fashion police
found these two articles, “The Rise of the A-Gay” and “Introducing ‘The Majority,’ Condé Nast’s Secret, Exclusive Club of Gays”
both are the statement and tongue and cheek on a gay culture in the high power of the fashion and business world. its interesting how people thought...
here are some of the respond comments (you can read the full article below or via the link)
“This article is completely spot on! In fact, as a gay man I had developed this same theory--down to the lettering system--about five years ago. I realized then in meeting and dating many guys that "all gays were not created equally." It's not a put-down to anyone...that's totally alright in my opinion. In fact, when gay men realize this fact, life will become much easier for all. For example, I was recently at a Democratic fundraiser for Hillary (and yes, we met) hosted by the ultimate gay couple. These two men, both in their 30's, live in a mansion in a gated community surrounded by their four adopted children and original Warhols and Lichtensteins. All of the other Manhattan "gAy Listers" were there as well. Could I date any of them? No way! I wouldn't want to do that. I am a B Lister all the way. I am an educated teacher who is 45 and decent looking. All of those things scream B Lister, and again, it's okay. Here's the thing though...gay guys think that they are either one group better than they really are, or they think that it's okay to date guys in a higher group. So the questions begs to be asked...Am I really a C Lister?
Alan Scott Tuxedo Park, New York
Alan Scott Tuxedo Park, New York
seriously? this is ridiculous. substitute sexuality for race in this article and you'd have an ONSLAUGHT of irate discourse. why are we accepting labels like this that further fragment the gay community? whether or not the author of this article had that goal in mind, we have to think about the article in that context. I mean, positing a CASTE SYSTEM FOR GAY MEN. can you think of anything more ludicrous, harmful or inane? (i can, just for the record. rhetorically this just sounds nice and frankly i'm very upset.)
This article has been passed-around between friends, with the universal response coming in two parts: first, "how very exciting that captain obvious appears to believe he's providing insight into a phenomenon that we've been rolling our collective non-A-gay eyes about for generations", and second, "should one of us tell him that there is no difference between A-gays and A-straights? the perfect people are perfect regardless of sexual orientation, and equally obnoxious."
Really, fella -- I suppose if your goal was to get people talking then you've succeeded, but srsly... this isn't journalism, and if the talk is all about what a fool you are then perhaps you haven't done yourself justice.
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how delightfully trite and juvenile. BY BUDDAHBLESS o
Make it stop. If this guy is for real, I'm embarrassed for him. BY TEETERINGWRECK
That was . . . just awesome. Thank you, Tim Murphy.
And, seriously, Japonais? I could chalk up the NYC Prep plug to sponsorship and product placement, but what are these guys excuses?. Japonais is where you take a date you think you *might* want to impress, but that you'd probably rather phone in on.
And being a top is way, way easier.
"What are you wearing today?
"A-GAY: I'm wearing a khaki suit I had custom-made in Asia with a white shirt. It's a Prada cut."
I'll pass, thanks. I may be a gay man but certainly not this kind of gay man. These sound like the guys I made fun of in high school
It's Fight Club for Fags? Except instead of fists, it's fisting and cosmos. But the first rule of fight club is, "You do NOT talk about fight club." So, maybe not.
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They're smarter, sexier, and far more successful than you'll ever be. And they definitely don't speak with a lisp. Meet America's new ruling class—the Alpha Gays.
Last month, sailing off the southern tip of Capri, a group of men including a prominent Manhattan gallerist and a former pro soccer player made for quite the postcard. In fact, the scene was more like a glossy advertisement for an expensive chronographic timepiece: As the 42-foot Norwegian yacht tacked into the wind, the rugged master-of-the-universe types scrambled to adjust the jib. To the casual observer, they appeared to be active men of means on some kind of luxury bonding excursion. And they were. But they also happened to be homosexual.
