“I Mean…What?!?” – Abe Gurko

One would have to be living under a rock not to know that I have taken issue with The New York Times Style section as of late. I have accused it of being not style conscious enough, behind the trend curve in its reporting, not fierce, old news, and under fabulous. And today is not any different. There are two stories that bugged me to no end starting with the lead article about “marijuana”.… Read More »

Letters To The Editor – Who Wears Short Shorts? Every other day, I receive complimentary emails about how much joy people get from reading I MEAN…WHAT?!?…and for that I am most grateful. This week, however, I received my first Dear I Mean..What?!? letter, asking for fashion advice. Kind of like Dear Abey…as it were. But not just general fashion advice. No, this was from a concerned male reader that under no circumstances wanted to be perceived as a Manzie. Hey Abe, Is it OK to wear shorts around Paris?  Your insight into what would be the best way to proceed… Read More »

The Russians are coming…for Michelle Obama. Yes…really. Now even Russian fashion designers are dishing our First Lady. Like Russians, are known for style, grace and elegance? I don’t think so. Let’s take a look at some of the Russian designer’s schmatehs that were recently featured at Moscow Fashion Week. I am sure you will agree with me, that the Kremlin will continue to be known for vodka, borscht, and trading their girls on the internet and at modeling agencies. I mean…who has time to listen to this Russian nonsense? These designers are best served honing their craft and piping down.… Read More »

So, there you have it. Levi and I have both now gone on record to say that Sarah Palin resigned her post as Governor, due to financial reasons. All these bloviators and regular folks too, I might add, who said with conviction that she will go for the 2012 presidential run are out to lunch. I wasn’t kidding when I quoted Deep Throat, “Follow the money”. And now, it’s official, since Levi Johnston said so. Levi and I…blood brothers…fraternal twins…life partners. Naturally, the Huffington Post did not post my story from last week. No, only Levi’s pearl of wisdom get… Read More »

I Mean…What?!? presents the Paris Couture Shows. Lord knows I got the Manzie Report down…and two snaps up. However, man does not live by bad men’s fashion alone. Granted, it won’t be as knee-slapping as the Manzie Report due to the nature of this beast. But beasts there are, I can assure you. Now before I show you some highlights or “high”-lights from Alexis Mabille and Stéphane Rolland, I need to say something here. Couture is a unique business that services much of the hype and interest in the fashion industry. The couture customer is not the customer that buys… Read More »

George Bernard Shaw wrote, “Youth Is Wasted On The Young”. And after watching the first couple of episodes of NYC Prep, that expression still holds true…and in the case of these pompous noodniks…in spades. There is a column in the The New York Times Style section about the show, which fails to mention just how incredibly horrendous these kids are. The stark reality of these NYC Prepsters, as is the case with the characters on Gossip Girl, is that they all want to rush through their youth and act like grown-ups. I am from the Peter Pan era where the… Read More »

Excuse me…but…can we please, at least, begin to move on from this Michael Jackson Celebrity Death Match? I know, it’s sad. Death as a concept is sad. Yes, I believe in the after-life, but that doesn’t mean I want to get there any sooner than need be. So, for now, death is still sad. But I think it is time to move on. Ok, day 1, the shock. I get it, lots of news. Day 2, details emerge, some stories abound. Day 3, the family speaks. I remember when my father died, also at 50 years of age, I couldn’t… Read More »

Reading about the new Monkey Bar and the obsession that Graydon Carter has regarding who sits where kind of gives me the willies. I don’t know why. Part of me would like to think that he’s busy editing Vanity Fair, the magazine I look forward to reading each month, though I will say it has been lackluster as of late. Could there be some kind of correlation? This month, with everyone’s hero Johnny Depp on the cover, the magazine is so thin, it’s like one of those glossy handouts in the Hamptons. And lo and behold, there’s a story about… Read More »

Just when you thought it was safe for Manzies to come out of the closet in droves from Milan, comes the newest crop of shows from Paris. And what a difference a city makes. Milan was uber-butch in comparison. Before I do my show and tell, the one major trend that kept appearing on the catwalks was “Men as women.” It seems to me that the statement is: since men fucked up our global economy (for the most part), why not dress them now as women so they feel castrated for their actions. At least that’s what I am taking… Read More »

How many times this week have you heard people (be it in the media or around your office) say, “Farrah Fawcett upstaged Ed McMahon’s death, then Michael Jackson upstaged Farrah’s death”. I mean…what?!? Am I crazy or does this sound preposterous. I get how huge a story the Michael Jackson drug overdose is…and the unexpected demise takes over the media coverage. But to say that one person’s death upstages another is such disrespectful nonsense. And one that annoys the shit out of me. First of all, when people “upstage” it’s most likely intentional. Just ask Hollywood legend, Bette Davis who… Read More »