Indholdsfortegnelse for November 2021 i Town & Country

In June 1994, T&C paid tribute to several prominent American families. Among the group—which included Kohlers, Lauders, and Fanjuls—was one that had recently lost a beloved member. Arthur Ashe’s widow Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe and daughter Camera sat for a portrait by Andrew Eccles in their New York apartment. The tennis legend had died from AIDS-related pneumonia in 1993, a year after publicly revealing he was HIV-positive. He dedicated the last months of his life to establishing the Arthur Ashe Foundation for the Defeat of AIDS and to working on his memoir, Days of Grace; he completed the manuscript less than a week before his death. “You too will one day have your own family,” Ashe wrote to his daughter, “which will bring you so much pleasure in knowing that the tree…

When most people get ready to have children, they head to the bedroom. Fashion designer Joseph Altuzarra and his husband, the real estate investor Seth Weissman, headed out to a restaurant. With another couple. “Our friends Jordan and Richie had gone through the surrogacy process, and they gave us a list of agencies to consider,” Weissman says, referring to Broadway producer Jordan Roth and his husband Richie Jackson. “We talked through the whole thing.” He and Altuzarra welcomed a baby girl in late 2019. Much like the concept of camp, Lady Gaga, and “Yaasss queen,” surrogacy is something that gay men developed before the culture at large caught up. After complications during her first two pregnancies, Kim Kardashian gave birth to her third and fourth children, Chicago and Psalm, with…

“The true beauty is made, not born,” Richard Avedon once wrote in T&C to accompany a portfolio of his portraits of international high society’s singular swans. “The really beautiful woman suggests something we had not imagined before—in a glance or the turn of her head.” Among those the legendary photographer deemed worthy of such a description were Babe Paley, Gloria Guinness (and her daughter Dolores), Gloria Vanderbilt, and Jacqueline de Ribes, indomitable still at 92. Then there was Marella Agnelli, whom Avedon described as “the prototype of a thousand years of Italian beauty. Born a Caracciolo, she evokes the Renaissance by a look.” More than half a century later, the same can be said for Agnelli’s granddaughter, the 42-year-old Ginevra Elkann, a filmmaker and producer whose poise and Botticelli curls…

Even if you travel in beauty-obsessed circles, you may not have heard of Valmont. Celebrities, jetsetters, and people with really, really good skin stockpile the Swiss company’s products in their vanities and talk about them in hushed tones—a secret too good to share. Valmont is a brand that If You Know You Know, and if you don’t, well, you’re missing out. And that’s exactly how Didier Guillon and his wife Sophie, who have owned Valmont for the last 30 years, want it to be. From the beginning, Sophie and Didier limited distribution, having no desire to create the next big global beauty conglomerate. The secret sauce to their success is in the products, which boast water from Valmont’s very own Swiss glacier and sustainably grown botanicals from the brand’s Alpine…

PRESENTED BY STEARNS & FOSTER At Stearns & Foster, we believe that exceptional design lives in the details. This is why we have spent every day of our 175-year legacy committed to refining the details that make Stearns & Foster distinct. From velvet trim to hand-tufted top layers, our mattresses are meticulously crafted to look as good as they feel. Use our tips to help you choose the perfect mattress to complete your bedroom sanctuary. Designer Spotlight Corey Damen Jenkins @coreydamenjenkins The nationally acclaimed designer shares how to make the most of your bedroom. What are the elements of a perfect sleep sanctuary? The proper color palette is essential. It’s important to know whether visual movement inhibits you from calming down. If so, stick to the monochromatic and avoid pattern…

Before his marriage in 2011 to the South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock, Albert, the playboy prince of Monaco, upheld the traditions of a dysfunctional family that has been defined by scandal and intrigue for seven centuries. His marriage seemed a turning point, an opportunity to right the ship not just of his own life but of his homeland. But now, 15 years after he ascended the throne and several scandals later, there is a new one, perhaps the most outrageous of all—a story that involves an anonymous Brazilian, dueling lawyers in Milan and Paris, a Vladimir Putin cameo, and the worst sinus infection in the history of mankind. When Albert II succeeded his father as the Sovereign Prince of Monaco in 2005, he made a bold pledge. For decades the…

