Friedman’s theme is Wilde as the inventor of modern celebrity – or, at least, his complicity in it. The US in the late 19th century was ripe for such exploitation. Its cities were already rivalling their European counterparts in sprawl, and the republic had made its mark on the global economy. America was ready for Wilde; and Wilde was ready for it.
.. In championing the Aesthetic Movement – as its self-proclaimed leader, with a ready group of acolytes – Wilde was best known for having paraded down Piccadilly in London bearing a single lily. Or was it a sunflower? It hardly mattered: the image was lodged in the public mind.
.. Theatre within theatre, performance on performance, Wilde was the ultimate drama queen.
It’s Called the Met Gala, but It’s Definitely Anna Wintour’s Party
Attendance at the gala “is something you now have to consider as part of a strategy for any designer in the world,” said Ed Filipowski, co-president of the public relations and production firm KCD. “No other international event even comes close.”
.. And, given the shadow economy of Hollywood fueled by beauty contracts and brand ambassadorships, celebrity guests have their own compelling business reasons to attend, according to Bryon Lourd, chairman and managing director of Creative Artists Agency.
.. “A lot of actresses aspire to the cover of Vogue,” Mr. Lourd said. “It’s the gold standard. And Anna absolutely controls that.” As a result, he added, “There are a lot of people who would like her to like them.” And not just actresses.
.. The evening represents an enormous investment of time and manpower as well as money on the part of Condé Nast. “It positions them as the classiest publishing company in the world,” David Patrick Columbia, editor of New York Social Diary, said. “You can’t fault it as a business decision.”
.. “When it comes to increasing name recognition and profile, nothing compares,” Mr. Filipowski said. “The effect lasts far beyond one evening. A dress gets associated with a celebrity, and then becomes known as the dress XX wore to the ball, and becomes part of history.”