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Anna Wintour for New York magazine. September 1999. “The Summer of Her Discontent” by Kevin Gray profiles AW and chronicles events in 1999 that made it seam like the editor’s famous icy and private persona could start to crumble.
In February of 1999 her affair with married Texas millionaire Shelby Bryan made tabloid news. In the coming months, the dissolution of her 15 year marriage came to be most of what the fashion girls were talking about those days. AW and Bryan below:
But then, in June, came a second event that seemed to shake up her professional persona. Kate Betts, then senior editor at Vogue, left the publication for Harpers Bazaar. Below, Betts’ for HB, February 2000.
Betts was thought to be Wintour’s most likely successor. She was the only person willing to publicly disagree with Anna and had earned her respect and the one of her peers. Below, Betts and Wintour at a fashion show.
In the late 90’s, however, disagreements between the two became less subtle. They disagreed on the direction of Vogue. Eventually Betts was offered her post at HB, which she took after Condé Nast had offered her editorships of both Details and Mademoiselle.
“I always knew that Kate was going to be an editor-in-chief. I’m sorry she’s not going to be an editor-in-chief at Condé Nast. I mean, I would have loved that. I think she’s a very talented girl“ said AW of Betts. Maintaining her always cool public persona.
21 (wow) years later, editor-at-large and AW’s former close friend Andre Leon Talley spoke out about what seem to be years of hurt and resentment against Wintour, calling her “ruthless” and “not capable of human kindness”.
It is worth to add that ALT’s memoir will be released this September. I, for one, have already preordered. Genius marketing of you ask me.
According to the Daily Mail ALT says he had spoken about AW with Graydon Carter, legendary former editor of Vanity Fair, and says that he had also complained of similar treatment.
“One day she treats me like a good friend and a colleague, and the next day, she treats me as if she had just handed over her keys to an unknown parking valet” allegedly said Carter to ALT of Dame Wintour. Below, Carter and AW.
On Saturday, designer Ralph Rucci shared the following on Instagram accompanied by a photo of him with ALT.
The dolls are coming OUT and they have MANY things to say, it seems.
I can’t help but wonder, is this AW’s second “Summer of Discontent”? Stay tuned as this thread develops girlies.
