Azzedine Alaia bought Cameron Silver and I together and I guess that he’ll tear us apart… Seriously, I met Cameron – Hollywood’s roi de vintage and owner of the Decades boutique – when he arrived to interview the Tunisian imp...
Azzedine Alaïa bought Cameron Silver and I together and I guess that he’ll tear us apart… Seriously, I met Cameron – Hollywood’s roi de vintage and owner of the Decades boutique – when he arrived to interview the Tunisian imp. Cameron was and remains the white-hot star and I was a hideously harassed editor at an American mag, aptly named Harpie’s Bizarre by comic genius, Stanley Baxter. Anyhoo, I was expecting airs and graces, but the ever-glowing Cameron – affectionately referred to as The Choirboy – was all politesse and wit. And since then we’ve remained pals. Indeed, I even trumped the great Alber Elbaz – who considers himself the official mother’s confidant – by revealing that I too knew Margot, Cameron’s Mom, and was on tremendous terms with the refined wag. Thanks to Margot’s mighty book club, my Spiegel biography became a Beverly Hills bestseller.
"I was expecting airs and graces, but the ever-glowing Cameron – affectionately referred to as The Choirboy – was all politesse and wit."
Wisely, Cameron has dedicated his recent opus – a vast and beautiful book called DECADES: A Century of Fashion – to Margot and Jack, his Dad. And both should be proud of their refreshingly grateful ‘fils unique’ who has delivered a stimulating fashion tome that manages to be upbeat, informative and far-reaching. He celebrates every decade by setting the scene with the designers, the social movements of that period – think uptown versus downtown – and contrasting the key fashionistas – read Bianca Jagger versus Cheryl Tiegs for the saucy seventies. Meanwhile, The Choirboy’s style is so gripping, grabby and good that I found myself thinking ‘oh I’ll just dip in and read about Charles James’ yet quickly reaching Patrick Kelly’s button mania and the 1980s. Albeit haunted by the portraits of Joan Crawford, Monica Vitti and Margaux Hemingway – talk about glamour.com – DECADES inspires one to dress up and make an effort. Vive la mode!
Text by Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni
Natasha Fraser-Cavassoni is a Paris-based British writer who covers fashion and lifestyle as well as being the author of Sam Spiegel – The Biography of A Hollywood Legend, Understanding Chic, an essay from the Paris Was Ours anthology, the soon-to-be released Tino Zervudachi – A Portfolio – as well as the Chanel book, for Assouline's fashion series.
Robert Beck is former New Yorker currently based in Paris. Also known as C.J. Rabbitt, he is the author and illustrator of several children's books, including The Tale of Rabbitt in Paradise, Un Lapin à Paris and the soon-to-be-published A Bunny in the Ballet.