A fleet of limousines pulled into the cul-de-sac in front of photographer Gordon Parks’s bungalow at 15 Adams Place in the suburban enclave of Parkway Gardens, in Greenburgh, New York. Groups of African-Americans, dressed in their summer finery, emerged from the late model limos. It “looked like a car salesman’s paradise,” socialite Betty Granger wrote in her Amsterdam News column, “Conversation Piece.” It was September 12, 1954, and Parks, who was finding acclaim as a photojournalist and a top-paid Vogue fashion photographer, had invited nearly 50 friends for a party around his new in-ground pool. Few homeowners of any race had in-ground pools in the 1950s. And most African-Americans had for years been denied access to the nicer park and hotel pools on account of Jim Crow segregation laws. The…

These days, when we’re worried about everything from climate change to democratic backsliding, there are very few things it’s unacceptable to be publicly anxious about. But one is, “How much money will I get when my parents die?” No one comes off well when they do this. Not in Succession, not in King Lear, not in Empire (because it’s just hip-hop King Lear), and not when they pick up that Community Chest card in Monopoly. Nevertheless, inheritance anxiety is real. It surfaced recently when the late film producer Steve Bing disinherited his children, when Larry King’s handwritten will cut out his wife only two months after he filed for divorce, and when Daniel Craig told an interviewer, “I think inheritance is quite distasteful… My philosophy is get rid of it…

When Madam C.J. Walker built her grand mansion in Irvington, New York, it was more than just a pretty house, it was a declaration of resilience: A Black woman born to former slaves in Louisiana could become a millionaire and establish her own residence just a few miles from the Rockefellers’ Kykuit. Not only that, she could hire the first Black architect in New York, Vertner Woodson Tandy, to design it. After it was finished, she and her daughter invited their friends Zora Neale Hurston, W.E.B. Du Bois, Langston Hughes, and other figures of the Harlem Renaissance to celebrate. NOW After a hiatus, Villa Lewaro will again be a vibrant center for New York’s Black community. The New Voices Foundation plans to restore the property to support its mission of…

There is a scene I like to quote from The Godfather. (Okay, there are many, but this one is most relevant to the theme.) It’s the one about never taking sides against the family. Remember? If not, you can find it in this issue. Tell me when you do. As we approach Thanksgiving 2021, there will be many things that have changed, but for me, one will not. After a turkey lunch in Brooklyn, I will retreat to a sofa somewhere, turn on AMC, and watch The Godfather and The Godfather II, texting friends and matching the dialogue word for word. And I will likely be wearing Lalaounis earrings while doing so—and in a way, it’s a perfect fit. Lalaounis is a different kind of family business: founded by the…

Not all lineages are created equal. While one might expect Prince Charles to be the ultimate in royal breeding, others are even better born. For one, his late wife. Diana’s family, the house of Spencer, reaches back to the 16th century. The Windsors, on the other hand, are of German descent, having adopted their current name only in 1917. Which is to say, Charles married up. In Spencer, in theaters November 5, Kristen Stewart plays Diana during three pivotal days. The film puts Diana at the center of the story, so we decided to do the same. Here, get to know the Spencers themselves. 1. HENRY SPENCER The founder of the house of Spencer was born the third Baron Spencer and later given the first Earl of Sunderland peerage, spinning…

Purposeful. Tom Ford is the personification of the word. Whether focused on fashion, filmmaking, or family, the designer acts with purpose. It was with purpose that Ford departed Gucci Group, after a stellar decade-long run, and launched parallel, hyperdemanding careers, reentering the fashion world under his own name and directing two critically acclaimed films. And it was with purpose that Ford undertook the making of his new book, Tom Ford 002—from which this essay is adapted—as he approached two milestones in rapid succession: the 15th anniversary of his eponymous label and his 60th birthday. Ford distilled his vast archive of visuals into hundreds of high-gloss pages that capture a decade and a half of intense adventure and forward motion, including becoming a father in 2012, with his husband, Richard Buckley,…

