116 images Created 25 Nov 2013
oscar_party_re-edit
The first few time I went to Hollywood I covered Swifty Lazaar's party at Spago's in Beverley Hills overlooking in LA. Irving 'Swifty' Lazaar was a tiny but forminable character.. He used to leave the dining room constantly to examine the remaining place cards to check out who had the nerve to miss his party.. He would poke me quite hard with his cane to try to control my picture -taking.He was accompanied by a body-guard who stuck right by him the whole time. Along with Elisabeth Taylor, Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson the newly appointed editor of Vanity Fair Graydon Carter was a guest at what was to be Swifty's last party.- I think this was where he had the germ of the idea of having his own Oscar night party. A year later Swifty sadly died and Vanity Fair began holding their Awards party. Graydon asked
Annie Leibovitz to photograph but sitting down for dinner she didn't take many pictures. Maybe she thought it was beneath her. By default afterwards most of the pictures published were mine. . Meanwhile the LA photographer Alan Berliner shared with me his useful supply of beef jerky. At 10.30 p.m. Graydon was nervously smoking and waiting outside to see if the stars would arrive after the Academy Awards. and the lacklustre Governors Ball. - To relief all round they did..- the limos seemd to be in a jam all the way from downtown LA..- Vanity Fair laid on more of a spectacle outside for the media with topiary and branding. ( the branding even on the floor ) Also plenty of space for the press. Some guests seemed to spend more time doing interviews and posing for pictures than enjoying the party.- But that is part of what the whole thing is about. But once there was the LA establishment, money-men, screen-writers, film stars, PR's , a few selected journalists all enjoying themselves. The press machinery has always fascinated me. One of my favourite images here is the manic journalist facing the camera. As an experiment I did my first ever panoramic picture of the scene at the Vanity Fair party. It felt like an Eureka moment when my computer worked through the night to stitch 18 pictures together.
One of my more memorable pictures was the one of Mick Jagger looking miserable. First Mick was sitting by himself looking bored, and then Madonna crossed the room to sit down next to him. She started talking and he became quite animated. Then Tony Curtis came along and sat down at the same table and started monopolising Madonna. - Jagger was on his own again. I was upset when the magazine didn't use this picture. - Each year the number of photographers covering the party increased exponentially. Each photographer given access seemed to bring an assistant who also took pictures. It should be easy but I find getting a decent meaningful picture of a party incredibly difficult.
Annie Leibovitz to photograph but sitting down for dinner she didn't take many pictures. Maybe she thought it was beneath her. By default afterwards most of the pictures published were mine. . Meanwhile the LA photographer Alan Berliner shared with me his useful supply of beef jerky. At 10.30 p.m. Graydon was nervously smoking and waiting outside to see if the stars would arrive after the Academy Awards. and the lacklustre Governors Ball. - To relief all round they did..- the limos seemd to be in a jam all the way from downtown LA..- Vanity Fair laid on more of a spectacle outside for the media with topiary and branding. ( the branding even on the floor ) Also plenty of space for the press. Some guests seemed to spend more time doing interviews and posing for pictures than enjoying the party.- But that is part of what the whole thing is about. But once there was the LA establishment, money-men, screen-writers, film stars, PR's , a few selected journalists all enjoying themselves. The press machinery has always fascinated me. One of my favourite images here is the manic journalist facing the camera. As an experiment I did my first ever panoramic picture of the scene at the Vanity Fair party. It felt like an Eureka moment when my computer worked through the night to stitch 18 pictures together.
One of my more memorable pictures was the one of Mick Jagger looking miserable. First Mick was sitting by himself looking bored, and then Madonna crossed the room to sit down next to him. She started talking and he became quite animated. Then Tony Curtis came along and sat down at the same table and started monopolising Madonna. - Jagger was on his own again. I was upset when the magazine didn't use this picture. - Each year the number of photographers covering the party increased exponentially. Each photographer given access seemed to bring an assistant who also took pictures. It should be easy but I find getting a decent meaningful picture of a party incredibly difficult.
