Love Story on the red carpet

Sarah posted yesterday about the trailer for Love Story that dropped earlier this week and her main point was that she didn’t hate it. Neither did I. In fact I was very encouraged by it. There’s a shot of Sarah Pidgeon as Carolyn Bessette where she’s drinking from a wine glass and it looked legit. Not that there was any question that I would be watching this series when it premieres next week – I’m powerless to this story, no matter the quality of the storytelling, at least for the first few episodes.

Last night was the premiere which, of course, could only have taken place in New York City. That is the only location we really associate with John and Carolyn’s love story because it played out, unfortunately for them, on the sidewalks and in the park and outside their apartment in the presence of the paparazzi. Art deco and New York are inextricable so it also tracks that the design theme of the night appeared to be art deco, black and white, even on the carpet which was made to look like tiles. The actors too were clearly given direction with their fashion choices as they showed up with full understanding of the assignment.

Naomi Watts was in Balenciaga by Pierpaolo Piccioli, a look that is both evocative of Jacqueline Kennedy and also the Swans of New York. You can probably find several ancestors of this dress going through photos from Truman Capote’s famed Black and White Ball.

@fashionweekmagazine La actriz #naomiwatts ha acudido a la premiere de su nueva miniserie, ‘Love Story’, en la que da vida al icono universal del estilo: Jackie Kennedy. Como no podía ser de otra manera, ha rendido homenaje a Jackie con el vestido elegido: un diseño joya negro de #balenciaga con guantes al estilo 'Old Hollywood'. #fashionweekmagazine #FashionWorld ♬ sonido original - Fashion Week Magazine

My favourite Naomi moment from the night is her encounter with Martha Stewart. She’s Martha Stewart, not exactly a nobody, but in this clip she’s acting like the rogue aunt at every party who goes around asking strangers where they live, how much money they make, and when they’re getting married.

@mickmicknyc Red carpet moments from the premiere of American Love Story ❤️ Paul Kelly. Sarah Pidgeon. Naomi Watts. Martha Stewart. And a real Hemingway, Dree Hemingway, great-granddaughter of Ernest Hemingway. Ryan Murphy’s series tells the story of JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. Premiering February 13 on @FX Networks ♬ original sound - New York Mickey

Sarah Pidgeon, as you can see, is in new Chanel, art deco in the beading of the dress. She’s lovely in it, no complaints, but there are some people who are wondering why perhaps she didn’t make a direct connection to Carolyn in her fashion choice, theme dressing as so many other stars are doing these days. The most obvious designers/brands would be Calvin Klein and/or Narciso Rodriguez.

It’s one thing to theme dress for fiction, though, and another when it’s a real person and a real tragedy. And also a controversial show to begin with, considering there are some people who don’t think John and Carolyn’s love story should even be given the bio-series treatment. Not theme dressing, then, in my opinion, is a smart choice.

As for Paul Anthony Kelly – on appearance, this is perfect casting, it’s ridiculous how handsome he is in that specific way that JFK Jr was handsome. To the point where I’m almost wondering if this is AI. Am I going to have a Paul Kelly problem when I start watching this show?