The first time I saw the crest, I was nine. I understood what was being explained to me—that the coat of arms belonged to the Rapoports, which meant it belonged to me. But I had a hard time grasping it. We weren’t the crest kind. I am, after all, the daughter of Nessa Rapoport, a feminist writer, and the granddaughter of Abe Rapoport, a doctor whose idea of a bequest was handing me a prescription pad to scribble on. Crests were the purview of WASPs and exiled princes, not the descendants of Holocaust survivors whose initialed silverware never made it to America. But this: It was ornate and ancient. The arms featured a raven and two outstretched hands—the gesture of the Jewish kohen. Two bare-chested women stood watch on the…

Plastic surgeons used to lament that you never got to see their best work. For years the billboards for their profession were the train wrecks: nose jobs that rendered patients unrecognizable, face-lifts that doubled as wind tunnel simulations, cheeks stretched like taffy, eyes in a permanent state of surprise. People have been happily getting discreet nips and tucks by expert surgeons for ages; it’s just that none of them were willing to announce it to the world. That is, until July 21 of this year, when Marc Jacobs posted a photo on Instagram captioned “Yesterday.” In it, the 58-year-old fashion designer is in full postprocedural wrap, complete with drainage tubes and what looks like 86 layers of gauze. The accompanying tag names Park Avenue plastic surgeon Andrew Jacono and includes…

Louise Bourgeois’s Maman spider presides over the courtyard that leads to the south entrance to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. It’s a fitting welcome to the 200,000-square-foot museum, in Bentonville, Arkansas, that is Alice Walton’s baby. Nestled on 120 acres of Ozarks forest, where young Walton and her brothers, heirs to the Walmart fortune, would ride horses and hike, the institution will celebrate its 10th anniversary this month and embark upon a vast expansion, both of the museum and of Walton’s philanthropic vision. Within the next year, Walton will oversee the addition of 100,000 square feet of galleries, educational facilities, and event spaces, as well as the construction of a headquarters for her Art Bridges foundation, which seeks to expand access to American art across the nation, and…

PRINCESS CAROLINE & PHILIPPE JUNOT In 1978 the 21-year-old Caroline married the Parisian banker, who was 17 years her senior. Their marriage lasted two years. PRINCESS CAROLINE & PRINCE ERNST OF HANOVER The fractured relationship between Caroline and her estranged third husband has been well documented. So has his terrible behavior. PRINCESS STEPHANIE & DANIEL DUCRUET Stéphanie’s yearlong marriage to her bodyguard ended in 1996 when he was caught having an affair with Miss Bare Breasts of Belgium. PRINCESS STEPHANIE & ADANS LOPEZ PERES The princess famously ran off to join a traveling circus in 2001. Two years later she married the Portuguese acrobat. This too lasted just a year.…

SCORPIO OCTOBER 24–NOVEMBER 22 Think carefully about the future you want to create, because Saturn and Jupiter in Aquarius hold you to past structures while tantalizing you with what could be. Scorpio is a fixed sign, and you tend to adhere to the familiar rather than venturing into the unknown. The winds of change are blowing, though, and the question is whether you can take a dare. TAURUS APRIL 21–MAY 21 Everything about close relationships is accented this month, and with Mars in the picture, others aren’t likely to be docile. You’re going to have some tricky discussions, but Taurus is a romantic, emotional sign, and your willingness to agree and move on makes this month a turning point. Jupiter is telling you to trust in your own future. SAGITTARIUS…

