—One Of The Most Famous In The World

Published by the WSJ.

Eliot Hess was glued to his various sets of cameras this weekend taking photos of the Air and Sea Show in Miami from our balconies. Various folks stopped by to watch the action.

By Rosemary Feitelberg on May 25, 2021

Patricia Field

Photo courtesy Patricia Field

Far from coasting through the pandemic, Patricia Field seems to abide by a no-days-off work schedule.

Reached early Saturday evening in Paris, where she is working on the second season of Netflix’s “Emily in Paris,” Field also consulted on the just-released “Run the World” series. While millions identify her as the “Sex and the City” costume designer, fans won’t be seeing any of her selections in that show’s upcoming reboot “And Just Like That.” With a Lower East Side fashion gallery and consulting projects, Field is running on all cylinders. So much so that a weekend interview was the only time to connect.

After a full day of selecting 30 options for Lily Collins, she said, “I enjoy what I do. I feel like I do it intelligently. I have a philosophy of my own. Basically, I like happy clothes. So I have tended to do successful romantic comedies through the years.”

Of course, there’s more to her innate sense of fashion, which even Field allows for — at least a little. “I do know that people enjoy watching my creations because they’re mine. They’re original. I’ll put together things that nobody else would put together. Everything comes from my brain and my eye,” she said. “If it feels good to me, I go with it. I don’t really look around and ask, ‘Are people going to like it? Are they not going to like it?’ I can’t do that. I find that inhibiting. I believe a person has to be free and believe in whatever they do. Of course, sometimes you have doubts. That’s only human. It’s about feeling what you do, enjoying it and getting a chance to laugh at it and be happy.”

As for not working on the “Sex and the City” reboot, she said, “The main reason was a time conflict. I wasn’t able to be in New York doing that and be in Paris doing ‘Emily in Paris.’ But I told them to call my very dear friend Molly Rogers, who also worked in my store back in the day. She did ‘Sex and the City’ with me from start to finish. She knew it well so she’s doing it. My dance card was full.”

Her “very positive creative relationship” with Kim Cattrall — who, as widely reported, isn’t returning for the reboot — has lasted through the years. “As a matter of fact, she’s getting married at City Hall for a second time so I sent her to Dior. They make this New Look jacket that is a laser type jacket that comes in at the waist. It’s cut very well. She went there and got it.

Self-glorification is not her bag. “Yeah, it’s a distraction and it leads to nowhere. You can keep your name out there based on the work that you do. I do it because I enjoy it. It stimulates me and it’s fun,” she said. “Last night we were shooting a birthday dinner scene. Emily and her friends decided to have the birthday dinner in the courtyard of the building they live in. I thought, ‘Let’s just make this a beautiful tableau of costumes.’ It was like a fashionable birthday party. It looked kind of surreal. Here they were dressed up like they were going to the Oscars.”

Asked if she took issue with critics who felt the first season was too much of a cliché, Field said, “Not really because you know the French are like that. They don’t like anything. And I’ve known the French for many, many years. I think people have a right to say what they want to say. In the meantime from what I understand from here in Paris is that everybody is watching it. At the end of the day, that’s what counts. I don’t think Americans found it cliché at all.”

A striking and slim chartreuse green dress from Oscar de la Renta is one of the looks that will be featured in the second season, as well as Greek designers like Vasillis Zoulias, Maria Katrantzou, Des Hommes and Zeus & Dion. “I’m Greek and I have a lot of friends in Greece. I feel Greek designers really don’t get much international coverage,” she said.

For “Run the World,” she hired one of her protégés, Tracy Cox. (Another one of her protégés, Paolo Nieddu, is the designer for the series “Empire.”) “We used a lot of Black designers. The producers wanted us to feature them wherever possible and I was happy to do so. Growing up in New York, two of my best friends in high school were Black. The mother of one had a radio show in Harlem, and we’d go up there. One time her guest was Billie Holiday. I have an experienced history as a New Yorker going to public school. Also, my mother had a dry-cleaning business and she had several African Americans working for her. I was a young girl but they were like my uncles,” she said.

