Average customer rating:
- Nostalgic and somewhat delightful
|
Versace : The Naked and the Dressed: 20 Years of Versace by Avedon
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Avedon, Richard
| ( A-C )
| Artists, A-Z
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Fashion Design
| Commercial
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Collections, Catalogues & Exhibitions
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Fashion
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Photo Essays
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Designers
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Artists, Architects & Photographers
| Arts & Literature
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
Look Inside Entertainment Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Men Without Ties
-
Do Not Disturb
ASIN: 0375501576
Release Date: 1998-10-27 |
Amazon.com
When Gianni Versace was shot dead outside his Miami villa on July 15, 1997, few believed that his fashion empire would survive. The chutzpah and flamboyance of Versace the fashion house seemed inseparable from Versace the man. And yet, a year later, Versace remained buoyant, its reputation and market position if anything enhanced by its creator's tragic fate.
This book goes some way toward explaining why. From his first 1980 collection, Versace cannily engaged a great photographer, Richard Avedon, who stylishly wedded his designs to a potent blend of celebrity, beauty, flesh, sex, and humor, which became instantly identifiable as Versace--poised, pansexual, tongue firmly in sculptured cheek. Whether in trademarked group shots of intricately entangled supermodels, Stallone nude and stone-faced, Elton gleeful in drag, or Bon Jovi proudly strutting his buff bod, Avedon equals Versace--to the extent that he can show Kate Moss, without a stitch of Versace (or anything else), and we know that she is thinking Versace. This gorgeous volume collects more than 170 photographs, and gives us, as it justly proclaims: "A glimpse of the impassioned shameful opulent titillating sewmanship of that daredevil magician of art and artifice who was and will always be Gianni Versace." --Alan Stewart
Book Description
This book is almost completely full-bleed photographs taken by Richard Avedon of the Versace collections. The book is divided into 8 sections, by themes: Rembrance of Flings Past; Lust & Found; That Obscure Object of Desire; Gathering Moss; Rocks and Other Hard Places; The Way of All Mesh; Look Homeward Angel; and A Quick Stitch in Time. The sequencing of the photographs makes for an amusing, sexy presentation.
Customer Reviews:
Nostalgic and somewhat delightful.......1999-05-10
This is an archive of the advertisments and editorials for Versace. His pictures, like his clothes are refreshing, and surprising. Those who buy this book will encounter some director's cut images. However, "The Naked" lacks the better Versace campigns. Those familiar with Versace photographs will wonder why they did not include the better shots... Some pictures are amazing, yet, some didn't have the luster. And unfortunately, the bad outnumber the good. With the price, it is still a good buy but leaves you craving more.
Average customer rating:
- a good book
- A big MAGNIFICENT book full of real hunks and stallions!
- Not Just The Men--The Photographic Inter-Melding
- What caught my attention............
|
Men Without Ties
Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
History & Criticism
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
| Criticism
| General
| Regional
| Themes
| Women in Art
Fashion Design
| Commercial
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Textile & Costume
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Photo Essays
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
History
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Crafts & Hobbies
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Do Not Disturb
-
Vanitas: Designs
-
The Art and Craft of Gianni Versace
-
Versace : The Naked and the Dressed: 20 Years of Versace by Avedon
-
Gucci by Gucci
ASIN: 0789200015 |
Customer Reviews:
a good book.......2001-11-12
It is a good book, but not great as his another one: Rock and Royalty, Versace/Avedon. If you are a fan of Versace, then it's worth to buy one.
A big MAGNIFICENT book full of real hunks and stallions!.......2000-05-26
If you're a female (or well, at least a gay), better brace yourself and get ready for a glossy, eye-filling page after page of the finest young men ever born and bred in the whole world! Those sexy studs are very artfully depicted here in a stylish vein by a very creative fashion designer like Gianni Versace and most of them are quite scantily-clad and some of them even completely naked. A very bold and unconventional piece of art that you can find on any coffee table! Too bad this handsome album is just plain too expensive for me to merely pluck right off a bookstore shelf!
