October 21, 2014

The Oscars, Pistorius and de la Renta.

1. It was handed out strongly, for penalty and repentance: Oscar Pistorius got a 5-year sentence.

2. Oscar de la Renta, who dressed First Ladies and movie stars, has died at the age of 82: "With French lace and delicate embroidery, he helped women subdue their insecurities. And with his eye for a gentle flounce and a keen understanding of line and silhouette, he helped them build a powerfully stylish wardrobe that never denied their femininity nor apologized for it.... Today, there are designers in New York who are more adept at capturing the sexuality of the modern era.... But de la Renta represented a kind of old-school fashion with its emphasis on propriety, elegance and good taste."

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

"... he helped women subdue their insecurities."

This contains multitudes.

RecChief said...

"emphasis on propriety, elegance and good taste."

Sadly, that is what is lacking in so much of American culture at the moment.

Anonymous said...

The beauty of the victim is irrelevant, but the SOB should have been convicted of murder...

Michael said...

RecChief

Exactly. How often do we read or hear any of those words today?

The Crack Emcee said...

Two white men who were dead to me already.

Good riddance,...

David said...

You are rid of Pistorus for 10 months. The he walks. Or gets sprung, to be more accurate.

Anonymous said...

"Today, there are designers in New York who are more adept at capturing the sexuality of the modern era.... But de la Renta represented a kind of old-school fashion with its emphasis on propriety, elegance and good taste."

I interpreted this to mean that Beyonce did not wear his clothes.

The Crack Emcee said...

RecChief,

"emphasis on propriety, elegance and good taste."

Sadly, that is what is lacking in so much of American culture at the moment.

For ANYBODY to suggest this country ever had any of them - with this bloody, murderous, rape-y history - is the biggest joke I've read this morning.

That's for the laugh, RecChief:

And the acknowledgement you're delusional,...

Known Unknown said...

The De La Renta brand clearly cheapened over the years. Yves St. Laurent as well.

Similarly happening to both Hilfiger and Lauren now.

The Crack Emcee said...

One white guy who's going to prison because he thought he was killing blacks and shot his girlfriend instead.

The other white guy dressed Jackie O as her husband stood in the way of black's civil rights struggle.

They will not be missed by anyone but those who buy the white supremacist myth-making of history,...

The Crack Emcee said...

Jesus, every time I look at that photo, I want to shoot her in the face myself.

White's sense of "innocence" is disgusting,...

Known Unknown said...

Anyone know a Google Chrome plug-in developer? Just curious.

BarrySanders20 said...

Only an idiot believes he was shooting at an intruder.

Only Crack believes he was trying to kill more than one, and that all of them were black.

Anonymous said...

RE: "Jesus, every time I look at that photo, I want to shoot her in the face myself."

Really?

I honestly cannot tell what is hyperbole anymore.

The Godfather said...

If I ever want to kill a girl friend, remind me to do it in South Africa.

Anonymous said...

If I ever want to kill a girl friend, remind me to do it in Chappaquiddick.

tim maguire said...

If I accidentally killed my girlfriend, I don't think I'd care how much time I got.

James Pawlak said...

He may spend as little as ten-months in prison.

The Crack Emcee said...

BarrySanders20,

"Only an idiot believes he was shooting at an intruder."

So you think it was murder?

"Only Crack believes he was trying to kill more than one, and that all of them were black."

Bullshit - anybody who understands South Africa understands his motive.

Of course, since most American whites don't understand the apartheid system THEY'VE erected, I can see their problem with grasping reality when it comes to racists elsewhere.

It's just innocence all around, with butterflies flapping, and birds chirping, and black's bodies floating down stream for the crocs,...

Big Mike said...

Zeke Emanuel thinks de la Renta lived 7 years too long.

Julie C said...


Miranda Priestly: 'This... stuff'? Oh. Okay. I see. You think this has nothing to do with you. You go to your closet and you select... I don't know... that lumpy blue sweater, for instance because you're trying to tell the world that you take yourself too seriously to care about what you put on your back. But what you don't know is that that sweater is not just blue, it's not turquoise. It's not lapis. It's actually cerulean. And you're also blithely unaware of the fact that in 2002, Oscar de la Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns. And then I think it was Yves Saint Laurent... wasn't it who showed cerulean military jackets? I think we need a jacket here. And then cerulean quickly showed up in the collections of eight different designers. And then it, uh, filtered down through the department stores and then trickled on down into some tragic Casual Corner where you, no doubt, fished it out of some clearance bin. However, that blue represents millions of dollars and countless jobs and it's sort of comical how you think that you've made a choice that exempts you from the fashion industry when, in fact, you're wearing the sweater that was selected for you by the people in this room from a pile of stuff.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

Julie--loved that speech!

It sounds silly, but something I took away from that movie was a stronger respect for the fashion industry, for which I had previous harbored a mixture of indifference and disdain.

Anonymous said...

You don't want the truth because deep down in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that runway, you need me on that runway.

Michael said...

Crack actually believed Pistorius' story. Hilarious.

Julie C said...

IHMMP:

Agreed! Meryl Streep was fantastic in that movie - every scene she was in just sizzled.

Have you ever seen the documentary "The September Issue"? Loved it. It makes a nice juxtaposition to the fictional The Devil Wears Prada.

The Crack Emcee said...

Michael,

"Crack actually believed Pistorius' story. Hilarious."

Michael actually believes what he says. Hilarious,...

The Crack Emcee said...

No matter how many times his story changes.

Which it does by the day,...

Michael said...

Crack

You must remember that the test of a first rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in the mind at the same time. You cannot. You are mentally ill.

mccullough said...

Michael,

That's what Keats called "negative capability"

The Crack Emcee said...

Michael,

"Crack

You must remember that the test of a first rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in the mind at the same time."

I do - watch:

This is a place for serious intellectual debate

AND this is a place where white racists gather to lick their wounds and rail of their many resentments.

Both can't be true,...

Conserve Liberty said...

Oscar de la Renta was an old-school gentleman.

And he knew a man does not wear black shoes in the daytime.