December 2, 2023 – Air Mail

BATTLE OF THE SEXES

In the weeks before Hamas terrorists murdered 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped hundreds more, Israel’s largely female border guards sounded the alarm—and were ignored by their all-male commanders …

A DUPLEX LIFE

Alice Mason, who just turned 100, was not only a New York social force; she was the real-estate agent for everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Jimmy Carter. She was also hiding a major secret …

PRESENT PERFECT

Our Holiday Gift Guide for Women is here! Shopping for the discerning woman who has everything? Ina Garten, Kaitlin Phillips, and Lauren Hutton are here to help …

ROAD TO RICH-ES

Friday Night Lights author Buzz Bissinger reviews a hair-raising coming-of-age memoir by Rich Paul, sports agent to LeBron James, rumored husband of Adele, and survivor of Cleveland’s inner city …

GOING OVERBOARD

The U.S. Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture—yes, you read that right—seeks to seize and sell off yachts and other assets belonging to Kremlin-controlled oligarchs. Is it working?

GOD AWFUL

Matthew Teague, whose Christian faith helped him cope with the death of his wife, chronicled in a viral Esquire essay, reviews Tim Alberta’s new book on the terrifying rise of the evangelical right …

RAT RACE

Adam Hay-Nicholls reports on the obscene spectacle of Formula 1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix: million-dollar hotel rooms, all-you-can-eat Michelin-starred dining, and a $135 cocktail served in a shoe …

BUT, WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

How Beckham lured Messi to Miami … remembering Larry Fink, master of the half-hidden image … more royals drama … Ridley Scott is the world’s greatest interviewee! … Le Bernardin’s Eric Ripert simplifies seafood … The best new refrigerator is transparent! … David Mamet’s self-immolation … George Santos—trickster or tragic? … Plus: the Attention-Whore Index is back!

Issue No. 229

The View from Here Male Israeli intelligence officers dismissed warnings from the front lines that a Hamas attack was imminent. It had a lot to do with the fact that the soldiers sounding the alarm were women

By Yossi Melman and Dan Raviv

Read On

Muddy Waters Last year, the U.S. seized a $300 million yacht belonging to a sanctioned Russian billionaire with close ties to Vladimir Putin. The question is: Which one?

By Jennifer Gould

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY CHOP CHOPPISH SHOP

Read On

Our Women’s Gift Guide Is Here!

Lauren Hutton, Ina Garten, Kaitlin Phillips, Alexandra Shulman, and others help you find the best gifts for the woman who has everything

Read On

The Sussex Circus Is Back Harry and Meghan’s mouthpiece has a book out. Spoiler alert: it’s grovelingly kind to them but brutal to everyone else

By Hilary Rose

Photo Illustration by Chop Choppish Shop

Read On

In the Pink After securing an all-new team for just $25 million in the city of his choice, David Beckham brought Lionel Messi, the world’s most popular player, to Miami and may well have changed the sport in the U.S. forever

By Matt Dickinson

Read On

A Very AIR MAIL Holiday: Gifts for Her

When it comes to bestowing presents upon the women who make your world go round, let AIR SUPPLY lend you a helping hand with our carefully chosen assortment of meaningful gestures and indulgences alike, all of which are sure to send her heart soaring

Shop

Photo: Startracks/Shutterstock (Carey and Claus)

A Visible Feast The fridge that lets you see your food before opening the door! Sleep headphones that won’t weigh you down! A Leica you can actually afford! And more …

By Jonathan Margolis

Read On

The Attention-Whore Index It’s back! And the cast looks strangely familiar: carroty-blond blowhards, kooky kings, hot-tempered tech gurus, and cringe-worthy congressmen. The seasons change, but Attention Whores will out!

Read On

Tall Tales Assessing George Santos’s improbable rise from Brazil to Capitol Hill and his ouster, his biographer warns that the former congressman could be a Donald Trump in the making

By David Smith

Read On

Doomsday Goals A pessimist prepares for a job interview

By Simon Webster

Read On

Striking It Rich Sports agent to the stars Rich Paul attributes his success—his friendship with LeBron James, his relationship with Adele—to luck. Turns out it’s anything but

By Buzz Bissinger

Read On

Sight Unseen Alice Mason was a celebrated hostess and New York’s real-estate agent to the elite, but while she was showing lavish apartments to clients like Marilyn Monroe, she was hiding a family secret

By Christopher Mason

Read On

Chef de Mission The latest cookbook by Le Bernardin’s Eric Ripert promises to make cooking seafood easy. To test it, a writer gave it to her teenage son

By Melanie Rehak

Read On

The Kingmaker Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis sealed Colonel Tom Parker’s reputation as greedy and conniving. In truth, Presley’s manager was the opposite—someone who would do anything for his client and friend

By Marshall Terrill

Read On

“Take special note of the change to our policy on honesty.”

Moment of Truth Do historical films and TV programs need to be accurate?

