VANITY FAIR

September 2004

No. 529

SPECIAL SECTION

341 OLYMPIAD XXVIII Despite dope scandals, big-money sponsorships, and terrorist threats, the world will still stop to marvel at the men and women of the 28th Summer Olympic Games. Bruce Weber's 29-page portfolio of American athletes captures an age-old ideal, while David Halberstam hails the fleeting, pure perfection that is true gold-medal glory.

FEATURES

376 REGALLY BLONDE Adoring teenage fans catapulted Reese Witherspoon into the $ 15-million-per-picture club, but now she wants respect. So she's playing the scheming, ambitious Becky Sharp in Mira Nair's upcoming adaptation of Thackeray's Vanity Fair. Leslie Bennetts talks to the Hollywood mother of two about becoming a redhead, her marriage to Ryan Phillippe, and Tupperware therapy. Photographs by Annie Leibovitz.

382 THE MONARCHY OF GEORGE II Reformed ne'er-do-well, reckless warrior, profligate spender— George W. Bush bears an uncanny resemblance to Shakespeare's Henry V, who also launched an invasion that turned out badly. As the president awaits the voters' verdict, acclaimed historian Niall Ferguson warns that time's judgment may be exceedingly unkind. Illustrations by Paul Davis, Brad Holland, Gerald Scarfe, and Edward Sorel.

390 WHITE MISCHIEF Sita White, daughter of the late multi-millionaire Lord Gordon White and mother of Imran Khan's love child, spent years fighting for the inheritance she believed she'd been wrongfully denied. In May, at 43, she dropped dead in yoga class next to one of her opponents, her 41-year-old stepmother. Vicky Ward probes Los Angeles's high-society tragedy.

396 AN HEIRESS'S HEART What did Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, and Howard Hughes have in common? They all romanced a famously wealthy young beauty named Gloria Vanderbilt. In an excerpt from her memoir, the style icon recaps her restless search for love.

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FANFAIR

185 30 DAYS IN THE LIFE OF THE CULTURE Puppy Love—Leslie Bennetts hears Bruce Weber's 7hie calling. Krista Smith screens David LaChapelle's dance-crazed Krumped. Hot Type. Kimberly Cutter tries niche cabler Plum TV; Elissa Schappell reviews Nick Flynn's memoir. Lisa Robinson's Hot Tracks. A. A. Gill visits Cape Town. Aaron Gell smiles on Brian Wilson; Edward Helmore writes on Paper. David Friend on Cornell Capa and John F. Kennedy. A. M. Homes exposes the photography of Sam Taylor-Wood; Steven Daly sings The Black Rider's praises. Mind your manners with Kristina Stewart; Punch Hutton parties on with Fete Accompli!; Dany Levy sets up at Camp Beverly Hills. Christine Muhlke gets a whiff of Bond No. 9; My Stuff—Elle Macpherson.

COLUMNS

228 COLOR ME KHAKI World War II never fades, it just gets Disneyfied—remade, recast, and used to justify wars of any size. Plowing through the syrupy nostalgia surrounding D-day's 60th and the opening of the W.W. II Memorial, James Wolcott wonders where the real victory went.

236 THE REAGAN TOUCH Before his annual July 4 pilgrimage to the glam-packed Hamptons, Dominick Dunne took his diary to Ronald Reagan's state funeral, admiring the grace of his friend Nancy and sizing up a center aisle that was a Who's Who of global power. Photograph by Roxanne Lowit.

242 THE BORIS SHOW Can a conservative writer, editor, and TV pundit who is given to outrageous comments, one too many drinks, and sloppy dressing rise to the top of the political establishment? He can if he's British, funny, and having a whale of a good time. Michael Wolff gets close to Boris Johnson, Tory-party darling and possible prime minister. Photographs by Nigel Parry.

252 OF WAR AND PRESIDENTS Another election year, another descent into the patriotic fault line left by Vietnam. As Republicans who avoided military service question John Kerry's valor, David Halberstam explores a cultural divide that confuses warriors with wimps and courage with blind aggression.

264 VROOM AT THE TOP Something's gotta give when an Upper East Side fashion maven swings her Manolos over the hot metal doorsill of a Dodge Viper GTS Coupe. In an excerpt from her upcoming book, Amy Fine Collins and her Turkish driving instructor from Queens harness a 450-horsepower beast. Photograph by David Drebin.

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272 SACCO AND THE CITY West Chelsea was "nowhere until Amy Sacco opened Lot 61 and Bungalow 8, giving Sean Penn, Bill Clinton, and other A-listers a living room of their own. Hanging out with the 36-year-old nightclub queen, George Gurley learns how tragedy turned Sacco's life upside down—and into an all-hours party. Photographs by Patrick Demarchelier.

292 SIMPSON SPOKEN HERE Marking the 16th season of The Simpsons, Art Streiber and Steven Daly spotlight the (surprisingly few) men and women without whom Springfield would be silent.

294 THE MAKING OF A SNIPER Just two years before he joined John Muhammad in their 2002 Beltway shooting spree, Lee Boyd Malvo was a bright, hardworking Christian-school student, loved by his classmates and teachers. Donovan Webster investigates a boy's deadly odyssey: the turbulent family life, the indoctrination by a homicidal father figure, and the killing of at least 10 innocent people.

320 CALL OF THE WIDE From 1950 to 1990, Kodak's 18-by-60-foot Colorama billboard brought a vision of American Utopia—family vacations, frolicking couples, lush flower beds—to the push and shove of Grand Central station. With the best of those 565 supersize photographs collected in a book, Bruce Handy recalls the nation they reflected.

VANITIES

327 LOVE JONES Douglas McGrath brings us the diaries of Private First Class Ricky Gonzalez, who can't believe a word he's writing. V.F.'s Public Editor is no more—is Ed Coaster to blame?

ET CETERA

104 EDITOR'S LETTER

114 CONTRIBUTORS

140 BEHIND THE SCENES Michael Phelps

148 BEHIND THE SCENES Kyle Maynard

160 LETTERS Martyrs and Murderers

224 PLANETARIUM Virgos on the loose

417 CREDITS

420 PROUST QUESTIONNAIRE Donald Trump

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