…………………Has it been TWO YEARS already since Chantal, Kate and Maria and I met in NYC and went to the “Cher Show”!? Unfortunately Angela couldn’t make it, and this whole get together was her idea!! Bob, as in Mackie, was kind enough to secure us great orchestra seats. Pre show we got something to eat at Del Frisco’s Grille nearby……Afterwards we turned the corner and there was the Rockefeller tree. They had just finished putting the lights on it, and the lighting ceremony was in a day or two. As we stood there it started to snow unexpectedly…..Chantal said “oooh Jac is with us”. She said exactly what we were all thinking. We all said yes, Jac is here to enjoy the day with us…….After the show we met with Joe [Bob’s right arm, Bob was still working on costumes for the substitute players] for a drink, and we all told Joe that Bob was a true genius and the costumes were magnificent, which they truly were……..Bob went on to win the Tony Award for Best Costumes…..no surprise by anyone who saw the show……..Besides the three women who starred and played Cher at different stages of her life, we all agreed the costumes were the fourth STAR………………………………….Good times……..good memories
Thanks for sharing this photo of you and the beautiful girls! I haven’t been to New York, but now I know that New Yorkers wear black, as evidenced by the picture! The comments are very interesting to read too, especially the first impressions of the city!
I have received a lot of my last orders and I have to say one of my favorite has been the sage and cream pearls that go with the lace inset tops. Wow, is this a beautiful pearl necklace! I’ve had it on my list a while. Now I think I need the rose/cream or just the cream.
What a bunch of happy faces. A lovely sight!
What great pics and fun memories! I remember when you first posted these. Hopefully you’ll be able to get together with the girls again soon.
Wow! What delightful memories you have of that special day in New York with such good friends.
I can sense the fun you had from the genuine smiles on everyone’s faces.
There’s a certain energy about that city, isn’t there? Every street seems to tell a different story with its magnificent architecture and so many amenities. When I was a child, my dad worked in Manhattan (we lived in New Jersey), and on Saturdays my mom would drive us to the city to meet up with him after he was through with work for the day so that the family could have a night on the town. We drove across the George Washington Bridge from our quiet suburban streets of northern New Jersey to this magical, busy, crowded, lit up city. We would go to great restaurants, shop the stores, and take in the sites. As a wide-eyed 10 year old, going to the NYC was akin to Dorothy waking up in the colorized land of Oz. I loved everything about city, and after we returned home to our quiet, and somewhat mundane house in North Jersey I would count the days until we could go back again.
When I was 12 my family moved across the country to California, and even though I’ve spent the greater portion of my life on the west coast, I still yearn for a life on the east coast. Your photo collage epitomizes what I long for and how I romanticize life in the Big Apple. Urban fashion, food, friends, and a city that never sleeps!
How lucky you are to have those experiences- and more of them to come once this dreaded virus in under control and life resumes to some normalcy.
There’s a lesson to be learned in every crisis, and the possible silver lining to the never ending lockdown is that it has given some us time to pause, recalibrate, and focus on what is truly important to us . When we are able to get together once again, life and our experiences with others will feel richer and we will savor the very things we may have taken so lightly in the past.
Dear Angela, when I was a teenager I dreamed of moving from suburban Long Island to the big city. I graduated from Parson School of Design in 1970. While attending school I lived at home and commuted. I was so envious of the students who lived far away and had to move to NYC. I would sleep over with one of my student friends, usually for the week ends, as often as I could. We had so much fun dressing up and going to the clubs. I remember Luigi who always wore a long black cape lined in red, and knew every club in NYC, and they all knew him!. He was Italian and came to America to be the manager of Gucci!!! A big position as Gucci was at the height of fashion. He was so European with his accent and sophistication. He was tall, thin, and striking looking, not exactly handsome in the classic sense, but he had magnetism. He was the boyfriend of one of my best friends at Parsons, Donna Barnett, a girl from the south. She had a major make over in NYC, but that’s another story! We were all able to get Gucci loafers with the horse bit at a greatly reduced price. After all we were “fashion” students. As soon as I could I moved into the city, and for a young 20 year old it was the land of OZ. The city had a new life, and was the center of the universe. These were the years of Discos and wonderful clubs and Studio 54. The clubs were so diverse….El Morroco, and Le Club for the older upper set [so many more who’s names I can’t remember]. There seemed to be new clubs for the younger wilder group opening every week.I don’t remember ever sleeping. We went out all night, went home took showers and went to work…. I was so lucky to be a young man living in NYC at that time. Years after me, Jac also made the big move into the city….She was 18….A COURAGEOUS MOVE, and one her mother didn’t approve of, but there were circumstances that made the move right for Jac. I had already known her through work for a year or two. Jac and I eventually lived together in this magical city for many years. However, in the 90s things started to change, the city started to change. The “Golden Age of NYC” has come to a close…..Clubs closed, popular restaurants like Max’s Kansas City [a popular haunt for artists, writers, models , designers and Andy Warhol and his “factory” of wild people all were there], but that too closed. We knew it was time for us to make a change. We stopped renting summer houses on Fire Island, and we moved to CT on the Long Island Shore where we were very happy. We still kept our apt in NYC, but found we went less and less. All of a sudden the noises I never heard drove me crazy and I couldn’t sleep, even though the apt was on a high floor. The city had change, but more so we had changed…..We loved “our separate peace” our home where I will live forever….We truly loved NYC, but knew when it was time to leave it behind……Those days will never happen again…….long gone but wonderful memories.
