EIGHT IS ENOUGH
Arnold Scaasi, the Canadian-born couturier whose inauguration gown for
Barbara Bush is on display in the Smithsonian, put his foot in his mouth
when he revealed in his 2004 book Women I Have Dressed (and Undressed!)
that the former first lady is the proud owner of only eight toes.
STEALS THE SPOTLIGHT
In 2004, actress Winona Ryder was caught leaving the Beverly Hills Saks
Fifth Avenue with $5,560 worth of unpaid-for merchandise, including a
Marc Jacobs sweater, Donna Karan cashmere socks, and a Frédéric Fekkai
sequined hair clip. She later appeared on the cover of W wearing a FREE
WINONA T-shirt (above).
A NOSE FOR TROUBLE
London’s Sunday Mirror reported in 2005 that, during a visit to
Barcelona in 2001 to appear in a charity fashion show, supermodel Kate
Moss had taken “vast quantities” of cocaine before collapsing into a
coma. The paper apologized to Moss, but a few months later the Daily
Mirror published photos of the supermodel appearing to do lines of
cocaine at a London music studio. The ensuing scandal caused Moss to
lose advertising work after being dumped by clients including H&M,
Chanel, and Burberry.
ANGER MANAGEMENT
Diva’s diva Naomi Campbell (above) threw a Swarovski-crystal-encrusted
BlackBerry at her housekeeper Ana Scolavino in 2006. The shameful
display, with its key elements of entitlement, excess, and luxury goods,
instantly became the ne plus ultra of models behaving badly. (Until four
years later, when Campbell would be embroiled in a trial about accepting
blood diamonds from the African dictator Charles Taylor.)
CLOSED FOR BUSINESS
Oprah Winfrey was denied entry into the Hermès Paris flagship store on
Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré in 2006. Some accounts blamed the snub on
the star’s after-hours arrival, others pointed the finger at her velour
leisure suit.
THE FINE PRINT
The Beautiful Fall—Fashion, Genius, and Glorious Excess in 1970s Paris,
Alicia Drake’s addictive exposé of fashion’s most enduring rivalry,
became the must-have accessory of 2006. The merde hit the fan over the
revelation, known to industry insiders for decades, that Lagerfeld and
Saint Laurent’s animosity stemmed largely from a romantic tug-of-war in
the seventies over trouser arouser Jacques de Bascher, a nobleman who
died from AIDS in 1989.
THE LATE LATE SHOW
Marc Jacobs started his show in September 2007 so late—two hours
late—that fashion critic Suzy Menkes retaliated, telling WWD, “I would
like to murder him with my bare hands and never see another Marc Jacobs
show as long as I live.” Jacobs later denied having stuck his tongue out
at her. “I did not stick my tongue out at Suzy Menkes,” he commented on
The New York Times fashion blog. “I pulled a stupid face with my
tongue.” (He’s now militant about starting his shows on time.)