Make way for the A-gays. Moneyed, successful, educated, and comfortable in their own skin, they're fast becoming the new archetype of cosmopolitan masculinity. The urban man's man. They don't own yappy miniature dogs or time-shares in Fort Lauderdale; they own Labradors and four-bedroom summer homes in Sag Harbor. Instead of cruising in gay clubs, they jet to Gstaad or the TED conference, and party at Sundance with Zooey Deschanel. They don't want to be part of any kind of closeted group or velvet mafia. Their Savile Row suits are impeccable (A-gays tend to go custom rather than buying off the rack), and they furnish their homes with collectible pieces by designers like Claude Lalanne. They drive to Krav Maga class in Lexus hybrids and read four newspapers a day, including the Wall Street Journal, because they're bosses and entrepreneurs, not employees. Often athletic, they're never steroid queens. And they can pull off having much-younger boyfriends without looking creepy. Artists and photographers approach them with new works. Charity committees beg them to cohost their benefits and sit on their boards—and they have portfolios of philanthropic interests that aren't just gay- or AIDS-related. Some, like one couple in New York City, a lawyer and a chef, aren't just avid operagoers, they're benefactors. Others travel in Wasp circles.
What they're not are the guys running around in torn jeans and leopard-print tops telling women what not to wear. "They have actual power that even straights can't deny," says one veteran of the New York-Los Angeles power-gay media scene, "and usually an imposing sense of style and grooming." A-gays supplant the prevailing media cliché: those irrepressible reality makeover icons, style experts, and fashion minions who have thrived throughout the naughts. They are the antitheses of the Carson Kressleys and Steven "Kojo" Cojocarus—they don't want to talk about how to hide your chunky sister's hips or brighten up a bedroom with colorful pillows. They will never say "Just wear it with a belt!" They own the company that manufactures the belts.
Even those A-gays with kids are able to find the time to perfect themselves, becoming the healthier, more stylish, more popular version of you that might have been. The cultural barriers that once held them back have largely eroded, but instead of waving rainbow flags, they maintain a subtle privacy about their sexuality. Out but not loud, proud but discreet, they transcend gayness in much the same way that Barack Obama is said to have transcended race.
"A-gays mark measurable societal progress," says Laura Gilbert, editor of the pop-culture website lemondrop.com. "People can now be out without being expected to swish. It's the Neil Patrick Harris/Portia de Rossi brand of gay."
Those of a certain pedigree have a tendency to stick together, and A-gays are no different. While they don't shun B-gays or C-gays, they tend to move in rarefied circles, and are apt to be found at upscale restaurants among their straight peers—not at bars with names like Rawhide. For the most part, they have opted out of the gay scene and its social networks and eschew the theme parties and bathhouses of the lower castes. They also steer clear of the typical pink vacation destinations; you will not catch an A-gay shirtless in South Beach or at a foam party in Mykonos.
"My favorite A-gay has to be dragged to gay bars," says Gilbert, adding that she sees the breed as a unique torment to straight women: "At first when we meet one, we feel a glimmer of hope for the existence of funny, charming, debonair, clean-shaven men. Soon, though, the reality sinks in."
But for straight men, the A-gay is even more confusing. The average guy might have a gay friend or two, but they rarely represent a challenge to his heterosexuality. The A-gay's success—with personal style, in business, with friends—has a gravitational pull. Often straight guys hope that some of that A-gayness will rub off on them and, before you know it, they've developed a man crush. And that's when their wives start giving them looks.
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Cash-crunched media snakepit Condé Nast may be getting rid of receptionists and making editors pay for their own newspaper and mag subscriptions, but a certain subset within 4 Times Square's Tower of Power is going strong: the A-gays! Recently, we learned that there's a secret gay social club within Condé that goes out for regular drinks, dishes on the rest of the company, and calls itself — and this is the best part — the Majority! That's so cryptic yet chic and mid-century-modern sounding, right? So we got one of the founders of the Majority on the line, who told us all about the sniffy clique's criteria and customs, as long as we promised to say only that he's 31 and has been "on the business side" of one of Condé's "prestige titles" for the past two-plus years. (Guesses, anyone?) Click through to hear every lifestyle detail about the top gays who terrorize the gay (and straight) plebes inside the media spire ... and can you believe that they won't let non-Condé gays into the group even when their jobs may be in jeopardy and they may need those networking contacts!? They won't even let Anna in. Now that's A-list!