Louis,
I loved reading your post! Thank you.
It seems like you have the best of both worlds – your gorgeous and tranquil home by the ocean as well as easy access to the city. Your house and amazing views must bring you such comfort.
You should really consider penning your autobiography. There are so many memories to share.
It would be an inspirational read for future designers; a romantic love story of you and beautiful Jac; and a wonderful example of the American Dream realized. Three books in one!
You could include photos and your amazing sketches in each chapter. I always wondered if you kept and chronicled all of those beautiful illustrations that you created for your QVC shows. They were so pretty to look at perched on the QVC easel and really demonstrated your attention to detail. It helped your fans realize how much forethought you invested as you designed each component and planned the ways that each model would wear your creations – colors, combinations, jewelry, berets, etc. Those sketches alone should be bound and sold as a guide: Play! Play! Play!:The Well-Dressed Linea Lady.
Women on this site are always asking for your professional advice on combining colors, textures, etc., so a book with your sketches and comments would be awesome to have!
That brought a smile to my face. Thanks!
Gosh, Louis. How much fun would it be to do costume design? Bob Mackie certainly has had an incredible career, too. I had dinner at Tavern on the Green in the mid-80’s. It’s a very special memory. I’m sorry to hear that’s it’s gone.
Fun yes, but I would make a terrible costume designer, as I would make a terrible wedding gown designer. In turn they could never be wonderful sportswear designers. It’s just the way our brains work. Bob is brilliant as a costume designer. Unfortunately, there are very few projects today that call for a man of his talent. The days of big budget shows are pretty much over.
I remember when you first posted those pictures! How times have changed. I am glad you were able to enjoy these wonderful experiences!
Extraordinary and fun memories! I agree that Jac was with you on that delightful day. The entire day was nothing less than delicious.
What great pictures! Thanks for sharing this uplifting reminder of things to look forward to doing again in the future! The ladies are all so gorgeous ! I’ve never been to NY but while living in Europe, made several trips to London where we greatly enjoyed many theater productions. Love musical theater! I’m sure we will appreciate so many things more than ever when we get through the current situation! Take care and be well!
Jac and I loved London…..Paris and London our two favorite cities. Of course the theater in London is fabulous and the restaurants are so much fun. The NY theater district is very different in many ways but it’s fabulous. You know what they say….”you haven’t made it until you’ve made it on Broadway!”
All of those photos of such happy faces makes me smile, and remember better times. Thank you!
What a wonderful memory! Love the pics. For me it has been several years.
The trip was in December. Mass at at Saint Patricks. Then met my dil
at the tavern on the green for lunch. She was in town doing a trunk show at barneys. We had such a lovely time. Unfortunately we lost her due to cancer. She was a beautiful person in all ways.
Dear Irene. I find as we get older our world gets smaller and smaller. So many people that were so much a part of our lives and were so dear to us live now only in our memories. It makes living day to day so much more difficult. You have beautiful memories. The Tavern on the Green was a beautiful refuge in Central Park. I remember when it first closed. The rooms had incredible color chandeliers. Then it reopened again and everyone was thrilled, and rushed to dine there, but fickle New Yorkers moved on and it closed again for good. I don’t even know what’s there now. It was a magical place.A good memory for you to have
Dear Irene….I have found that as I get older my world gets smaller and smaller. So many people who were every thing to me are now part of my memories. It is something I try not to dwell on, but it is difficult. Your memories sound beautiful of your DIL. I remember Jac and I going to the Tavern on the Green when we were both young, and then it closed…..It opened again to it’s former splendor with all of the color chandeliers in the Glass Dining room. Then, alas, it closed again due to lack of patronage. I guess the tourists weren’t enough and New Yorkers are very fickle and more on to the next hot thing. I don’t even know what’s there now. I have wonderful memories of the Tavern On the Green, and thank you for bringing them back to me. It’s a place I haven’t thought of for a long while.