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Photo By: WWD Staff
Ron Galotti on his farm in November's Country Living magazine.
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LIFE OF THE PARTY: With the promiscuous celebration of anniversaries, it's no wonder media insiders complain of anniversary fatigue. Perhaps that's why the Atlantic (whose 150th is an inarguably legitimate milestone) is trying to do something different. The VIP guests — who so far include the likes of Tom Wolfe, Arianna Huffington and Moby — at the magazine's party will be on a stage. The audience will be the general public, invited to register for free to watch them imbibe, network, and maybe offer some wisdom. "It's the cocktail party as performance art," said Atlantic Media consumer media president Justin Smith.
If this sounds like a logistical stretch, well, they're still working out the details. A spokeswoman said several microphones would be involved and that P.J. O'Rourke would likely help direct the conversation from another separated space on the stage. There will also be a musical performance, still being determined, and organizers are discussing how to merge the VIPs with the common folk at the end, perhaps with a book signing.
The party is deliberately being held in New York rather than Boston, where the magazine spent much of its life, or Washington, where it moved two years ago. "It's sort of a kickoff of this new energy that we're bringing to the New York media community and the advertising community," said Smith, who left Felix Dennis' The Week last summer to work for another millionaire-turned-media mogul, David Bradley. And though Smith didn't say so, of the three, New York wins handily on lavish posturing, audience or not. — Irin Carmon
HOME ON THE FARM: While "Sex and the City" films in Ron Galotti's old stomping grounds at 4 Times Square, the former Vogue and Vanity Fair publisher and inspiration for the Mr. Big character on the HBO television show returns from obscurity in, of all places, Country Living. (Although perhaps it's not that much of a stretch: He actually spent the early years of his career as founding publisher of the Hearst Magazines title.) Galotti has lived in Vermont on a 100-acre farm since 2003, after being ousted from his job as publisher of GQ. In Country Living's November issue, Galotti and his family — wife Lisa and daughter Abbi — are photographed galloping on the grounds with their horses and chickens. And he's clearly settled into his "Green Acres" life, as evidenced by his theory on John Deeres: "Up here, a tractor is like your laptop — it's the universal tool of the farm."
If this sounds like a logistical stretch, well, they're still working out the details. A spokeswoman said several microphones would be involved and that P.J. O'Rourke would likely help direct the conversation from another separated space on the stage. There will also be a musical performance, still being determined, and organizers are discussing how to merge the VIPs with the common folk at the end, perhaps with a book signing.
The party is deliberately being held in New York rather than Boston, where the magazine spent much of its life, or Washington, where it moved two years ago. "It's sort of a kickoff of this new energy that we're bringing to the New York media community and the advertising community," said Smith, who left Felix Dennis' The Week last summer to work for another millionaire-turned-media mogul, David Bradley. And though Smith didn't say so, of the three, New York wins handily on lavish posturing, audience or not. — Irin Carmon
HOME ON THE FARM: While "Sex and the City" films in Ron Galotti's old stomping grounds at 4 Times Square, the former Vogue and Vanity Fair publisher and inspiration for the Mr. Big character on the HBO television show returns from obscurity in, of all places, Country Living. (Although perhaps it's not that much of a stretch: He actually spent the early years of his career as founding publisher of the Hearst Magazines title.) Galotti has lived in Vermont on a 100-acre farm since 2003, after being ousted from his job as publisher of GQ. In Country Living's November issue, Galotti and his family — wife Lisa and daughter Abbi — are photographed galloping on the grounds with their horses and chickens. And he's clearly settled into his "Green Acres" life, as evidenced by his theory on John Deeres: "Up here, a tractor is like your laptop — it's the universal tool of the farm."