Not Just The Men--The Photographic Inter-Melding.......1999-12-14
Okay, the males are stylish and handsome both--possessed of muscles, adorned with Versace's jubilant, expressionistic attire. But there's more expressionism in the photos themselves. I know of no other book where visual images (here, photos) are not just presented 1-2-3 in static procession, but where portions are repeated--echoed later on--blended with following photos--in a creative interweaving which can only be "art" in the definition of "dynamic combination of symmetry or order, and asymmetry or tension." A beach scene appears, then is blended with another scene later. And interblended with the written text, too. Rare is this twin-starring of word and image, plus this permutation-and-combination of images. Only in comics do word and image so vitally interact. So check out this book for its design-artistry, as well as its aesthetic dudes.....
What caught my attention...................1999-05-24
was supermodel Marcus Schenkenberg on the cover. That's why I brought it home! But when I opened it up, I was thrilled to see that every photo was marvelous and artful. Kudos and love to the late Versace, who created this brilliant piece of art.
Average customer rating:
- Ornate, Exquisite, Sumptuous
- Perfectly Gianni
- Satified my curiousity!
- A dazzling book of luscious, erotic, artful photographs
|
Do Not Disturb
Gianni Versace ,
Roy Strong , and
Richard Avedon
Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Interior Design
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
Fashion Design
| Commercial
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
History
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Crafts & Hobbies
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
Decoration & Ornament
| Interior Design
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Interior Design
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Italy
| Europe
| History
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Men Without Ties
-
Vanitas: Designs
-
Versace (Universe of Fashion)
-
The Art of Being You
-
The Art and Craft of Gianni Versace
ASIN: 0789201135 |
Amazon.com
Ah, naughty Gianni! The front cover of Do Not Disturb shows Versace himself in a Renaissance pose, wrapped in a sumptuous silk quilt; what you can't see on this page is the back cover, on which a nude Claudia Schiffer, hair snaking around her beautiful shoulders like a Teutonic Medusa's, gives you a come-hither stare as she toys with the same strategically placed quilt. Versace, before his untimely death in 1997, had perfected the art of living voluptuously, and these photographs--about half of which include perfect, mostly naked people romping gleefully through the sybaritic surroundings of Versace's various homes (in Milan, Miami, and Lago di Como)--are a testament to his great ability to elevate the beautiful to icon status. For its sheer, amazing gorgeousness, this may be the most wonderful (and one of the most poignant) lifestyle books of the last few years.
Customer Reviews:
Ornate, Exquisite, Sumptuous.......2005-07-09
Yes, Versace's book is about an extravagant and sumptuous lifestyle, and yes, it is exquisitely portrayed in this heavy paean to his glorious mode de vie. But what is most compelling is the revelation of his creative genius, his definition of beauty and how he captured it in so many varying elements of design. It is his definitive vision of the way he viewed the world, and the power with which he communicated that vision, that blow the mind. This weighty book is a testimony not only to Versace himself but to the very times in which we live(d). Truly, genius.
Perfectly Gianni.......2000-03-24
I am a Gianni Versace fans, i got this book from my friend as a birthday gift. This book is great i like it very much. The layouts, the pictures, the style all of them are so Versace, it's glamorous, beautiful, and full of freedom of expressions. This Book is as great as Men Without Ties and Rock and Royalty, those who enjoy the creativity of Versace, must have this incredible one.
Satified my curiousity!.......2000-01-25
Standing on Ocean Drive in front of Versace's Casa Casaurina in South Beach, I wondered, what was behind those beautiful gates? Do not disturb satisfied my curiousity. This beautiful text not only displays Versace's immaculate home interior designs, but he was ever so gracious to open his three unbelieveable homes to our curious eyes. All three homes in Milan, Lake Como,Italy and South Beach are absolutely incredible and tasteful. This book bleeds of opulence and Mr. Versace's enourmous fetish for Baroque patterns. I also highly recommend Versace's other 5 treasures from Abbeville press; Vanitas, Signatures, Men without Ties, Rock and royalty, and The Art of being you.
A dazzling book of luscious, erotic, artful photographs.......1998-05-18
Gianni Versace's "Do Not Disturb" is perhaps his own way of bringing his extravagant and admirable lifestyle to immortality. The book brilliantly showcases his glamorous, erotic and luscious way of living. A look into Versace's homes, the photographs are adorned with incredible architecture, dazzling colours, and beautiful nude young men. A great insight into how extravantly life can be lived.