WHAT’S VERY T&C? The history: The 12 signs of the Western Zodiac have long been irresistible to jewelers, but of late Van Cleef & Arpels seemed to be refraining from the trend. Perhaps that’s because it all started, some say, in the 1950s, when the house’s first astrology-themed collection of pendants was introduced. And then Van Cleef reignited it with a collection of slightly larger, more intricate medallions in the ’70s. The fans: For some collectors, a vintage Van Cleef Zodiac charm remains the holy grail. The few that come up at dealers like Mahnaz Ispahani Bartos (or on 1stdibs.com) have the word sold next to the description soon after they are posted. The news: At long last, a new Van Cleef collection of astrological pieces has fallen from the…

THE SPORTY FAMILY Tennis is more than just singles and doubles. This month Will Smith plays Richard Williams—Venus and Serena’s dad—in the new biopic King Richard, a film about the beginnings of two of the world’s most famous careers. In theaters November 18. THE FASHION FAMILY Of all the women who inspired Christian Dior, none was as influential as his sister, the Resistance fighter and concentration camp survivor Catherine Dior. Her story is told in beautiful, striking detail in Miss Dior by Justine Picardie. Out now. $40, FSG THE BUSINESS FAMILY Over 160 years, Lehman Brothers went from Alabama store founded by three Bavarian brothers to global financial behemoth to cautionary tale. How much really changed in all that time? See The Lehman Trilogy on Broadway to find out. Open…

BEACHSIDE BIJOUX Naples jewelry boutique Marissa Collections opens its second location, at Palm Beach’s Royal Poinciana Plaza, on November 1. Here, T&C readers get a first look at some of their treasures. 340 ROYAL POINCIANA WAY, PALM BEACH, 561-710-4433 HARWELL GODFREY TOURMALINE AND DIAMOND COLLIER NECKLACE ($54,950) AND GREEN TOURMALINE PAVE PENDANT ($19,950), BOTH IN 18K YELLOW GOLD LEAPING FISH CUFF, DAVID WEBB A carved emerald fish makes a splash in diamond and sapphire waves. DAVID WEBB LEAPING FISH CUFF ($255,000) DIAMOND RING, KWIAT An ashoka cut is rare, as it requires a flawless diamond of at least three carats. This beauty is 10. KWIAT RING ($785,000) OPAL EARRINGS AND RINGS, IRENE NEUWIRTH Neuwirth selects her colorful opals particularly for their flashes of light. IRENE NEUWIRTH ONE-OF-A-KIND YELLOW AND WHITE…

At the height of his career in the 1960s, Madison Avenue jeweler David Webb was decking the likes of Jackie Kennedy and Wallis Simpson in his signature animalistic jewelry. The fashion was bold, colorful, and optimistic, but these pieces—like the flowers worn by hippies miles away from the Upper East Side—were as much lucky charms in uncertain times as they were personal treasures. Now the David Webb atelier has added new designs to its canon for the first time since its founder’s death in 1975, reimagining his staple cabochon opals, rubies, and sapphires in a collection of intricate florals and chains. Is this a new era of Flower Power? Absolutely, but this time around the blooms will last.…

The power of 24K gold—to bewitch, to bedazzle, to beautify—is legendary. Now the most potent gold ever used in skincare makes its debut in a supercharged day-and-night regimen, formulated by Chantecaille to deliver visibly brightening, firming, and rejuvenating results over the course of 28 days. In each of the two Chantecaille Gold Recovery Intense Concentrate serums, a new collagen-boosting gold heptapeptide is combined with ingredients optimized for morning and evening application. Light-activated botanicals in the A.M. elixir protect against damage from UV and screen exposure; the P.M. concentrate contains night repair enzymes calibrated to enhance skin’s overnight renewal process. Both are also packed with high-potency botanicals that visibly diminish fine lines, amp up glow, and restore elasticity. Use them as a seasonal boost to reenergize and renew the skin—consider this…

SHARI REDSTONE The current ViacomCBS chair has faced off against plenty of formidable men—including her late dad, Sumner—and ultimately prevailed. SONIA CHENG As CEO of Rosewood under the umbrella of her father’s New World Development Company, she has become a force and a visionary in the hospitality sector. LIESEL PRITZKER SIMMONS Since suing family members for her share of the Hyatt inheritance, she has become a leader of the impact investing movement. ELISABETH MURDOCH Her gender may have sidelined her in the race to succeed her father, but it didn’t stop her from selling him her production company for $415 million.…