Asked about the move by many fashion companies to be more diverse with their executive teams and marketing, Field said, “There is a lot of, I don’t know if you want to call it pressure or an elevated consciousness because of everything that’s been going on, that it becomes correct to take that position. I’m glad. It’s not negative as long as it’s sincere.”null

Discussing cultural issues recently with three of her young gallery employees, Field said she told them “to take it easy and enjoy life.” After suggesting they make a T-shirt imprinted with “I have no gender issues,” her employees advised that would be misinterpreted. “How can they interpret it wrong? I’m just saying it like it is. I am known for hiring people that nobody else would hire. I didn’t hire them because they were gay or straight or this or that. I hired them because their creativity caught my interest. I didn’t care what color they were, what gender they were, how old or young they were. If you catch my brain, that’s what I like.”

Growing up on the Upper East Side, Field’s mother ran that dry-cleaning business in the East Seventies and specialized in “fancy clothes,” she said. After school, Field learned about the delicacy of silk and how that had to be pressed by hand, and other fabrics, as well as lessons about business. “A very hard worker, who was totally proud and happy with what she was doing,” Field’s mother inspired her to do the same post-New York University, she said.

The road to costume designer started with a job at the former department store Alexander’s in the South Bronx that she would drive to in “a little Sunbeam Alpine, the car that was in ‘Butterfield 8′ with Liz Taylor. I would drive up there in my little designer outfits that I would buy from Loehmann’s in those days,” Field said.

At Alexander’s, one day three executives came marching down to the blouse department that she managed, wanting  to know why the numbers had increased so quickly and [by] so much. Field had ironed pre-packaged blouses and displayed them on bust forms that she had purchased instead of having plastic bags stacked on a table. “I said, ‘Come over here. This is probably why,’” she said with a laugh.

Decades later she has continued to seek a lot of clothes directly through consultant work or through the trends she creates as a costume designer. As for what designers might be missing, Field said “a lot of them, I’m not saying all of them, are missing inspiration. Maybe the ones that became famous got older and lost their touch. I’m not really sure. When I see designers trying to do streetwear, I really find it in a way disappointing.”null

Having come of age during the days of Halston and Courrèges, Field questioned who is a designer of that level today. “The imagination has been stifled by making the numbers. It’s a shame for fashion. Fashion is an art. It’s a cultural statement of the times.”

She continued, “I want to know, ‘Why did Alber Elbaz get fired from Lanvin?’ I have no idea. He was great. Several years ago I walked down the street here one day and I saw him doing the windows. It’s that kind of love that is missing and has been replaced by numbers. If you love it, the numbers come in on their own. You don’t have to be so self-conscious about it.”

Fashion has lost a certain panache, as in the Battle of Versailles, she said. “It’s kind of in a way dead. I have a very good friend, who is a jeans wear designer. He was telling me their biggest customer is Costco. His company is making an amazing amount of business. That’s just an example. I’m not putting it down — don’t get me wrong. I’m just saying big business has taken over fashion…there is a certain allure that is gone. I mean, it’s sneakers and sweatshirts.

”Fashion comes in stages. It’s a trend and then it’s over. You get tired of your skinny jeans and then you want jeans with a full leg. That’s what fashion is about. I agree with that. Fashion is definitely an expression of the culture of the time. If people feel poor, they dress that way,” she said. “I think about the 1930s and the Depression. The colors were faded, and the shapes, even if they followed the body, they followed it loosely. It’s a mentality.”

All in all, Field said it is really important for people to know what they are good at, and to have the confidence to pursue their strengths, regardless of what there profession is. “Why do something that you’re not good at?” she asked. “Life is one time. You have to enjoy it and have fun together.”

Reached in her “beautiful apartment right next to the Louvre and right on the Seine” that was provided by Emily in Paris production company, Field said she was having a glass of wine in her kitchen drinking in the scenery. “You caught me at a really good time because I just came in from working all day,” she said.

Michelin-Star Chef Daniel Boulud Debuts ‘Le Pavillion’ At One Vanderbilt In Midtown, Manhattan

[From Left to Right] Le Pavillion’s Executive Chef Team Will Nacev, Daniel Boulud, and Michael Balboni – Photo by Thomas Schauer

BY: SEBASTIAN MORRIS

This week chef Daniel Boulud and SL Green celebrated the opening of Le Pavillion, an 11,000-square-foot culinary oasis at One Vanderbilt. The restaurant occupies the tower’s second floor at the corner of Vanderbilt Avenue and 42nd Street.