Amazon.com
The title of fashion designer Gianni Versace's new book references his diverse clientele, who not only wear his clothing but also impact his designs: rock & roll queens Tina Turner and Madonna, fashion princesses Kate and Naomi, design lords Lagerfeld and Armani, and even the real deal, Diana, Princess of Wales. Photos of these and other fashion mavens, both in and out of Versace clothing, are interspersed with images of royalty throughout history, such as Queen Victoria, Empress Catherine of Russia, and a young Queen Elizabeth. The aesthetic juxtaposition of history and modernity, depicted in black-and-white photographs and colorful artwork, echoes the energy of the fashion world and captures the influential style of its inhabitants. The royalties from the sale of Rock and Royalty will benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Customer Reviews:
Gianni Versace, a Fashion Genuis.......2002-06-11
Gianni Versace was a designer who loved to push the envelope. His clothes were a mixture of extremes: sexy, sleazy, colorful, tacky, and elegant. One adjective you'd never find in a sentence with the word Versace is "boring." His clothes commanded--and often got--attention, which is why he was such a favorite among celebrities such as Madonna, Elton John, Liz Hurley, Courtney Love, Prince, Jon Bon Jovi and even Princess Diana. This book is a fabulous, eye-opening collection of vivid photographs of models and rock stars in Versace: from Prince to the members of British boy band Take That. Some outfits are more releaving than others, but they're all unmistakably Versace. Diana herself is also included in the book, along with a few words of praise for the designer. Tragically, Versace was murdered in the summer of 1997, but his spirit and influence live on. This book comes highly recommended. Drop it on your coffeetable, and your guests won't want to put it down.
excellent!.......2001-11-12
A must have book for all Versace fans.
A note from Maureen Farquhar.......2000-03-10
Fantastic photography in another large book from Versace. This book captures the 'rock chic' glamourama which the late Versace excelled at creating. The association between 'Rock and Roll', and art is full indulged here creating a empirical illusion to the Versace dynasty. The glossy presentation of the images also adds to an overall feeling of luxury. The only reason I have not given this book the top rating is for its inclusion of Elton John - who makes me sick. So what if its expensive, luxuries like this don't come cheap. ciao,
Maureen Farquhar (maureenfarquhar@yahoo.com)
Rock and Royality - Versace.......1999-09-19
This book gives a look into the classic, Calabrian influenced, luxury of Versace. This volume serves as a record of the pure decadant genius of this mega Italian talent.
Great, glamourous book!.......1999-08-22
For all of you who loves Gianni Versace clothes and really admire what he had done to the world of fashion I recommend you to have this incredible book.
Average customer rating:
- Extraordinary Look At Fashion Today!
|
Versace (Universe of Fashion)
Richard Martin
Manufacturer: The Vendome Press for Universe
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Fashion Design
| Commercial
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Fashion
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Designers
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Italy
| Europe
| History
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
The Art and Craft of Gianni Versace
-
Versace
-
Vanitas: Designs
-
Do Not Disturb
-
The Art of Being You
ASIN: 0789300907
Release Date: 1997-05-15 |
Book Description
Gianni Versace has said of himself, "I don't care for half-measures. I believe in making clear-cut choices." Versace's fashion is about such bold and unequivocal choices. Unafraid of being denounced by those less daring and more fearful than himself, he makes fashion meant to be worn by those who share his desire for risk--who share his honesty about sexuality and his self-confidence in aesthetic choice. Traditionally, fashion designers begin with innovations in their first collections, develop fans and followers, and ultimately settle into a style that is the designer's trademark, with modest adaptations to the season and fashion currents. Gianni Versace is different. The New York Times remarked on a 1996 showing: "Gianni Versace ended the day with his collection, dedicated to 'a woman who listens to classical music but enjoys rock, who reads The New Yorker and Calvino but can have a laugh at gossipy chronicles, who adores wearing Versace with Calvin Klein jeans or Versace jeans with a Chanel jacket.' If that sounds like a personal ad . . . it could be, because Mr. Versace is not setting up housekeeping with clients who have married him in the past; he is always courting someone new." Indeed, Versace is an uncompromising designer--one who develops and expands not only in the public arena of fashion but also in the even larger area of popular culture.