By Ben Macintyre

Read On

Va-Va-Vroom! The Las Vegas Grand Prix is decadent and depraved—and a massive commercial success

By Adam Hay-Nicholls

Read On

Absolutely Normal Chaos Is Ridley Scott the bluntest man in the movie business? On the press tour for Napoleon, the director swears, shouts, and says whatever comes to mind

By Stuart Heritage

Read On

Fly Blade There is girl math and then there is math. Similarly, there is traffic and then there is Holland Tunnel traffic on a holiday weekend…

Savor The Mark Chalet Jean-Georges Vongerichten has always excelled at bringing the flavors of Europe to his many New York restaurants, but…

Sparkle Balenciaga Balenciaga’s Demna understands that it takes only one strategically placed piece of bling to make an outfit. Perhaps that’s why his…

Wear Max Mara Has it really been 10 years since Max Mara’s fluffy and fabulous Teddy Bear Coat disrupted outerwear forever? Inspired by…

Watch Glory to the Heroes In his latest documentary, the French philosopher and filmmaker Bernard-Henri Lévy reminds us that, nearly two years after…

Read The Hobbit & The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien Bilbo is back! Well, come to think of it, Mr. Baggins has never really…

Fly Blade There is girl math and then there is math. Similarly, there is traffic and then there is Holland Tunnel traffic on a holiday weekend…

Savor The Mark Chalet Jean-Georges Vongerichten has always excelled at bringing the flavors of Europe to his many New York restaurants, but…

Sparkle Balenciaga Balenciaga’s Demna understands that it takes only one strategically placed piece of bling to make an outfit. Perhaps that’s why his…

Wear Max Mara Has it really been 10 years since Max Mara’s fluffy and fabulous Teddy Bear Coat disrupted outerwear forever? Inspired by…

Watch Glory to the Heroes In his latest documentary, the French philosopher and filmmaker Bernard-Henri Lévy reminds us that, nearly two years after…

Read The Hobbit & The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien Bilbo is back! Well, come to think of it, Mr. Baggins has never really…

Matthew Teague On

The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism

by Tim Alberta

Read On

Nicolas Rapold On

Everywhere an Oink Oink: An Embittered, Dyspeptic, and Accurate Report of Forty Years in Hollywood

by David Mamet

Read On

Unabashedly Arab The war in Gaza has not stopped New York’s Habibi from dishing out Levantine good vibes

By Carrie Monahan

Read On

If These Walls Could Talk … On this week’s podcast, Christopher Mason explains why a confidante to New York’s elite hid her true identity

Read On

Roy Lichtenstein at his New York City studio in the 1980s.

In Lichtenstein’s Shadow

The twin sculptures that make up Tokyo Brushstroke I & II show off a Roy Lichtenstein quite different from the one we know—the artist who famously hijacked the comic-strip style in canvases that projected witty, irony-drenched messages. Tokyo Brushstrokes, towering as much as 33 feet above a field outside the Parrish Art Museum, in the Hamptons, is alive with kinetic energy, a celebration of what sculpture can do. READ ON

Read On

Paul Henkel Raised in the art world, the young curator is spotlighting new talent at his Manhattan art gallery

By Elena Clavarino

Read On

Larry Fink The great photographer, who died last week, left behind a treasure trove of penetrating, perturbing images

By Ash Carter

Photographs by Larry Fink

Read On

“Look, there’s even more buttons and stuff up there.”

Susie Cave The Vampire’s Wife designer reveals her travel routine

Read On

Is Edited By

Graydon Carter and Alessandra Stanley

Creative Director

Angela Panichi

Deputy Editors

Ashley Baker Ash Carter Chris Garrett Nathan King Julia Vitale

Chief Technology Officer

John Tornow

Editor at Large

George Pendle

Books Editor

Jim Kelly

Arts Intel Report Editor

Laura Jacobs

Senior Editors

Elena Clavarino Jensen Davis

Photo Director

Ann Schneider

Copy Editor

Adam Nadler

Research & Legal Editor

Matt Kapp

Production Editor

H. Scott Jolley

Associate Editors

Carolina de Armas Lucy Horowitz Clara Molot Paulina Prosnitz Jack Sullivan

Art Director

Paloma Huerre

Senior Photo Editor

Emine Gözde Sevim

Designer

Zoé Gillette

International Editor

Isabelle Harvie-Watt

London Editor

Bridget Arsenault

Communications Director

Harrison Vail

Columnists

Cazzie David Lisa Henricksson Walter Isaacson
Pico Iyer Rachel Johnson John Lahr
Jonathan Margolis Linda Wells James Wolcott

Writers at Large

Lili Anolik Johanna Berkman Joseph Bullmore Vassi Chamberlain William D. Cohan Rich Cohen Michael Hainey Stuart Heritage George Kalogerakis Sam Kashner James Kirchick Alexander Lobrano Alexandra Marshall Daphne Merkin Sam Wasson

Contributing Artists

Monica Ahanonu Barry Blitt André Carrilho Paul Davis David Downton Andrea Ferolla Josh Gosfield Cathy Graham Eric Hanson Angelica Hicks Pip Johnson Hilary Knight Danielle Kosann Michael Lindsay-Hogg Ross MacDonald Joe McKendry James McMullan Donald Robertson Charles Dare Scheips Grant Shaffer Ed Sorel Ralph Steadman