Designed by Brazilian architect and film director Isay Weinfeld alongside international design studio Kohn Pedersen Fox, the interior spaces offer lush greenery, live trees, and foliage throughout the entire dining room. The venue can accommodate 120 seated guests.

A custom hand-blown glass chandelier by American artist Andy Paiko is suspended above a seated bar area offering an additional 46 seats.

“New York City is driving recovery for all of us, bringing back our world-class restaurants, lifting up our sensational chefs, and supporting everyone involved in the dining industry,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “Today’s announcement is about sending one message, loud and clear: Bon Appetit, New Yorkers!”

Le Pavillon’s Custom Hand-Blown Glass Chandelier from Artist Andy Paiko – Photo by Thomas Schauer

“I can’t think of a more fitting moment to open Le Pavillon,” said chef Daniel Boulud. “Despite the many, many challenges that we have faced in the last year, our commitment to creating this dining destination never wavered, and in fact, we are more certain than ever that this celebration of cuisine, nature, and architecture is exactly what New Yorkers need right now. It is my sincere hope that this is an opportunity to celebrate New York City for all of us.”

The restaurant will serve rotating seasonal menus with a focus on locally grown vegetables and New England seafood with French-American posturing. Le Pavillion’s wine program will feature a 650 specially curated selections sourced to complement the seasonal menu.

“Le Pavillon is not only the most special and unique dining experience, it is now a symbol of New York City’s recovery,” said Marc Holliday, chairman and CEO of SL Green. “We have always felt a deep responsibility to create a restaurant worthy of this iconic location, overlooking Grand Central and within the now world-renowned One Vanderbilt. Given the year we’ve all had, we are truly honored to have had the opportunity to partner with chef Daniel to create something extraordinary that can give the entire city hope and energy.”

Le Pavillon’ Main Dining Room – Photo by Thomas Schauer

Le Pavillon’s Main Dining Room – Photo by Thomas Schauer

Le Pavillon’s Outdoor Garden Table and Bar – Photo by Thomas Schauer

Standing 1,401 feet tall, One Vanderbilt is the new headquarters for many of the world’s leading finance, banking, law, and real estate firms, and is approximately 90 percent leased. The 1.7 million-square-foot skyscraper offers an extensive package of amenities, innovative office design, technology offerings, best-in-class sustainability practices, and a prime location at the doorstep of Grand Central Terminal.

One Vanderbilt.

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My friend Harry Redlich wrote and directed a short film a few years ago that is perfect for seniors to watch. It’s evergreen. This could happen to any of us but probably won’t. Thank goodness.

Enjoy!

You may need one of each!!!!!!

If you like to eat, then you will enjoy listening to Mitchell Kaplan, Owner of Books & Books, talk to Ralph Nader about Lebanese food. I don’t even cook, yet I loved hearing all of the stories about the restaurant Ralph’s parents used to own in Connecticut, and how he learned about good eating at an early age. At 87, (never married) Ralph can still captivate you with his words. Mitchell does a great job too.

Click below to hear the podcast

https://lithub.com/why-you-wont-catch-ralph-nader-complaining-about-food/?ct=t%28The+Literary+Life+with+MK%3A+Ralph+Nader%29&mc_cid=3dd8b40e9b&mc_eid=69f97a842d

Ralph Nader and his family share recipes inspired by his parents’ commitment to the healthy diet of their homeland of Lebanon.

Growing up in Winsted, Conn., Ralph Nader would often help his mother cook–kneading the bread dough, chopping fragrant spices to prepare dishes for the family table from his parents’ native Lebanon.
—NPR, Weekend Edition Sunday

More than just a collection of recipes, though, this is a window on a culture and a family. Nader’s description of his mother convincing 8-year-old Ralph to eat radishes speaks volumes about this persuasive matriarch and the tireless activist she raised.
—Washington Post Book Club

The book is both a compilation of Lebanese dishes Nader grew up eating and an homage to his mother Rose, who never let her children eat anything processed or prepackaged, and always cooked from scratch.
—The Hartford Courant

