Joel Stein covered Fashion Week for Time magazine to get an outsiders view from a straight male on the bi-annual spectacle of fashion. Stein provides a fresh and cleverly written reports on New York Fashion Week.
“It turned out I didn’t know a whole lot of things. Like that fashion shows are the most serious events in the entire world. Nobody in the audience smiles or talks; the models look like they’re on the Bataan death march; and people slowly, lifelessly clap at the end. I’ve been to political panels, criminal trials, locker rooms of playoff losers, graduate English classes and the Ron Paul convention, and I’ve never seen people take themselves quite this seriously.
“Vogue editor Anna Wintour, whom I vaguely knew as the lady who wears Prada and is remarkably similar to the Devil, has two bodyguards–that’s how serious fashion is. I’ve interviewed a lot of celebrities, and you know who had bodyguards? Nobody.”
We always assumed she had them to protect her from the PETA activists who also take fashion seriously. They will go out of their way to splash you with paint for wearing fur.
But more interesting than Stein’s take on Fashion Week is his take on editrix Anna Wintour in particular:
“I knew she was the fashion lady with the sunglasses who apparently is a lot like the devil and enjoys Prada. That much I knew.
What I did not know is that she’s absolutely crazy.
I’ve seen her at just about every event I’ve been to for three days and I offer this as evidence of her insanity:
Fact one: She wears sunglasses all the time. The lights during fashion shows are not that bright. Wearing sunglasses inside is just weird.
Fact two: As soon as a show ends, she runs as fast as she can for the door as if there were a giant delicious chocolate cake right outside and she was a person who would eat cake. I don’t know if this is supposed to imply that she’s super-important and another show is waiting to start until she gets there, or that she’s super-important and can’t stay and talk.”
LOL! Joel Stein, FTW!
Fashion Frills [Time]
Anna Wintour-WTF? [Time]