Versace's energy has become famous; he makes it clear both as a designer and as a human being that he prizes life. Already by the late 1970's, Gianni Versace was in command of his distinctive style. He was able to combine absolute power and authority with comfortable materials and a relaxed silhouette. Even then he was designing the most confident clothing of his time. Who else, after all, would combine silk and leather with the panache of American sportswear? Who else would have let the pleats in the silk blouse become the center of ever-widening ripples that make troughs in the soft leather skirt? While Versace's designs are celebrated as unabashedly sexual, they nonetheless possess a strong sense of personal grace. Versace shows an unerring talent for bringing from the street those extravagant and graceful elements that represent the best in contemporary style. No major designer living today has more successfully transfigured the street's reality into convincing style--all the while keeping in sight the extravagant possibilities of Baroque and Renaissance motifs. Versace understands, perhaps better than any designer of his time, that fashion's place in the world is at the center of visual spectacle. With intelligent commentary and celebrated photographs of Versace designs, this book presents the Versace spectacle in all its boldness and sensuality.
In this volume, we see Versace at once as the designer of the Byzantine Madonna, of the performer of Madonna, of modern sportswear infused with Italian Renaissance pageantry, of 1930's-inspired slinky gowns, and of an entirely new 1990's couture vision.
Customer Reviews:
Extraordinary Look At Fashion Today!.......2000-06-16
This book was amazing. Not only did it clearly and concisely explore the world of fashion, but photography and the models involved as well. Versace is a genius, may he rest in peace, and his clothing is wonderfully orchestrated. I recommend this book to anyone who is even remotely interested in fashion or the business which accompanies it. The story is shown through the pictures and the clothing, the smiles and the frowns. Versace is quite amazing, as is this book!
Average customer rating:
- A Response to all people whom read about The House of Versac
- Gianni Versace
|
Gianni Versace.
Richard Martin
Manufacturer: see notes for publisher info
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Museums & Collections
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Exhibition Catalogs
| Museums
| Museums & Collections
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
| General
| Guggenheim Museum
| Los Angeles County Museum of Art
| Metropolitan Museum of Art
| Museum of Contemporary Art
| Museum of Modern Art
| National Gallery Of Art
| Tate Gallery
| Whitney Museum of American Art
Fashion Design
| Commercial
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Textile & Costume
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Commercial
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
History
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Artists, A-Z
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Crafts & Hobbies
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Italy
| Europe
| History
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
The Art and Craft of Gianni Versace
-
Vanitas: Designs
-
Versace (Universe of Fashion)
-
Do Not Disturb
ASIN: 0810965216 |
Customer Reviews:
A Response to all people whom read about The House of Versac.......2005-03-04
I think you all show read a little but more and pay attention to more than just the clothes in the books. Try to intepret what Gianni, Dona, Sonta, and Allegra were and are trying to bring out with their collezioni, couture, and black label. Aletier as well. They are not aficionados o aficianadas. It is not just a style as far as what is worn, it is a statement and impression of who you are, what you are made of, and what you stand for. Damn, now it is time to add some Sean John velour and sunglasses to my collection.
Mr. Kevin J. McGee
Bush Cheney '04 2003 Member Number : 702250368
Gianni Versace.......2000-04-08
This is an excellent photography book, but the clothing in here is mostly from the 80's and not my favorite era in terms of fashion. There is some wonderful clothes, and some terrible clothes. The information is great, tells of inspirations and what the particular piece was based on. The best parts of this book are the photography and the information accompanying the photographs. I lovev Gianni's work, but some of the stuff in here is just not worthy... but it was the 80's, And I suppose it was stylish then. I'd recommend for any die hard versace fans.
Average customer rating:
- Different, but a must have!
