Aretha Franklin — the Queen of Soul — always knew how to create a Moment. via GIPHY She was the diva of divas, as she proved 20 years ago this October, during the debut “VH1 Divas Live” special, at the end of which which she famously dominated Mariah Carey, Gloria Estefan, Celine Dion, Shania Twain,…
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Thoughts on Kate Spade
I was saddened to learn today that designer Kate Spade died by suicide at age 55. Embed from Getty Images In addition, I was appalled by much of the news coverage, which failed to follow readily available guidelines for reporting on such deaths. In 2014, I blogged about suicide and mental health issues after another…
International Women’s Day: The Women That Didn’t Fit
I’ve been thinking about canceling my longtime New York Times print subscription for months. With the exception of reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey — who broke the devastating and culturally significant Harvey Weinstein sex-abuse story — I’m disappointed in the newspaper I grew up with. For a start, the Times stumbled when confronted with its…
RIP, John Mahoney
I’m so saddened by the news of actor John Mahoney’s death this Sunday! Mahoney co-starred in Frasier during the sitcom’s entire 1993 to 2004 run. His Marty Crane was the down-to-earth, dog-loving father of fastidious, social-climbing sons Frasier (Kelsey Grammmer) and Niles (David Hyde Pierce) — an ex-cop who was a source of conflict from the…
The Week in Review, Plus Farewell to Liz Smith and Alaia
In case you missed it, here’s what was on the blog this week. Monday, November 13: Boy, was my sister surprised to see me on Inside Edition! Also, I have something to say about Saturday Night Live’s stunning lack of diversity. Tuesday, November 14: Tiffany Haddish and Tami Roman agree with me. If you invest…
RIP, Gigi the Dog
The ancient Celts believed that the boundaries between our world and the spirit world were more easily crossed on the festival day now known as Halloween. That’s why I chose this date to help Gigi the dog make her transition. I felt that at Gigi’s advanced age of 16, she deserved an especially easy journey….
RIP, Jenny Meirens
Earlier this month, Jenny Meirens — the co-founder of the avant-garde fashion house Maison Martin Margiela — died aged 73 after an unspecified long illness. Like Martin Margiela, the designer of the line, Meirens was a figure of mystery who rarely consented to be photographed or interviewed. That’s why I was fascinated by a long interview…
RIP, Ms. Sheila Michaels
Sheila Michaels — the woman responsible for popularizing the honoric “Ms.” as a substitute for “Mrs.” or Miss” — died last month of leukemia at age 78. As her New York Times obituary by Margalit Fox notes, Michaels didn’t invent “Ms.,” nor did she claim to. The abbreviation appeared in a Massachusetts newspaper in 1901,…
RIP, French Feminist Icon Simone Veil
Simone Veil, an Auschwitz survivor who became a lawyer and then a much-admired feminist politician in France, died yesterday at the age of 89. Embed from Getty Images As France’s health minister in the 1970s, she pushed through laws that lifted restrictions on contraception and legalized abortion. During the National Assembly’s debate over abortion, “phrases…
RIP, Anita Pallenberg
I was in Europe two weeks ago when news broke of Anita Pallenberg’s death at age 75, and I want to pay tribute to her, belatedly, because she was a style icon. Embed from Getty Images In the 1960s and ’70s, Anita was a model and actress (Barbarella, Performance), but she really made her mark…