Okay, self-described A-gay, tell us all about the Majority.
A-GAY: It's still kind of an informal group that I started with a few other Condé gays a couple of months ago. It's not affiliated with Condé. We get together and drink and gossip about what's going on with the company. Our first time was at Japonais on 18th Street and our last was during Gay Pride Week at g. We're getting together again in September.
A-GAY: It's still kind of an informal group that I started with a few other Condé gays a couple of months ago. It's not affiliated with Condé. We get together and drink and gossip about what's going on with the company. Our first time was at Japonais on 18th Street and our last was during Gay Pride Week at g. We're getting together again in September.
Does the Majority have a preferred drink, like the Majoritini?
A-GAY: No, but we should probably come up with one.
A-GAY: No, but we should probably come up with one.
Why are you called the Majority?
A-GAY: Originally we called it Gays and Lesbians of Condé — or GLACK! — but that was quickly changed based on the joke of, Who isn't gay at Condé? We're not really the minority, we're the majority! It's elusive — there's a little mystery to it.
A-GAY: Originally we called it Gays and Lesbians of Condé — or GLACK! — but that was quickly changed based on the joke of, Who isn't gay at Condé? We're not really the minority, we're the majority! It's elusive — there's a little mystery to it.
So you're about 20, 25 strong right now. How many women?
A-GAY: There's a little lesbian representation, two or three. At some point we may open it up to straight allies. A couple of people have brought non-Condé gays and we promptly blacklist those Condé employees. I think for the next one, the first two hours will be exclusively Condé.
A-GAY: There's a little lesbian representation, two or three. At some point we may open it up to straight allies. A couple of people have brought non-Condé gays and we promptly blacklist those Condé employees. I think for the next one, the first two hours will be exclusively Condé.
So what's the criteria to be asked into the Majority?
A-GAY: Me and a couple of others created a list of people that we know personally. People that are social. And it doesn't hurt to be good-looking. But we wouldn't necessarily not welcome unattractive gays.
A-GAY: Me and a couple of others created a list of people that we know personally. People that are social. And it doesn't hurt to be good-looking. But we wouldn't necessarily not welcome unattractive gays.
The group isn't meant to screen the A-gays from the dumpy gays?
A-GAY: Not necessarily; it's more connected to friends and if they like another gay person. But it screens in a pretty well-dressed, attractive type. Though everyone at Condé is pretty well pulled-together.
A-GAY: Not necessarily; it's more connected to friends and if they like another gay person. But it screens in a pretty well-dressed, attractive type. Though everyone at Condé is pretty well pulled-together.
What is the overall Majority look?
A-GAY: Professional, preppy. There's a lot of gingham, loafers, sometimes a pocket square here and there, and a lot of madras ties. Everything from rag & bone to Gucci, Prada ...
A-GAY: Professional, preppy. There's a lot of gingham, loafers, sometimes a pocket square here and there, and a lot of madras ties. Everything from rag & bone to Gucci, Prada ...
What are you wearing today?
A-GAY: I'm wearing a khaki suit I had custom-made in Asia with a white shirt. It's a Prada cut.
A-GAY: I'm wearing a khaki suit I had custom-made in Asia with a white shirt. It's a Prada cut.
Not a super-shortie Thom Browne cut?
A-GAY: That's not a look for me.
A-GAY: That's not a look for me.
Is most of the Majority on the business side or the editorial side?
A-GAY: Most are on the business side, sales and marketing, but it's not excluding the editorial side.
