Rachelle Macpherson, an air mail Editor at Large and the founder of Lingua Franca, is a chronic collaborator—a very good thing, in her case. This week, Macpherson and Penguin Random House have launched a project with Margaret Atwood, celebrating the author’s new novel, The Testaments. Macpherson and her team hand-embroidered the covers of 100 limited-edition copies of the book; each is signed by the author, and a portion of the proceeds will benefit Equality Now. For those who prefer to proclaim their Atwood allegiance through fashion, Lingua Franca has also introduced three new sweaters: “Praise Be,” “Nolite,” and “Blessed Be the Fruit.” ($350, linguafranca.nyc)
Wear
Marlon Brando’s Rolex
If you’ve seen the documentary Hearts of Darkness, you know what a horror show the filming of Apocalypse Now was. Monsoons. A heart attack. One thing that didn’t crack? Marlon Brando’s GMT-Master Rolex. He was not supposed to wear it. Francis Ford Coppola told him it would distract viewers. Brando being Brando replied, “If they’re looking at my watch, then I’m not doing my job.” (And yes, you can see it in the film, but what you can’t see is the back side, on which he self-engraved “M. Brando.”) Years later, the actor gave the watch to his daughter. Now it can be yours, as it is up for auction. Just don’t send an errand boy to do a man’s job … (phillips.com)
Ride
Ducati Motorcycle
In 1972, the motorcycling world was stunned when Paul Smart and Bruno Spaggiari took first and second at the inaugural Imola 200 on a pair of Ducati bikes. With the drop of the checkered flag, Ducati vaulted from being known as a producer of tame and respected street cruisers to a celebrated superbike star. Capitalizing on this triumph, the Italian company began producing the SuperSport, a line of bikes intended to emulate the machines ridden to glory at the ’72 Imola. Coming to the block this October at Bonhams is one such bike, a 1982 Ducati 864cc. 900SS, a stellar example of how the company adapted their new breed for the everyday rider. (bonhams.com)
Eat
Tetetlán
Bertha González Nieves is the co-founder of Casa Dragones tequila. In her native Mexico, she loves Tetetlán. “It is one of the most architecturally stunning restaurants in Mexico City, but its traditional Mexican cuisine is one of the best in the city. Tetetlán is located in Jardines del Pedregal, an elegant suburb, in the Casa Pedregal residence. It was designed by the celebrated Mexican architect Luis Barragán, and later renovated into a restaurant and cultural house by art collector César Cervantes. While it was originally designed as the stables for the Barragán House in Pedregal, Cervantes envisioned a space that helped re-invigorate the surrounding area, creating a sense of community and culture through art and food.” (tetetlan.com)
Watch
The Politician
The rich, Santa Barbara, California, kids competing in a high-school election are as calculating and cutthroat as Tracy Flick in the 1999 Reese Witherspoon classic, Election. But The Politician was created by Ryan Murphy (American Horror Story and Glee) and is richly overlaid with high camp, melodrama, and the glossiest aesthetic imaginable—every shot of Gwyneth Paltrow looks like a portrait by Vermeer. The Politician is irresistible: a caustic satire with a soft, weepy center. (netflix.com)
Listen
Broken: Jeffrey Epstein
When a scandal is truly shocking, people can’t hear enough about it. The Dropout, an ABC News podcast about Elizabeth Holmes, the disgraced founder of Theranos, proved that. So does this new podcast about the secret world of Jeffrey Epstein. Narrated by Ariel Levy of The New Yorker and featuring Julie K. Brown, the Miami Herald reporter who exposed Epstein’s criminal behavior, Broken: Jeffrey Epstein explores the mesh of power, money, and ambition that kept Epstein in business for so long. It’s chilling to hear tapes of the lilting, girlish, upper-class voice of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s consort and alleged partner in crime. But the whole sick story is mesmerizing. (podcasts.apple.com)