Who Are the People, Dead or Alive, You Would Like to Meet? The Truly Rich Lady Answers
Who are the people, dead or alive, you would like to meet?
At many parties, this question somehow manages to slip into the conversation, especially during a lull, as if moments of quiet automatically mean boring, and therefore dreadful, and thus a failure on the part of the hostess. (I disagree. Like the valleys that highlight the peaks on a landscape, silence completes the tapestry of socials. It is also an opportunity to rest the mouth.)
But let’s have a go at this conversational device. And let's make it even more timely since we are in the season of honoring those who have gone on a permanent vacation.
Who are the women who have crossed over to the other side that I, the Truly Rich Lady, would like to meet and possibly have a sandwich with (without the crusts, please)?
Diana, Princess of Wales, during her “revenge dress” era… so that I can learn how to pull off a mini-dress with a multi-strand pearl choker.
Elizabeth Taylor on the set of Cleopatra… so we can dish about her on-set love affair and, later on, play with the Taylor-Burton and Krupp diamonds.
Marilyn Monroe on her downtime… so I can confirm the theory that Norma Jean is really a clever woman playing the fool for us, the real fools.
Louisa May Alcott when she was a little woman... so I can examine the true story of her based-on-a-true-story classic.
Pearl S. Buck… so she can tell me more about this square-faced woman with big feet: O-lan of The Good Earth. I am not over her—spoiler!—death.
Rosa Parks… so that she can show me how to find an unwavering courage in the face of intimidation.
Mother Teresa… so she can teach me the secret of being selfless.
Amelia Earhart… so I could warn her not to take that fateful flight over the Atlantic, but then again she wouldn’t become the woman we know today.
Caroline Schermerhorn Astor… who is
Edith Wharton... who is the chronicler of (the foibles of) the Truly Rich as seen in her many works, especially the dishy The Age of Innocence.
Emily Post... who is the authority on manners. I will ask her to weigh on modern dilemmas like taking photos of your food before you eat.
Louisa Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire… who, according to rumors, sent invitations to her legendary fancy dress ball a little late, so that her guests would find themselves fighting over very best dressmakers.
Lee Miller… who is the Vogue cover girl who, not content with being a beautiful face, went behind the lens to become a Vogue photographer and later on, a war
Dorothy
Yaya Elena… who, as my first non-parent guardian, is the only person who knows where I hid a particularly beautiful jewelry box which contains my baby teeth. I need them for a spell to bring back the dearly departed. (I am just kidding.)
