A Little of the Old In and Out



In: The Costume Institute Party. The LA-DC-New York power nexus got together in celebration of beautiful women (link via style via gawker). Selma Blair always wins this one, hands down. They ought to just rename the damn thing The Selma Blair Institute Party. The Corsair is such a fan of her aristocratic icy hottness. Mrs. Blair fairly reeks of sophisticated womanhood power. Rowwr. In other news: Lil Kim looked not unlike an ill put together "fembot;" Ivanna Trump was accompanied, as always, by her usual dubious, skanky-seedy "Italian Count"; etc. &c.. .



Out: Scarlett's VF Photo Shoot (image via jassebombscans). Vanity Fair, a magazine that has not had an African-American on the cover for, oh ... as long as The Corsair can remember, quite frankly (We vaguely recall a "Denzel on-the-beach" cover sometime during the Clinton Administration, or it may have been a dream), is not going with Scarlett Johansson photos already taken, despite the fact that she is blonde and hott (Sounds like a Graydon Carter covergirl to me, no?), according to the 3AM Girls:

"WHO would have thought that smoldering Hollywood starlet Scarlett Johansson could ever be described as boring?

"But apparently a �30,000 photoshoot she did for Vanity Fair magazine had to be scrapped because the results weren't interesting enough.

"One insider said: 'Scarlett said she didn't want to be seen as a bimbo and she didn't want to do anything too outrageous. In the end, the pictures just weren't interesting.

"'They were too boring.'"

In: Coachella. The Corsair is not at Coachella, but from what we hear and read (via email and via online), it's all good. Reznor post rehab buzz; The Arcade Fire buzz; New Order buzz.

Out: Ken Langone. Ken Langone's criticism of Goldman Sachs supposed conflict of interest over the increasingly dubious NYSE-Archipelago merger (and the sleazy Grasso payout) rings hollow. According to TheStreet:

"On the one hand, Langone -- an investment banker and Home Depot founder -- has a point. He is far from the only one criticizing the investment bank. After all, Goldman took the unusual step of advising both Archipelago and the NYSE in their pending merger.

"Some also point to the fact that NYSE CEO John Thain came over from Goldman. The investment bank's dual role strikes us as pretty brazen, notwithstanding Goldman flack Lucas van Praag's comment that 'life is filled with conflicts, some real, some imagined.'

"He went on to tell Bloomberg that 'in a situation where there is total transparency and the clients are happy, one would've thought the acid test had been passed.'

"By the way, Goldman owns 21 member seats at the NYSE, which have risen by $20 million in value because of the deal. Goldman and its subsidiaries also own 15% of Archipelago, a stake whose value has risen by $84 million. And Archipelago paid Goldman a $3.5 million advisory fee as well."

Fucking sleazy business, this; do they teach ethics where these "people" achieve their degrees? (The Corsair speaks entirely without snark here) The Greeks called it "Thumos," or "aggressive spiritedness," and it is an ... air ... which surrounds these aggro-payout-merger dealings like a sheen of oil, so entirely devoid of measure or moral geometry. The very aggressiveness of the pursuit is what strips the activity of an introspective sense of ethical balance, of what's "right" and "wrong" at each stage of the game. Naked ambition and sheer advantage. (Averted Gaze)



In: Bai Ling. And speaking of "naked," and speaking of "gaze." There is nothing more "sessy" (link via bulgarianlondon) -- to a heterosexual man, perhaps -- than the whole lesbo collabo thing, or any hint of such thereof. This Bai Ling quote from Page Six is scorching hott, "Naomi Campbell is sexy like a black panther. I love Kate Moss, who is like a cat ... The Olsen Twins are adorable and the fact that they are twins is a good omen. I'd like to hook up with both of them at the same time. Here is my shout-out: 'Let's get to know each other, Olsen Twins. Let's do a meet and greet together.' "



Out: Death. (Above) After polishing off his 83rd consecutive Beefeater gin cocktail, Death, in the grisly form of Africanophile Peter Beard, attempts to carry "Iron Man Drinking Champion" Anthony Haden-Guest off to "The Land of Milk and Kahlua." Instead, Haden charms him, after his usual fashion, along Lisa Melezhik. Soon he and Death are like old, swell boarding school chums. Later, a drunken Death is heard by partygoers slurring to Haden-Guest, "you're my bessst friiiend ..." In the end, a hungover Death grants Guest a stay of execution. (image via NySocialDiary)

In: Jason Calacanis and Jade. Congratulations are in order to my old boss, Jason Calacannis, who got engaged to Jade over the weekend. And he did it in Paris. Who would have thought the serial capitalist was a romantic at heart? Warm wishes to you both.