Nader’s cookbook is many things: it is an homage to his mother and her love of simple cooking that her family enjoyed around the kitchen table; a delightful and colorful examination (filled with recipes) of the Lebanese culinary tradition that immigrants to the United States carried with them to a new land; and an endorsement of good eating, cooking with simple, fresh ingredients that Nader hopes will continue to open many individuals’ minds about obesity and the role processed foods play in this national, indeed, global health crises.
—Litchfield County Times

One cannot put down this beautifully illustrated book, with a stunning full-page colored photo opposite each recipe. Large print makes it easy to read while you work, and the engaging introduction by Nader relates life as a young boy in Winsted.
—The Republican-American

“The great thing about all these recipes is they’re familiar, easy to prepare, and really tasty . . . The Cookbook is quick and easy to read, the dishes are familiar and elegant.”
—CounterPunch

Ralph Nader is best-known for his social critiques and his efforts to increase government and corporate accountability, but what some might not know about him is his lifelong commitment to healthy eating. Born in Connecticut to Lebanese parents, Nader’s appreciation of food began at an early age, when his parents, Rose and Nathra, owned an eatery, bakery, and delicatessen called the Highland Arms Restaurant. The family eschewed processed foods and ate only a moderate amount of lean red meat.

Nowadays, the Mediterranean diet is considered one of the healthiest on the planet, but in the 1930s and ’40s of Nader’s youth it was considered by many Americans as simply strange. Luckily for Nader and his siblings, this didn’t prevent their mother, Rose, from serving the family homemade, healthy meals–dishes from her homeland of Lebanon. Rose didn’t simply encourage her children to eat well, she took time to discuss and explain her approach to food; she used the family meals to connect all of her children to the traditions of their ancestors.

The Ralph Nader and Family Cookbookshares the cuisine of Nader’s upbringing, presenting Lebanese dishes inspired by Rose’s recipes that will be both known to many, including hummus and baba ghanoush, as well as others that may be lesser known, such as kibbe, the extremely versatile national dish of Lebanon, and sheikh al-mahshi–the ‘king’ of stuffed foods. The cookbook includes an introduction by Nader and anecdotes throughout. The Ralph Nader and Family Cookbook will entice one’s taste buds, while sharing a side of Ralph Nader that may not be commonly known, though will not surprise anyone familiar with his decades of activism and involvement in consumer protection advocacy.

About the Author

RALPH NADER first made headlines as a young lawyer in 1965 with his book Unsafe at Any Speed, a scathing indictment that lambasted the auto industry for producing unsafe vehicles. The book led to congressional hearings and the passage of a series of automobile safety laws in 1966. Nader also went on to found a wide variety of organizations, all aimed at advancing corporate and government accountability. An author, lecturer, attorney, and political activist, Nader was cited by the Atlantic in 2006 as one of the one hundred most influential figures in American history; Time magazine has called him the US’s toughest customer; and in 1974, a survey conducted by U.S. News & World Report rated him as the fourth most influential person in the United States.

Thank you cousin Harvey.

I find it ironic that the colors red, white, and blue stand for freedom until they are flashing behind you.

♦ When wearing a bikini women reveal 90% of their bodies . Men are so polite they only look at the covered parts.

♦ Relationships are a lot like algebra. Have you ever looked at your X and wondered Y?

♦ You know that tingly little feeling you get when you love someone? That’s common sense leaving your body.

♦ My therapist says I have a preoccupation with vengeance. We’ll see about that!

♦ I think my neighbour is stalking me as she’s been Googling my name on her computer. I saw it through my telescope last night.

♦ Money talks … but all mine ever says is good-bye.

♦ You’re not fat, you’re just easier to see.

♦ If you think nobody cares whether you’re alive, try missing a couple of payments.

♦ I always wondered what the job application form is like at Hooters. Do they just give you a bra and say, “Here, fill this out?”

♦ I can’t understand why women are OK that JC Penney has an older women’s clothing line named “Sag Harbor”.

♦ The location of your mailbox shows you how far away from your house you can go in a robe before you start looking like a mental patient.

♦ Money can’t buy happiness, but it keeps the kids in touch.

♦ The reason Mayberry was so peaceful and quiet was because nobody was married. Andy, Aunt Bea, Barney, Floyd, Howard, Goober, Gomer, Sam, Earnest T Bass, Helen, Thelma Lou, Clara and, of course, Opie were all single. The only married person was Otis, & he was a drunk.

Thank you Harvey Oshinsky