On July 20, not long after Amazon founder Jeff Bezos returned to earth after an 11-minute space flight aboard one of the rockets his Blue Origin space exploration company had manufactured, he faced the cameras, still wearing his blue spacesuit but now sporting a cowboy hat, to make a surprise announcement. He was inaugurating a “Courage and Civility” award—“We need unifiers and not vilifiers,” he said—and the first winners were celebrity chef José Andrés and TV news analyst Van Jones, each of whom would get $100 million. Andrés and Jones were understandably ecstatic, but among philanthropy analysts, the gifts’ reception was mixed. Sure, $200 million is a lot of money (though perhaps not to a centi-billionaire), but some commentators (myself included) noted that the post-flight charity announcement had a slapdash…

INT. AN ORNATE BEDROOM IN MILAN’S FAMED VILLA NECCHI — EVENING A stormy night in a ritzy neighborhood. The elegant heiress MARIA-STELLA GAMBARELLA, lavishly attired in evening finery fit for Visconti, accessorized with Bulgari’s Serpenti Metamorphosis necklace, sits on her daughter’s bed. EMMA (eight years old, adorably precocious), in a pair of yellow pajamas, wants to stay up. EMMA Oh Mamma, before you go to the party, tell me about your necklace again. MARIA-STELLA I’ve told you this story so many times! EMMA But I love it so much. Please? MARIA-STELLA Okay. If you promise not to give your sister any trouble when Papà and I go out. (beat) As you know, we come from a family that loved jewelry. EMMA And we still love jewelry in this family, don’t…

COVERS NEWSSTAND: CARTIER EARRINGS ($4,100) AND BRACELET ($7,500), 800-CARTIER. RALPH LAUREN COLLECTION JACKET ($1,990) AND PANTS ($1,090), RALPH LAUREN.COM. SUBSCRIBERS: CARTIER EARRINGS ($2,440) AND RING ($1,420), CARTIER.COM. SALVATORE FERRAGAMO COAT ($4,400), FERRAGAMO.COM SHIV STORM PAGE 56–61 CARTIER, CARTIER.COM. DIOR, 800-929-DIOR. DIOR VINTAGE EARRINGS, CONSTANTINAVINTAGE.COM. JIMMY CHOO, JIMMYCHOO.COM. MICHAEL KORS COLLECTION, MICHAELKORS.COM. SALVATORE FERRAGAMO, FERRAGAMO.COM. TIFFANY & CO., TIFFANY.COM COSA NOSTRA PAGE 70–75 BELGIAN SHOES, BELGIANSHOES.COM. BUCCELLATI, BUCCELLATI.COM. CHOPARD, CHOPARD.COM. DAVID YURMAN, DAVIDYURMAN.COM. DIANORA SALVIATI, AMAREES.COM. ETRO, ETRO.COM. FENDI, FENDI.COM. HERMES, HERMES.COM. LAGOS, LAGOS.COM. MANOLO BLAHNIK, MANOLOBLAHNIK.COM. MESSIKA PARIS HIGH JEWELRY, MESSIKA.COM. MUNNU THE GEM PALACE, MUNNUTHEGEMPALACE.COM. OSCAR HEYMAN, 800-642-1912. PICCHIOTTI, RAZNY.COM. PRADA, PRADA.COM. RALPH LAUREN COLLECTION, RALPHLAUREN.COM. SALVATORE FERRAGAMO, FERRAGAMO.COM. SCULLY & SCULLY, SCULLYANDSCULLY.COM. SILVIA FURMANOVICH, BERGDORF GOODMAN, 212-753-7300 I AM RUBELLITE PAGE 80–87 ALAIA, ALAIA.COM. BERLUTI, BERLUTI.COM. BULGARI HIGH…