The Vancouver Olympics and New York Fashion Week were both overshadowed by shocking deaths right at the start. Designer Alexander McQueen was found dead on Feb. 11 of an apparent suicide. Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died when he skidded off the track during a test run on Feb. 12. Mourners laid flowers at the window of McQueen's Manhattan store and beneath the Olympic rings in tribute.
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Attendees observed moments of silence in the wake of McQueen and Kumaritashvili's tragic deaths last week. IOC President Jacques Rogge and Governor General of Canada Michaelle Jean observe a moment at the Olympic Opening Ceremony. Elle creative director Joe Zee and socialite Olivia Palermo attend the Ports 1961 show, where guests took a minute to remember McQueen.
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One big difference between New York Fashion Week and the Olympics were the outfits. As if in eerie anticipation of the bad news, many prominent designers showed somber collections, full of dark colors, serious themes, slouchy fits and heavy materials. Alexander Wang, Joseph Altuzarra and Rag and Bone sent out a lot of black for fall.
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Olympians, by contrast, looked like peacocks in their custom neon outfits. Ralph Lauren designed clothes for the American team this year, sending the athletes out in bold reds and blues. Competitors from the rest of the world came in their own rainbow of costumes.
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The media were out in force at the parallel events, with Bob Costas in his usual perch, as NBC's Olympics commentator in chief. Over at Fashion Week, supermodel Coco Rocha filled that role, tweeting up a storm and broadcasting for Fashion Week TV.
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More than 65 million people watched the Olympic Opening Ceremony on NBC on Friday night. The event featured a "Spirit Bear" that floated up out of the snow and a performance of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" by k.d. lang. In New York, hot young celebrities, including Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman, turned up for the Opening Ceremony boutique party at the Ace Hotel.
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Plenty of bold-faced names, including Bryan Adams, Donald Sutherland, and k.d. lang, turned out for the Olympic Opening Ceremony.
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New York Fashion Week has always been a Mecca for celebrities. This year's crop has included Chloe Sevigny, Zoe Saldana, Kelly Osbourne, Jared Leto, Mena Suvari, Kanye West's girlfriend Amber Rose, Victoria Beckham, and several cast-members from Gossip Girl.
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Even politicos made it out for the Olympics and Fashion Week. The Biden family and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger turned up at the Opening Ceremony. George W. Bush's daughter Barbara attended the Prabal Gurung show on Feb. 13.
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Only writer and all-around fashion wonder Daphne Guinness has been bold enough to wear a skin-tight onesie, a la speed-skater Apolo Ohno, at Fashion Week—so far.
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Young designer Prabal Gurung has been hailed as fashion's "next big thing," and his fall collection drew raves from attendees last weekend. A few stars have already emerged from the Olympics as well, including Australian snowboarder Torah Bright.
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What would a colossal global event be without a blooper or two? When two Korean speedskaters wiped out, allowing American Apolo Ohno to glide by to a medal. British model Agyness Deyn drew cheers from the crowd when, after falling twice in a pair of slipper wooden heels, she removed them and walked the runway with a smile at a benefit for Haiti last week.
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Organizers at both Fashion Week and the Olympics took time for a little patriotism. The American team waved the flag proudly at the Opening Ceremony. In Bryant Park, an American flag hangs in the tents. Designer Marc Jacob also plans to hang a flag over his first show on Feb. 15.
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