Contributing Photographers

Jonathan Becker Justin Bishop Alex Board James Emmerman Marcos Fecchino Daniel Paik Art Streiber Sharon Suh Justin Weiner

Architectural Consultant

Basil Walter

Head of Audience Development

Rachel LeSage

Audience Growth Manager

Merritt Johnson

Cartoon Editor

Bob Mankoff

Music Supervisor

Randall Poster

Technology

Brooks Oakley Justin Rubaloff Sade Singleton

Intern

Gasper Tringale-White

OUR CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER AND CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER ARE

Bill Keenan and Emily Davis

Air Supply General Manager and Brand Partnerships

Anjali Lewis

Advertising Director

Michael Pescuma

European Sales Director

Selim Mataraci

Financial & Business Operations

Marc Leyer

Account Manager

Dillon Freeman

Chief Strategy Adviser

Adam Mendelsohn

AIR SUPPLY

Chief Merchant

Jennifer Noyes

Shop Editor

Zoe Ruffner

E-Commerce Manager

Isaac Metlitsky

E-commerce Associate

Lilly Schoenbaum

In Memoriam

Peter Bogdanovich Duncan Hannah Douglas McGrath Richard David Story André Leon Talley

The View from Here Male Israeli intelligence officers dismissed warnings from the front lines that a Hamas attack was imminent. It had a lot to do with the fact that the soldiers sounding the alarm were women

Muddy Waters Last year, the U.S. seized a $300 million yacht belonging to a sanctioned Russian billionaire with close ties to Vladimir Putin. The question is: Which one?

Lauren Hutton, Ina Garten, Kaitlin Phillips, Alexandra Shulman, and others help you find the best gifts for the woman who has everything

The Sussex Circus Is Back Harry and Meghan’s mouthpiece has a book out. Spoiler alert: it’s grovelingly kind to them but brutal to everyone else

In the Pink After securing an all-new team for just $25 million in the city of his choice, David Beckham brought Lionel Messi, the world’s most popular player, to Miami and may well have changed the sport in the U.S. forever

When it comes to bestowing presents upon the women who make your world go round, let AIR SUPPLY lend you a helping hand with our carefully chosen assortment of meaningful gestures and indulgences alike, all of which are sure to send her heart soaring

A Visible Feast The fridge that lets you see your food before opening the door! Sleep headphones that won’t weigh you down! A Leica you can actually afford! And more …

The Attention-Whore Index It’s back! And the cast looks strangely familiar: carroty-blond blowhards, kooky kings, hot-tempered tech gurus, and cringe-worthy congressmen. The seasons change, but Attention Whores will out!

Tall Tales Assessing George Santos’s improbable rise from Brazil to Capitol Hill and his ouster, his biographer warns that the former congressman could be a Donald Trump in the making

Doomsday Goals A pessimist prepares for a job interview

Striking It Rich Sports agent to the stars Rich Paul attributes his success—his friendship with LeBron James, his relationship with Adele—to luck. Turns out it’s anything but

Sight Unseen Alice Mason was a celebrated hostess and New York’s real-estate agent to the elite, but while she was showing lavish apartments to clients like Marilyn Monroe, she was hiding a family secret

Chef de Mission The latest cookbook by Le Bernardin’s Eric Ripert promises to make cooking seafood easy. To test it, a writer gave it to her teenage son

The Kingmaker Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis sealed Colonel Tom Parker’s reputation as greedy and conniving. In truth, Presley’s manager was the opposite—someone who would do anything for his client and friend

Moment of Truth Do historical films and TV programs need to be accurate?

Va-Va-Vroom! The Las Vegas Grand Prix is decadent and depraved—and a massive commercial success

Absolutely Normal Chaos Is Ridley Scott the bluntest man in the movie business? On the press tour for Napoleon, the director swears, shouts, and says whatever comes to mind

Unabashedly Arab The war in Gaza has not stopped New York’s Habibi from dishing out Levantine good vibes

If These Walls Could Talk … On this week’s podcast, Christopher Mason explains why a confidante to New York’s elite hid her true identity

Paul Henkel Raised in the art world, the young curator is spotlighting new talent at his Manhattan art gallery

Larry Fink The great photographer, who died last week, left behind a treasure trove of penetrating, perturbing images

Susie Cave The Vampire’s Wife designer reveals her travel routine

Is Edited By

Creative Director

Deputy Editors

Chief Technology Officer

Editor at Large

Books Editor

Arts Intel Report Editor

Senior Editors

Photo Director

Copy Editor

Research & Legal Editor

Production Editor

Associate Editors

Art Director

Senior Photo Editor

Designer

International Editor

London Editor

Communications Director

Columnists

Writers at Large

Contributing Artists

Contributing Photographers

Architectural Consultant

Social Media Manager

Head of Audience Development

Audience Growth Manager

Cartoon Editor

Music Supervisor

Technology

Intern

OUR CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER AND CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER ARE

Air Supply General Manager and Brand Partnerships

Advertising Director

European Sales Director

Financial & Business Operations

Account Manager

Chief Strategy Adviser

Chief Merchant

Shop Editor

E-Commerce Manager

E-commerce Associate

In Memoriam