RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Add Page Six on Google Anna Wintour is “obsessed” with designer John Galliano, leading to his being honored at the 2027 Met Gala – even if it leads to high-profile guests skipping the event, sources tell Page Six.
The Vogue doyenne has been plotting for years to award one of fashion’s greatest honors to her close friend, who had been canceled over an antisemitic outburst in 2011, we’re told.
“Anna has said that her favorite fashion show of all time is Galliano’s Fall/Winter 1994 collection, often referred to as “The Black Show,” said Amy Odell, who penned Wintour’s biography.
“Think how many fashion shows this woman has gone to — and this is the one she picks. She thinks he’s a creative genius, she’s obsessed with him.”
Met Gala chairperson Wintour — alongside Andrew Bolton, who helms the annual Metropolitan Museum of Art celebration — met with Jewish leaders before making their final decision, as previously reported.
However, the decision to honor Galliano has left many furious. Philippe Virgitti, whom Galliano raged at in a Parisian bar, calling him a "f–king Asian bastard" and his girlfriend a “f–king ugly Jewish bitch," and "dirty Jew face," dubbed him “a pig” in a new book , adding, “He’s garbage, he caused a great deal of harm.”
“Odd Mom Out” star Jill Kargman, a regular presence at the Met Ball, said of the decision to name Galliano just one of three living designers to be honored by the museum, “I am APPALLED. I guess antisemitism is OK now at the highest art museum.”
Kargman, 52, confirmed she would not be attending, adding, “Substitute any other minority and he’d be (RIGHTFULLY) cancelled permanently.”
Meanwhile, PR Lauren London claimed she witnessed another antisemitic Galliano rant in 2019 at the Henri Chenot spa in Merano, Italy, where he allegedly objected to people speaking Hebrew.
“There is no alcohol to blame…no drugs…not even sugar or caffeine,” she posted on Instagram earlier this week. “Galliano was sober and this was 8 years after his despicable rant that got him fired from Dior.
“My friend was on the phone with her daughter speaking English. Then she switched languages and started speaking Hebrew. The minute Galliano heard Hebrew he started screaming ‘Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas…’ Over and Over. On repeat until my friend hung up the phone. It was July.
“When my friend asked him if he had a problem with Hebrew he promptly and very unapologetically responded that he did. She then told him that she had a lot of his clothes and when she got back to her home in Israel she would dispose of them. He told her to please do…”
London added, “He is a racist and a Hitler-loving antisemite both drunk and sober … I know antisemitism is en Vogue in New York (and virtually everywhere now) but this is surprising nonetheless. Shame on you Anna Wintour!”
Page Six has reached out to London and a rep for Galliano.
In a statement, Wintour said, “There is no one more deserving of an exhibition of this scale than John Galliano.
“His body of work—at Dior, Givenchy, Margiela, his namesake label and more—combines erudition and creativity, darkness and light, the past, the present, the future all smashing together in a brilliant way.
“He’s a great designer and his career isn’t defined by a moment—something that he will live with for the rest of his life. The exhibition won’t shy away from any of the darkness in John’s past. It’s part of what has shaped him. The show will take in the full arc of his career and grapple with all of it.”
Jewish leaders, including Jonathan Greenblatt of the Anti-Defamation League, have said they are satisfied Galliano has apologized for his previous actions and is sincerely sorry.
Following the 2011 outburst, Galliano said he was suffering addiction to alcohol, sleeping tablets and Valium at the time. The matter went to court in Paris, and he was found guilty of public insults based on a person’s origin and fined the equivalent of $7,000.
Despite his claims of rehabilitation, Virgitti wrote in “Affaire Galliano,” his recently published book, “I do not forgive him, especially since he filed a defamation complaint against us, even though he was the one who had attacked us. That was despicable on his part.
“On top of that… he put us at considerable risk. His apologies at the trial were insincere. He apologized only because his lawyer had told him to do so. He didn’t even understand why he was apologizing. He was completely in denial. To him. I was merely an obstacle in his path, something standing in the way of his career in fashion. On top of that, he blamed me for losing his job.”
Virgitti said he only received a “symbolic check” for one Euro, signed not by Galliano himself, but by his lawyer.
“I became a victim of Stockholm syndrome,” he wrote, “During the intense media cage, I actually felt sorry for him – even pity – because he was being attacked from every direction and I had always admired him.”
Asked who could sponsor the Gala, Odell speculated it could be fashion brand Zara, which is now working with Galliano, or a large tech firm.
“I think it will happen – it’s been in the works for years,” she said. “Anna has this incredible power to rehabilitate people, and to help people get jobs.”
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