- The best
- Any coffee table w/o this should be green with envy!
|
The Art of Being You
Gianni Versace ,
Germano Celant ,
Ingrid Sischy ,
Richard Martin ,
Frank Moore ,
Julian Schnabel ,
Steven Meisel , and
Irving Penn
Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Schools, Periods & Styles
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
| Abstract Expressionism
| Ancient & Classical
| Art Deco
| Art Nouveau
| Baroque
| Byzantine
| Constructivism
| Contemporary Art
| Cubism
| Dadaism
| Expressionism
| Fauvism
| Folk Art
| Futurism
| German Expressionism
| Gothic
| Impressionism
| Mannerism
| Medieval
| Modern
| Neoclassical
| Pop
| Post-Impressionism
| Pre-Raphaelite
| Prehistoric & Primitive
| Realism
| Renaissance
| Rococo
| Romanesque
| Romantic
| Surrealism
Fashion Design
| Commercial
| Graphic Design
| Design & Decorative Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Fashion
| Photography
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
Commercial
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
History
| Fashion
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Crafts & Hobbies
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
All Titles
| Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007
| Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Do Not Disturb
-
Versace (Universe of Fashion)
-
Vanitas: Designs
-
The Art and Craft of Gianni Versace
-
Men Without Ties
ASIN: 0789204363 |
Customer Reviews:
Different, but a must have!.......2000-01-23
The Art of being you came out just after the death of the talented Gianni Versace. I own all of his books which I highly recommend. Different in this installment are the images of modern art which Versace so incorporated into his work. Evident is the work of Julien Schnabel (broken plate painter) and Andy Warhol. The presence of photographer Richard Avedon's work makes the 100$Canadian worth it. If your into fashion especially Versace, check out Vanitas for Gianni's renderings. Nobody does it like Versace. Lets hope his sister continues the same tradition.
The best.......1999-10-24
This book shows the private art collection that the versace family have collected. Great book with great pictures.
Any coffee table w/o this should be green with envy!.......1999-10-24
In the world of Art books, This has got to be the best posthumous release ever. Abbeville Press has outdone themselves with this masterpiece. I own Mr. Versace's previous 5 books, Signatures, Vanitas, Do not disturb, Rock and Royalty and Men w/o ties which I highly recommend. In this edition, Versace shows us that until his untimely death, the wheels never stopped turning. With the help of Thierry Perez, Steven Meisel, Julian Schnabel and other fabulous artists, This book truly defines the artifice and uncompromising couturier called Gianni Versace.
Amazon.com
Vanity Fair was Andrew Cunanan's favorite magazine, so there's a certain synergy to Maureen Orth's engrossing and meticulously researched account of Cunanan's 1997 cross-country killing spree, which left celebrated designer Gianni Versace and four others dead before Cunanan took his own life. Orth, a special correspondent for Vanity Fair and an award-winning investigative journalist, had just filed a story on the homicidal young poseur when Versace's murder grabbed headlines across the nation. As the media scrambled to make the connection between high-profile victim and shadowy assailant, it was Orth who broke the news that Cunanan claimed to have known the fashion superstar--perhaps more intimately than Versace's handlers were comfortable admitting publicly.
Vulgar Favors, Orth's first book, is the story of a monster obsessed with social climbing. From his earliest childhood, Cunanan's severely dysfunctional parents programmed him with a sense of entitlement but gave him no means of entrée into the glittering world of wealth and privilege he so desperately desired. At first, Cunanan's youthful, exotic good looks and magpie intelligence earned him access to the upper echelons of San Diego's fabulously decadent and closeted gay rich, but as drugs and dissolution exacted their toll, the doors closed tight and Cunanan's rage and frustration took a murderous bent. The most interesting parts of Orth's tale, however, are not the lurid details of depravity but the revelations on how Versace's celebrity status influenced the investigation into his murder. Even in death, it would appear, the rich are very different from you and me. --Patrizia DiLucchio
Book Description
Two months before Andrew Cunanan murdered Gianni Versace on the steps of his Miami Beach mansion, Maureen Orth was investigating a major story on the serial killer for Vanity Fair. Now the award-winning journalist and Vanity Fair special correspondent tells the complete story of Cunanan, his unwitting victims, and the moneyed, hedonistic world in which they lived and died, culled from interviews with over 400 people, and details from thousands of pages of police reports.
In chilling detail, Maureen Orth reveals how Andrew Cunanan met his superstar victim...why police and the FBI repeatedly failed to catch Cunanan...why other victims' families stonewalled the investigation...controversial findings of the Versace autopsy report, and more. Here is a late-century odyssey that races across America from California's wealthy gay underworld to modest midwestern homes of families mourning their slaughtered sons to the celebration of decadence that is Versace's South Beach. It is at once a landmark work of investigative journalism and a riveting account of a sociopath, his savage crimes, and the mysteries he left along the way.
