D V by Diana Vreeland (Hardcover)

~ (Author), (Editor), Christopher Hemphil (Editor) "I loathe nostalgia. One night at dinner in Santo Domingo at the Oscar de la Rentas' Swifty Lazar, the literary agent, turned to me and..." (more)
Key Phrases: back plaster, New York, Harper's Bazaar, Queen Mary (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Did Lindbergh really fly over, en route to Paris, while Diana Vreeland was sitting in the sun - with "my darling bambino" and her husband's Godfather-ly bootlegger? Did the "Golden Prince" of Wales really tell his father, years before he met Wallis Simpson, "that never, under any circumstances, would he succeed him"? Does it actually matter - "a lie, to make life more interesting. . . ?" Vreeland, as multitudes know, is America's grand impresario of fashion: guiding spirit of the Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute, ex-editor of Harper's Bazaar and Vogue. Here, she is equally a raconteur of the outre, a social barometer aware that "outre" is passe, a casual aphorist. Life began for Diana in Paris (c. 1906) - "a world where beauties had something to give the world," where "everything was new" and clothes mattered. Within view, Diaghilev (a family caller) swept away the Edwardian era. Back in America, Diana adored horses, hated school, "discovered dancing [and] learned to dream." At 18, not beautiful but soignee (hints of the ugly-duckling-who-wouldn't-be), she fell-in-love-at-first-sight with banker Reed Vreeland: "older" at 25, "an achievement," and forever glamorous. ("I can remember always pulling myself up, thinking, 'I must be at my very best.' ") The self-portrayal - though spotty, discontinuous - has veracity, coherence. And extension: "Before I started working. . . I was like a Japanese wife." She relates her fondness, as a newly-wed, for Albany ("a pretty little Dutch town"); her voracious reading - self-education - as an idle young London wife; the trips with Reed to "exotic" Hungary, Morocco. She opens a lingerie shop in a London mews (where, supposedly, Mrs. Simpson orders her Belvedere-tryst nightgowns); back in America again, Harper's Bazaar's Carmel Snow spots her dancing at the St. Regis; she succeeds Snow, then eventually shifts (Hearst penury) to Vogue; lastly, she's in Russia and Hungary, scouting for the great Costume Institute shows. All in ripples of fashion-and-society talk - Balenciaga's "sense of color" to Jackie's Inaugural sable muff - and Society tattle/confabulation. Only occasionally campy: overall, a singular, immensely seductive combination of Baron Munchhausen and Roland Barthes. (Kirkus Reviews) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

As fashion editor of Harper's Bazaar, editor in chief of Vogue and creator of dozens of famous exhibits at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute, Diana Vreeland has energized and inspired the world of fashion for 50 years. This autobiography takes readers with her around the globe in the company of royalty, actors, artists, and designers. Throughout, her vivacious conversation is peppered with glittering stories and outrageous pronouncements. 17 illustrations. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 199 pages
• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing (March 12, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 051761569X
• ISBN-13: 978-0517615690
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,158,545 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SUPER FABULOUS DIVINE FIERCE!!!, October 11, 2003

By	Duke Marine (Newbury Park, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: D.V. (Paperback)

Ok, so, I picked up this book because it was mentioned in the movie To Wong Foo and I thought, "Well this better be fabulous!"

Boi was fabulous an understatement! Why can't I give this book 6 stars?!?!

This is one of the few books where I can agree with all of the fluffy praise quotes peppering the cover LOL

A simply gorgeous work, Diana Vreeland is a fabulous, fabulous woman! Such taste! Such elegance! Such style! This is a MUST READ for everyone that wants an example of a true lady!

D.V. isn't just about clothes and decorating. While admittingly not a feminist, Mrs. Vreeland is obviously an independent, determined, disciplined woman who is, if not a role model, an inspiration to all!

God, I can't even put into words the qualities of this book that are just overwhelmingly fabulous! Its like anything full of good taste (although, as Diana points out, alittle bad taste is needed sometimes, its NO taste that's truly revolting) and true elegance, it leaves one feeling better about themselves and the world around them.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous fun!, October 5, 2004

By	M. O Schmidt (Columbia Heights, Minnesota United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: D.V. (Paperback)

The only complaint I could make about this book is that it was too brief. I could have read this for weeks, and I would have loved another couple thousand pages. There is a paucity of photos, which is a shame, because Vreeland loved the camera as much as it obviously loved her strong, aristocratic features. Some people might dismiss her as a featherweight, but I wouldn't. To do so, would be to fail to understand a singularly fascinating woman. During her time on earth she met most of the big and small names, and has something to say about most of them. I was so enamoured of this small book, that I am going to have to buy a biography. When you read this book, she tells you everything and nothing personal at the same time. A rare gift, to be sure, and not one that I appreciated! As someone else noted, it seems a great pity to only be able to give this delicious tour de force 5 stars, but there you are: life is seldom fair. I would love to have a best friend as fascinating and maddening as Vreeland, but I doubt I ever will. She is a product of another time and another generation. If you ever wanted to be able to sit inside someone's head and watch them think, this book should do the trick. There are better writers and better subjects than D.V. but this book will spoil you for any of them.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eureka!, January 20, 2000

By	BoyWonder19 (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: D.V. (Paperback)

After years of work, scientists have finally discovered the cause of homosexuality. It's not your genes, it's not your parents, it's not your hypothalamus...it's this book. The first paragraph hooks you, and the rest of the book takes care of the rest. If you're not shrieking and yearning to redecorate by the time you reach lines like "Pink is the navy blue of India," then you're either illiterate or John Wayne. Plimpton's oral history style gives the book a wonderful rambling spontaneity. A brilliant account of the brilliant life of one of the century's towering cultural figures and fabulists.