Natalie Portman has had a wonderful and productive week thus far. She’s won an Oscar for Best Actress in Black Swan, she’s continued to carry the unborn fetus in her belly, and now she’s released a statement regarding John Galliano’s anti-Semitic rant. And it’s only Wednesday!
“I am deeply shocked and disgusted by the video of John Galliano’s comments that surfaced today,” Portman said regarding this clip circulating on the web.”In light of this video, and as an individual who is proud to be Jewish, I will not be associated with Mr. Galliano in any way.”
What does one Portman have to do with the other Galliano, you may ask? The New York Times reports that Portman had initially considered a Galliano-designed Dior dress for the Academy Awards, but after having heard about the magician/designer’s drunken admission of his love for Hitler, she decided to wear a Rodarte gown instead. [Incidentally, we heard the Rodarte sisters once admitting "to simply adoring Pol Pot."]
Furthermore, Portman has recently signed an endorsement deal with Dior for its Miss Dior Chérie perfume so she’s technically an employee of the company, and so her opinion is exponentially valid.
This is where it gets interesting, though. According to the Dior Wikipedia entry,
“In 1942, having left the Army, Christian Dior joined the fashion house of Lucien Lelong, where he and Pierre Balmain were the primary designers. For the duration of World War II, Christian Dior dressed the wives of the Nazi officers and French collaborators.”
Oh, snap! You can probably see why the House of Dior is so sensitive about the whole Hitler thing now, right? I mean, had John Galliano said he loved Hitler and he was designing for, let’s say, Tommy Hilfiger, this would have all blown over drowned out by the Charlie Sheen Crazy Tour 2011. But sadly Galliano was working for a company founded by a guy who coincidentally loved Hitler, too.
But, let us not take this whole scenario as a sign that the fashion world has developed a conscience. This couldn’t be further from the truth. It does appear, though, that one thing remains taboo right now and that’s getting too Hitlery when your company is trying to unHitlerfy itself. It’s a simple rule. Employees of Volkswagen, take note.
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About the Author
Arye Dworken lives in a tastefully decorated two bedroom apartment on the Upper West Side with his wife, son, and dog named Barrett. Barrett is named after one of the original members of Pink Floyd yet Arye wouldn't necessarily consider himself a big Pink Floyd fan. It just felt like a good dog name. You can find more Arye on aryedworken.tumblr.com or twitter.com/aryedworken.
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4 comments
Volunteer Copyeditor
Mar 2, 2011
I believe you mean ‘developed a conscience’
Yid Vicious
Mar 2, 2011
I believe you meant to place a period at the end of you comment, VC.
Amber
Mar 9, 2011
This was a good article until you said “Galliano was working for a company founded by a guy who coincidentally loved Hitler, too.” Can you say “non sequitur”? Just because they worked for a fashion house that designed gowns for relatives of Nazis does not mean they LOVED Hitler or the Nazis. That’s like saying I love the President of my company, whom I’ve never met, just because I’m a paeon of the company…when in reality I don’t even LIKE my company itself. You took it a little far there…and even if Dior WAS a Hitler fan, talk about punishing the sons for the sins of their fathers. Dior 2011 should not, and really cannot, be criticized for something they participated in 70 years ago.
Jeff
May 13, 2011
1. It ends up having been practically everyone of any note in Europe.
2. I also had a dog named Barret (with one “t”). I’ve never met anyone else who did.