Customer Reviews:
Needed An Editor.......2006-01-27
Nine years after the crimes, this book's flaws are all the more apparent: overwritten and in desperate need of an editor's hand. The reader has to wait more than 300 pages to get to Gianni Versace. The buildup, many extraneous details about four previous murders of obscure individuals by Andrew Cunanan, while interesting in its way, is not why anyone would want to read this work. This reporter never met a detail she didn't decide to incorporate into her writing. There are reams of tedious detail about police investigations, with many gratuitous quotes by cops who are unimportant to the theme. No one really cares about the non-celebrities who preceded Versace in death at the hands of this particular psychopath.
reasonably interesting story, but fairly terrible writing.......2005-05-13
Sheesh! Andrew's story is fairly absorbing as far as those of serial killers go, and Orth has collected an impressive mountain of facts about it. However, this book's shortcomings far outweigh any of its strong points:
1. The text is fairly clogged with spelling errors and illiteracies of every kind. I mean, I'M embarrassed to read them, and I had nothing to do with the book!
2. Why couldn't we have pictures? Because Orth didn't want to stoop to sensationalism? Then how to explain the completely inaccurate and misleading title? At no point is it ever alleged that Cunanan performed "vulgar favors" for Versace, hence I must conclude that that title was chosen only for the basest of reasons.
3. There was no reason the book needed to be this long; it could have been much shorter and still effective. The author seemed unable to weed out uninteresting aspects of her story, instead dumping EVERY damn fact in her possession on us (e.g., do we really need two entire chapters on the history of the FBI's fliers?!?)
4. Orth just can't seem to make the characters come alive, although she evidently suffered from no lack of rich material.
5. Her prose style is mediocre and over-stylized at the same time.
6. I suppose this is inevitable when writing the life of a serial killer, but here I must accuse Orth of "playing the ending" too much. What I mean is that she goes back into his life in high school (and before) reading all these sinister meanings into the most innocuous teenageisms (what high-school boy, for example, isn't a barefaced liar?). As if he'd spent his entire life preparing to go berserk and kill Versace. Brother! Only somebody with a ludicrous and gratingly shallow understanding of human nature would have slanted her facts thus.
Avoid this one: A weak and forgettable effort.
The Cunanen spree killings starting in Minneapolis, MN.......2002-06-27
I live in urban Minneapolis, Minnesota so I watched the Cunanen case unfold from the beginning. I am also a fan of Maureen Oarth. Her meticulous research in Vanity Fair articles carried over into this book. I was most concerned with the Minnesota aspect of the case and her work on it seemed excellent. I was less familiar with the later outstate aspects of the case by Oarth's book seems to make sense.
Reactions of some in the gay community, who seemed to judge the book by a "political agenda" seemed to mirror the response to Randy Shilts classic book on the AIDS epidemic "And the Band Played On". Many of the worst critics of Shilts classic book were from the gay community.
As they say, those who don't learn from history are destined to repeat it. Law enforcement and the gay community cooperation on the Cunnanen case went from excellent to horrible. In Vulgar Favors Oarth describes the extremes, and everything in the middle, in great detail. It provides a foundation on how this "odd couple" can work together better in the future.
I recall reading somewhere that there were several gays on the books editing and publishing team and they didn't have any problem with the book and it's contents.
I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the Cunanen case who has an open mind. Gays are like everyone else, you have to take the good with the bad. Early on the Minneapolis newspaper wouldn't even use the word "gay" to describe Andrew Cunanen even though they listed several of his lovers with obviously male names (like duhh!). The local gay press ironically, tended to be supportive of Vulgar Favors and the Vanity Fair coverage because it got coverage and awareness for local gay community issues like substance abuse and cooperation with police.
Again I highly recommend this book.
A name in lights.......2001-12-17
I'm somewhat baffled by the number of reviewers who read specific cultural and political agendas into this book. I am not saying that they're wrong, just that I didn't perceive Orth as being particularly anti-gay or pro-gay. I actually thought her depiction of gay communities in San Diego, San Francisco and South Miami Beach was sympathetic. Gays and lesbians in this country still, in most instances, endure lives constricted by homophobia, familial indifference and the potential for victimization by intolerant heterosexuals. Any book that can put a human face on homosexuality for a mass American audience should be welcome as a step toward enlightenment and tolerance.
