the fuck you're talking about.

Preston later said someone had just handed him my cell phone number and told him I was the tipster, and that I should "ignore the text message," which is probably even better but has yet to arrive.

Carol Gardens' new line beats the original, Marc Jacobs' Lifestyle Sexier In Theory.

• Marc Jacobs' threesome-friendly boyfriend Jason Preston is chivalrous and brave, if not literally ass-kicking. He saw a guy throw a drink on a girl, in a club, and told the dude to apologize. Unfortunately, the guy then whaled on Preston. Still, Bryanboy will be so totally proud. [P6]
• Owen Wilson maybe hooking up with Jennifer Aniston shows how two people can somehow look crazy, desperate and hot at the same time. [Star]
• Wilson jumped across a pool in front of 150 people in Miami, and went crazy when a hired photographer took a picture. He made the photographer delete the picture, because he's too insane to realize that 10 other guests probably already have the video on their cell phones. [P6]
• Britney Spears' dad has been sifting through the singer's financial wreckage, along with his lawyer, and it looks like former Britney hanger-on Sam Lutfi is going to take the fall for some of her problems. A source told the Post: "Her business affairs were in disarray because Sam [Lutfi] had isolated Britney, and it's going to be a very tedious task of going through everything." [P6]
• Reporters, photographers so busy stalking disgraced Gov. Eliot Spitzer they miss movie superstar Tom Hanks walking right by. [P6]
• Actress Keira Knightley sings three tracks on her new soundtrack and is all, "a sound emerged that wasn't too disagreeable." You're supposed to be all, "you were GREAT!" [Perez]
• Janet Jackson is too sick to show up for Saturday Night Live, even though it could save her weak album sales.
• Entertainment TV host Pat O'Brien is out of rehab, positively gorging on junk food and his network just isn't talking about him so don't ask. [TMZ]
• Rapey Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis is now free to go wild outside of jail. [P6]
• Sean Penn was seen at the Oscars looking thrilled with his blonde supermodel date, but now he's been spotted with a "mid-twenties brunette... wearing tight jeans with tall boots" at the St. Francis hotel in San Francisco. Also, "his car looked like the 'Bat Mobile.'" [OK!]
• How sensitive is singer John Mayer? He keeps Xanax on his person at all times. [P6]