A-GAY: Most are on the business side, sales and marketing, but it's not excluding the editorial side.
Are you worried that Condé gays who aren't invited in will be hurt and damaged?
A-GAY: If someone asked to come, we would probably allow them to. Again, we'd only exclude someone if they came to an event and brought a non-Condé gay.
A-GAY: If someone asked to come, we would probably allow them to. Again, we'd only exclude someone if they came to an event and brought a non-Condé gay.
But maybe it would be good right now for you guys to network with outside gays, given the shakiness at Condé ...
A-GAY: [Laughs incredulously] Why, in case we lose our jobs? There still have to be some things that are private. It's still Condé Nast!
A-GAY: [Laughs incredulously] Why, in case we lose our jobs? There still have to be some things that are private. It's still Condé Nast!
Do you experience bitterness and jealousy from non-Condé gays, or the public in general?
A-GAY: Not bitterness, but certainly a kind of ... curiosity about ... people wonder how it is to work at Condé.
A-GAY: Not bitterness, but certainly a kind of ... curiosity about ... people wonder how it is to work at Condé.
Is it that fabulous?
A-GAY: I couldn't speak to that specifically. I've never worked at Vogue. But it's very intense; everyone's really smart and works really hard. It's probably not for everyone.
A-GAY: I couldn't speak to that specifically. I've never worked at Vogue. But it's very intense; everyone's really smart and works really hard. It's probably not for everyone.
Does everyone in the Majority have a share in the Pines [on Fire Island]?
A-GAY: Many of us do. I have my own place there, a half-share. Some of us are Hamptons people.
A-GAY: Many of us do. I have my own place there, a half-share. Some of us are Hamptons people.
Do Graydon and Anna know about you guys?
A-GAY: Oh, no!
A-GAY: Oh, no!
Would Anna come to one of your things?
A-GAY: No, she wouldn't be invited! Maybe after those first two hours, as a straight ally, but it's really limited to those who are actually homosexual.
A-GAY: No, she wouldn't be invited! Maybe after those first two hours, as a straight ally, but it's really limited to those who are actually homosexual.
Who are the top five Condé gays? André Leon Talley and who else?
A-GAY: I'm not going to point anyone out.
A-GAY: I'm not going to point anyone out.
Are the Majority gays tops or bottoms?
A-GAY: Do you really think I'm going to comment on that? I have no idea.
A-GAY: Do you really think I'm going to comment on that? I have no idea.
Maybe mostly bottoms because they're so in control and stressed out all day, then later they just want to lie back and let someone else do the work?
A-GAY: [Pause] I don't think you could make that correlation.
A-GAY: [Pause] I don't think you could make that correlation.
Where do you see the Majority going?
A-GAY: We've actually talked about doing a little community service.
A-GAY: We've actually talked about doing a little community service.
Like bringing last season's gingham to the Housing Works stores?
A-GAY: That might be something we'd do. We've talked about coming together to form a team for the AIDS Walk.
A-GAY: That might be something we'd do. We've talked about coming together to form a team for the AIDS Walk.
Have you asked Chip Kidd to design your logo?
A-GAY: [Sniffs] We have graphic designers in the Majority, so we'd probably rely on our own talent group. It would be formatted after some kind of coat of arms. I'm not in that committee per se, so ...
A-GAY: [Sniffs] We have graphic designers in the Majority, so we'd probably rely on our own talent group. It would be formatted after some kind of coat of arms. I'm not in that committee per se, so ...
Who's bitchier at Condé, the gays or the girls?
A-GAY: That's a good question. It'd be a toss-up.
A-GAY: That's a good question. It'd be a toss-up.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Secret High fashion Exclusive Clubs of Gays
‘The Majority,’ Condé Nast’s Secret, Exclusive Club of Gays
Alejandro Ingelmo, Richard Chai, Derek Blasberg- nice pic