As for Andrew Cunanan, the demons that drove him to serial murder arose from the values imposed on him by his parents at an early age, not his sexual orientation. Cunanan was a quintessential narcissist and a sociopath, always a dangerous combination no matter what social milieu. Cunanan's pathology is a great deal clearer than most heterosexual serial killers with the same personality traits because his extroversion put his materialistic cravings on public display. Had Cunanan been more circumspect in his behavior, he might have killed many more men before being run to ground.
What speaks to me most in this book is Orth's depiction of a smart man who sacrificed his own personality in order to fulfill his fantasies of wealth and celebrity. When his aging body and drug habit finally caught up with him, Andrew Cunanan was a man filled with a deadly despair. Weak and inconsequential, he took up a gun to make himself a man of means, counting his riches in infamy. It must have been a cold, unfulfilling dish.
Orth's primary targets for criticism aren't the gay residents of the communities named above. Instead, she reserves her barbs for the various police departments and the FBI who bungled the search for Andrew Cunanan. Had a truly coordinated effort been launched to capture him, Cunanan would never have gotten close enough to Gianni Versace (...). Instead, agencies seemed content to expend the least possible effort in finding Cunanan. If nothing else, Orth's book is a damning indictment of how law enforcement doesn't ensure public safety in the gay community with the zeal it normally reserves for the larger heterosexual community.
In the end, Cunanan's perverse inversion of values would taint the lives of everyone he knew, save his younger sister Gina, the only Cunanan who refused to sell her story to the tabloid media. Ironically, Cunanan would have been delighted to know that his infamy was earning him column inches in Vanity Fair and top billing on tabloid television. His name in lights -- that simple vision drove Andrew Cunanan to murder five people.
This is the only book I've never finished!!.......2001-05-13
I like true crime novels but not this one. On the cover it says "the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History" so I decided to buy it. It failed to mention that this guy is gay. I mean really gay not like stupid gay. For at least the first 200 pages it only talks about the lifestyle of this gay dude. I had to stop reading it, It was that bad and that's a first for me. WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING ONLY BUY IF YOU LIKE TO READ ABOUT A HOMOSEXUAL MALE!
Book Description
Extravagant and supersexy, the fashions of Gianni Versace (1946-1997) combined the expert craftsmanship and luxury of haute couture with the sheer creativity of the street. Instantly recognizable for their glamour quotient-who could forget Elizabeth Hurley in her slit-up-to-there "Safety-pin Dress"?-the deceptively fragile designs utilized innovative fabrics and meticulous construction to anchor their illusions. Although thoroughly modern, the clothes also drew inspiration from fine art: Versace counted Delaunay, Calder, and Klimt among his influences.
This fun, flamboyant paperback befits Versace's duality-high art mixed with media hype, delicate garments built from durable materials. The two separate sections address Versace's artistry and skill individually. Published to accompany a major exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, this colorful book celebrates the lifework and remarkable legacy of a perennially popular and highly respected designer.
Books:
- Victorian Lace Today
- Visionaire No. 49: Decades (Visionaire)
- Welcome to Oz: A Cinematic Approach to Digital Still Photography with Photoshop (VOICES)
- What Is the What
- What You Wear Can Change Your Life
- You Are Being Lied To: The Disinformation Guide to Media Distortion, Historical Whitewashes and Cultural Myths
- 300
- A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
- A Twist of the Wrist: Quick Flavorful Meals with Ingredients from Jars, Cans, Bags, and Boxes
- All Wrapped Up!: Groovy Gift Wrap of the 1960s
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- The War Within: One More Step at a Time
- Next
- Needful Things: The Last Castle Rock Story
- Luther Bible of 1534-FL
- My First Five Husbands..And the Ones Who Got Away
- Physical Chemistry
- Shangri-LA: The Return to the World of Lost Horizon
- The Coins of the Indian Sultanates: Covering the Area of Present-Day India, Pakistan and Bangladesh
- Medicinal Plants in Folk Tradition: An Ethnobotany of Britain and Ireland
- Wayside Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest
