We forgot some things. Part Two. A nurse who refuses to pay to walk. Four Filipino histories rewritten. Lance Raymundo. Gary B. Lamb and a theater saved inside a mortuary chapel. Eileen Ford versus Elite. Twenty minutes, twelve stories, every source on screen.
Watch: Nightlife Report, Part Two (20 min)
Full quality: watch in 1080p60
The stories, and where they came from
- 0:00 We forgot some things.. Source: Four Collaborators, Four Rewrites of Philippine History · “I Don’t Like Him.” The Model Who Wants You to Say It · Lance Raymundo Takes The Hot Seat: Brand Hype, Dress Shoes and Breathable Menswear
- 1:06 Who is paying for the walk?. Source: “I Don’t Like Him.” The Model Who Wants You to Say It
- 3:02 Four collaborators. Four rewrites of history.. Source: Four Collaborators, Four Rewrites of Philippine History
- 6:38 The buried panels.. Source: Borobudur’s Buried Panels: The Video, the Record and the Filipino Thread
- 8:21 Lance Raymundo passes on the golden apple.. Source: Lance Raymundo Takes The Hot Seat: Brand Hype, Dress Shoes and Breathable Menswear
- 9:29 “I’m not done yet.”. Source: “I’m Not Done Yet”: Gary B. Lamb Keeps a Theater Alive Inside an Old Mortuary Chapel
- 11:11 The house of Ford. The empire of Elite.. Source: The Pulse: Manhattan’s Harry Styles Day, the Village Parade, LA’s Gas Relief and Eileen Ford’s Business of Beauty · Beauty School Didn’t Teach Them This. Lorin Cole Does.
- 13:10 Silence. Then one word.. Source: Five Years of Silence. One Word. Bottega Wins Instagram. · Adriana Lima Doesn’t Need a Comeback. Brands Need Her.
- 14:24 They are firing the photo studios.. Source: Fashion Is Firing Its Photo Studios. Marianna Di Giansante Shoots Her Own. · If You Made It and Can’t Prove It, You Don’t Own It.
- 15:45 Discipline in black tailoring.. Source: Discipline in Black Tailoring: Rajesh Karnam in The Hot Seat
- 16:35 How to spot a pile-on.. Source: Spot Online Bullying by Pattern: What Sparta and Rome Teach Creatives
- 17:43 The red carpets that set the season.. Source: LA’s Red-Carpet Season Starts Nov. 5: Four Nights That Set the Tone Through the Globes · New York’s November: CFDA Awards, h.wood’s Lady Delilah and the Gothams
- 18:46 Pay the talent.. Source: “I Don’t Like Him.” The Model Who Wants You to Say It · Four Collaborators, Four Rewrites of Philippine History · “I’m Not Done Yet”: Gary B. Lamb Keeps a Theater Alive Inside an Old Mortuary Chapel
Eileen Ford built the modern model agency; every Ford story here starts with her.
We have a Discord
We have a Discord. Find it on the website, or join here: discord.gg/P3bECmuYwA
Support the show: patreon.com/aperlas. Forward this to one artist who’s been told exposure is payment.
Full transcript
Part One
Hello, Nightlife. This is The Perlas Protocol, the Nightlife Report full read, for Friday night, October 30, 2026.
RelatedHoliday Campaigns Go After Dark: Claudia Schiffer for Chloé, Irina Shayk for Donna Karan
Every word in this episode comes from stories published on the Nightlife Report blog today, read from beginning to end. Fashion first, then the founders in their own words, then the nights.
Tonight: the couture comeback, Bergdorf Goodman's new president, Margiela and Gentle Monster round four, Louis Vuitton's LV Ski, Irina Shayk for Donna Karan, Serge Ruffieux at Zara, Aimé Leon Dore's women's collection, Runway Buzz, and Yohji Yamamoto's flowers. Then Sanchit Satish, Jason Caceres, Jacqueline Strano and Parisa Peron. And Halloween in Los Angeles, plus Friday's Pulse.
Settle in. Here we go.
Chapter one. Couture Is Fashion’s New Status Symbol. Here’s Why Versace, Hermès and Celine Want In.
The hook
What do you sell to a client who already owns everything? Fashion’s answer for 2027 is couture: clothes made by hand, fitted to one body, and shown on the most exclusive runway in Paris. Vogue’s October 29 analysis, The Great Couture Comeback , lays out why the biggest houses are rushing back.
What happened
Versace returns. Atelier Versace will show at Paris Couture Week in January 2027, the first full runway show by creative director Pieter Mulier, WWD reported. Paris Couture Week runs January 25 to 28, and Atelier Versace last staged a dedicated show in July 2016.
A new owner, a big bet. Vogue notes Prada Group bought Versace in late 2025 in a deal worth about 1.25 billion euros.
Hermès debuts. Hermès will show couture for the first time in January 2027, per Vogue. A spokesperson told Vogue Business the brand was not commenting ahead of the show.
Celine is working on it. Celine’s chief executive told Vogue Business the house was developing couture after a “strong appetite from American clientele,” Vogue reports.
The precedent. Balenciaga returned to the couture schedule in July 2021 for the first time since 1968.
Why people care
Couture rarely makes money on its own. Vogue explains that it serves a tiny group of ultra-wealthy clients, numbering at most a few thousand. That group matters more every year: citing a Bain report, Vogue says top-spending clients are 2 percent of luxury customers but account for 45 percent of global luxury purchases, up from 35 percent in 2021.
The experts Vogue interviewed see couture as a halo. “Couture alone won’t move revenue much, but its job is to make everything else in the store easier to sell at full price,” said Krista Corrigan, senior analyst at EDITED. Neil Saunders of GlobalData said couture can “bring back a sense of elusiveness” after years of high-low collabs and entry-level products made luxury feel everywhere.
There is also a pricing story. Per EDITED data cited by Vogue, the share of discounted Versace apparel in June through August fell from 42 percent in 2024 to 33 percent in 2026, and 47 percent of its October apparel was priced above 1,000, dollars up from 35 percent two years earlier.
Versace’s own leadership sounds confident. In WWD’s report, Prada Group chief executive Andrea Guerra said the integration was headed “in the proper direction” and that the team is “looking at products at this stage.”
What it means for you
Shopping. You will probably never buy couture, but you will feel it. Houses that show couture tend to discount less, so if you want a Versace piece, last season’s sale rack may be thinner than you expect.
Styling. Couture moments hit LA red carpets first. Mulier’s first Atelier Versace gown appeared on Nicole Kidman at the Los Angeles premiere of “Practical Magic 2” on Aug. 31, per WWD. Watch awards season for the next ones.
Money. Vogue quotes strategist Mimma Viglezio on the boom in fine jewelry, with “necklaces for 1 million dollars-plus selling like hot bread.” The top of the market is strong even when the middle is soft.
Career. Fittings, ateliers and private appointments need skilled hands. If you sew, drape or style in LA, couture-adjacent work (red carpet alterations, private client styling) is a growing niche.
Nightlife. Expect the Paris shows in late January to set the tone for the spring party circuit, from sculpted shapes to transformable looks.
Our take (opinion)
Couture is luxury’s answer to a fair question from shoppers: what am I paying for? Making one dress by hand for one person is the clearest reply. The risk is that houses use it as theater while their regular prices keep climbing. The brands that win will be the ones whose ready-to-wear actually feels better made because of what the atelier learned.
Vogue, October 29, 2026: The Great Couture Comeback
WWD: Atelier Versace Will Return to Paris Couture Week in January 2027
Chapter two. Bergdorf Goodman Hires Louis Vuitton’s Former Americas Boss. What the Move Signals.
The hook
A buyer who once picked handbags for Bergdorf Goodman is coming back to run the store. Lanessa Elrod, most recently president and chief executive of Louis Vuitton Americas, was named president of Bergdorf Goodman on October 29, WWD reported, and parent company Exemplar Luxury Group confirmed it in a release.
What happened
The appointment. Elrod becomes president of Bergdorf Goodman effective November 2 and joins the Exemplar Luxury Group management team, according to the company.
The handoff. Tracy Margolies, Bergdorf’s president since December 2024 and before that chief merchandising officer at Saks, becomes executive adviser to ELG, reporting to chief executive Geoffroy van Raemdonck.
The parent. ELG calls itself the largest multi-brand luxury retailer in America, comprising Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman.
The resume. WWD says Elrod was a ready-to-wear buyer at Neiman Marcus from 1997 to 2003, at Saks from 2003 to 2005, and a senior buyer for handbags and accessories at Bergdorf’s from 2005 to 2010. She then spent almost 14 years at Louis Vuitton, rising to president and chief executive of Louis Vuitton Americas, and left in May 2024.
In their words
“Bergdorf Goodman is a crown jewel in the industry, known as an important catalyst for identifying and nurturing designer talent,” van Raemdonck said in the company’s statement.
“Bergdorf Goodman played a defining role in my career, so returning as President is especially meaningful,” Elrod said. She added that she wants to deepen “personal connections with customers” and bring “the store’s spirit of discovery to life in new ways.”
Margolies said serving as president “has been one of the greatest honors of my career,” per WWD.
Why people care
Bergdorf’s is turning 125 this year, and it is the group’s most prestigious name. Putting a former maison chief executive in charge suggests ELG wants the store to work even more closely with the big houses, while keeping its reputation for spotting new designers. The release says the company aims to keep strengthening Bergdorf’s “position as the pinnacle of luxury.”
It is also a classic merchant’s comeback. Elrod’s path, from buyer to brand chief and back to the store that trained her, is the kind of career arc fashion people talk about.
What it means for you
Shopping. Leadership changes at the top of a store usually show up in exclusives and events. Bergdorf’s is in New York, but Saks and Neiman Marcus, its sister banners, both have Beverly Hills stores. Watch for group-wide designer exclusives this holiday season.
Styling. Bergdorf’s is known for discovering designers. If you like being early, follow its buys and new-designer spotlights.
Money. A merchant at the top usually focuses on the right inventory over discounts. Do not count on deep markdowns on the hottest pieces.
Career. Elrod’s story is a roadmap: buying roles across three stores, then 14 years at a maison. If you work in LA retail, a buyer or merchandising job is still one of the best entry points into luxury leadership.
Our take (opinion)
This is a smart hire. Stores win when the person in charge knows how a brand thinks and how a shopper shops, and Elrod has done both jobs. The real test will be whether Bergdorf’s keeps its sense of surprise while working closer with the giants. We will be watching the first holiday windows under her watch.
WWD, October 29, 2026: EXCLUSIVE: Bergdorf Goodman Names Lanessa Elrod President
Exemplar Luxury Group via PR Newswire, October 29, 2026: Exemplar Luxury Group Appoints Lanessa Elrod President of Bergdorf Goodman
Chapter three. Margiela by Gentle Monster Round Four: 68 Deconstructed Frames and Eight Pop-Ups.
The hook
What if your sunglasses looked like they were crushed halfway through being made? That is the idea behind the fourth eyewear collaboration between Maison Margiela and Gentle Monster, which arrived on October 29, according to 10 Magazine and The Impression .
What happened
The theme is deconstruction. Gentle Monster says the collection dismantles and distorts familiar forms, so styles “appear crushed and modified, as if frozen midway through fabrication or disassembly.”
The count. 43 sunglasses and 25 optical frames, 68 styles in total, per 10 Magazine and FZINE Singapore .
The shapes. Oversized frames hide the face while widening the wearer’s view, and narrow, upswept frames are tightly wrapped in leather “like a second skin,” 10 Magazine writes.
The signature. Margiela’s four white stitches appear at the temples, and on slimmer styles they seem to float along the edges, The Impression reports.
The film. Artist Alex Prager directed the campaign film. 10 Magazine describes it as following a woman with just ten minutes to meet someone as she rushes through a city full of strange characters, each wearing a different pair.
Where to find it
Gentle Monster lists pop-ups in eight cities: Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai, Beijing, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Melbourne and Paris. 10 Magazine adds that Seoul gets a Margiela-themed tea collection. No US pop-up is listed, so American shoppers will be buying online.
Why people care
Margiela’s four white stitches started as a way to attach the house’s discreet labels, designed to be cut away so the clothes could speak for themselves, FZINE explains. Seeing them on a statement frame is the kind of insider detail fashion fans love to spot. Gentle Monster, meanwhile, has built a reputation for treating its stores as art spaces, which is why the pop-ups matter as much as the product.
The idea also fits the moment. Accessories, not clothes, are where many shoppers spend on designer names, and eyewear is one of the most accessible ways to wear a house like Margiela every day.
On creators: We looked for coverage from major YouTube and TikTok creators within the last 24 hours and could not verify any specific videos before publishing, so we are not citing any. If you post a review, send it our way.
What it means for you
Shopping. Prices were not listed in the sources we checked, so look on Gentle Monster’s site before you budget. With 68 styles, expect the most wearable frames to sell out first.
Styling. Oversized deconstructed frames do the work of a statement necklace. Keep the rest of the look simple: a black coat, a white shirt, nothing else competing.
Money. Collab eyewear tends to sell out fast and then sell for more on resale. If you love a pair, buy it to wear, not as an investment.
Career. For LA photographers and stylists, the Prager film is a masterclass in casting a product through characters. It is worth studying before your next lookbook.
Nightlife. A sculptural frame is the easiest Halloween weekend accessory that still works on Monday.
Our take (opinion)
Four collaborations in, the risk is fatigue. This round avoids it by committing to one strange idea and pushing it all the way. The leather-wrapped frames are the ones we would actually wear; the crushed shapes are for the photos.
10 Magazine, October 29, 2026: Ten Craves: Maison Margiela and Gentle Monster Reunite
Gentle Monster: Maison Margiela by Gentle Monster, The 4th Collaboration
The Impression, October 26, 2026: Maison Margiela and Gentle Monster Fall 2026 Ad Campaign
FZINE Singapore, October 28, 2026: Maison Margiela by Gentle Monster’s Latest Eyewear Collab
Chapter four. Louis Vuitton’s LV Ski 2026: Holographic Bags, New Goggles and the Après-Ski Wardrobe.
The hook
Mammoth season is coming, and Louis Vuitton wants to dress you from the chairlift to the fireplace. The house’s LV Ski 2026 collection for women and men, detailed by Resident on October 29 and reviewed earlier by Runway Magazine , treats winter as a wardrobe, not a sport.
What happened
Two ways to wear it. Resident says the house describes the collection as a dialogue between the mountains and après-ski, with pieces built to work as a full alpine look or a city outfit.
Women’s. Hooded jackets in cashmere and brushed silk, cashmere piqué knitwear and Sherpa denims, with coats and capes framed as everyday essentials.
The bags. Monogram Pearly, Monogram Miroir and Monogram Empreinte Frozen. Resident notes the silver Miroir recalls glaciers, and the rainbow holographic finish references a collection of metal trunks from 1891. The LV Lodge and Ice Breaker bags take their cue from French Alpine ski villages.
The goggles. LV360 is the technical headline: ski goggles shaped by the world of virtual reality, with an interchangeable lens system for changing light and weather.
Men’s. A Monogram Macassar puffer with matching trousers, a snowboarding hoodie with a water-repellent outer layer and ventilated face protection, and a 1990s-inspired après-ski wardrobe. Bags in Monogram Reflective canvas include the Keepall 25 and Discovery Backpack.
Footwear. The Cortina mule and boot on a lug sole, the Rangers Territory ankle boot, and sneakers in suede and shearling.
What the critics said
Runway Magazine’s Ana Topi gave the collection an 8.5 verdict score in her October 16 review. She praised the “sculptural LV Lodge chalet minaudière,” the Ice Breaker bag and the “holographic reinterpretation of the historic Monogram Miroir.” Her reservation: the ready-to-wear “occasionally leans toward familiar relaxed 1990s streetwear,” making the clothes less distinctive than the accessories.
Why people care
Ski capsules have become a key luxury moment because they sell a lifestyle, not just clothes. A chalet-shaped clutch and holographic bags photograph well far from any mountain, which is exactly why they travel on social media.
What it means for you
Shopping. Following Runway Magazine’s read, the accessories are the stars. If you buy one piece, make it a bag or the LV360 goggles rather than the ready-to-wear. Prices were not listed in the sources we checked, so confirm on Louis Vuitton’s site or at the Rodeo Drive store.
Styling. Steal the formula without the logo: cashmere hoodie, shearling-lined boot, one shiny bag. It works for a Big Bear weekend and a cold night in Silver Lake.
Money. Seasonal capsules rarely get discounted at Louis Vuitton. If a piece is on your list, buy early in the season rather than waiting.
Career. For content creators, the ski-to-city story is ready-made. A two-look reel, slope and après, is the format this collection was designed for.
Nightlife. The holographic Miroir bag is a natural fit for a dark dance floor.
Our take (opinion)
Louis Vuitton does novelty best when it is rooted in its trunk history, and the 1891 reference gives the holographic bags real depth. We agree with Runway Magazine: the bags and goggles are the reason to care, and the clothes are the supporting cast.
Resident, October 29, 2026: Louis Vuitton Unveils the LV Ski 2026 Collection for Women and Men
Runway Magazine, October 16, 2026: Louis Vuitton LV Ski 2026
Chapter five. Irina Shayk Takes Donna Karan After Dark in Mert Alas’s Fall/Winter 2026 Campaign.
Ten days after the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in Los Angeles, Irina Shayk is back in black. Donna Karan New York launched its Fall/Winter 2026 campaign on Wednesday, October 28, with Shayk as the face and Mert Alas behind the camera ( Fashion Times ).
What’s in the campaign?
The pictures are all black and all city. Shayk wears a belted leather trench coat, a strapless leather sheath dress, a V-neck cocktail dress with sculptural gold hardware, and a full-length sequin gown under a long wool coat. The accessories are the black leather Bridgehampton Tote and a Cashmere Clutch. Fashion Times describes the light as warm golden hour against a New York-inspired setting.
The team behind it: creative direction by Trey Laird, styling by Jessica Diehl, hair by Chris McMillan and makeup by Jamal Scott.
Why does Donna Karan keep casting supermodels?
Since the brand’s 2024 relaunch, Donna Karan has leaned on the names who defined the ’90s runway. Kate Moss and Christy Turlington have fronted it, and the Fall/Winter 2025 campaign put Shayk alongside Claudia Schiffer, Imaan Hammam, Liya Kebede and Mariacarla Boscono. The idea underneath is still Karan’s Seven Easy Pieces, the 1984 concept of a small, interchangeable wardrobe that works from the office to the evening.
The Nightlife Report take
This is the most useful campaign of the week for anyone who actually goes out. A leather trench over sequins is the oldest trick in evening dressing because it works: you arrive covered, you take the coat off, and the room changes. It’s also exactly the kind of look that photographs well at night, which is why we shoot it so often.
FAQ
When did the campaign launch? Wednesday, October 28, 2026.
Who photographed it? Mert Alas.
Where can you see the collection? Donna Karan’s website and selected retailers worldwide.
Your move: Want an editorial look built for your own night out? Book a Lillith Magic shoot , see the work at lillithmagic , and catch the latest at Nightlife Report . Hear the full read on The Perlas Protocol .
Chapter six. Galliano’s Zara Team Adds a Couture Insider: Serge Ruffieux Named Design Director.
John Galliano’s Zara project just got a second pair of couture hands. Inditex has brought in Serge Ruffieux, the former Carven creative director and longtime Dior studio designer, as design director for Galliano’s team at Zara ( FashionUnited ). FashionUnited reports he took the freelance role in early October and announced it on his own social channels. Neither Ruffieux nor Inditex has shared more detail.
Who is Serge Ruffieux?
He’s spent his career inside big houses: Moschino, Sonia Rykiel, Cacharel and Dior, where he worked under Galliano’s creative direction and later co-led the design team between creative directors. He was creative director of Carven from December 2016 to November 2018, then worked on projects for Pucci, Jimmy Choo and Marni, and in 2021 launched his own footwear and accessories label, 13 09 SR.
What is Galliano doing at Zara?
His first collection, Re{form}, launched October 1 as the start of a two-year collaboration ( The Guardian ). Instead of designing from scratch, Galliano took garments from Zara’s past seasons and cut, shifted and rebuilt them. Vogue counted 157 pieces and reported lines outside the London and Madrid flagships, with Paris shoppers limited to an appointment-only pop-up ( Vogue ). “This is an innovation — this idea of going in and treating their existing garments,” Galliano told Vogue.
The launch also arrived a month after news that a planned Galliano retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum of Art would not go ahead, which kept the collaboration in the headlines for more than the clothes.
The Nightlife Report take
Hiring someone who knows Galliano’s studio language from the inside tells you Zara is treating this as a real design operation, not a one-off name drop. FashionUnited calls the strategy “fast couture.” Whether you love the idea or hate it, reworking what already exists is the smartest styling lesson on the high street right now: the best night-out look is often something you already own, cut and worn differently.
FAQ
What is Serge Ruffieux’s new role? Design director for John Galliano’s team at Zara, on a freelance basis, since early October 2026.
When did Galliano’s first Zara collection launch? October 1, 2026.
How long is the collaboration? Two years.
Your move: Want an editorial look built for your own night out? Book a Lillith Magic shoot , see the work at lillithmagic , and catch the latest at Nightlife Report . Hear the full read on The Perlas Protocol .
Chapter seven. Aimé Leon Dore’s Biggest Women’s Collection Yet Lands Today, Including Its LA Flagship.
Aimé Leon Dore drops its Fall/Winter 2026 women’s collection today, Friday, October 30, at 11 A M Eastern (8 A M in LA). It’s the New York label’s largest women’s seasonal range so far, with more than 40 pieces, available online and at its New York, Los Angeles and London flagships ( Selecta Bisso ; Aimé Leon Dore ).
What’s in it?
Outerwear leads: a Reversible Double Breasted Top Coat, a Shearling Bomber Jacket, a Cropped GORE-TEX Shell Jacket and a Denim Chore Coat. Knitwear includes a Twisted Rib Cardigan, a Boiled Wool Letterman Sweater, and Greek embroidery-inspired jacquards (a cardigan, vest and the Poros Jacquard Pullover).
Tailoring centers on a Collarless Striped Blazer, worn with a Double Pleated Suiting Trouser or a Striped Tailored Maxi Skirt, plus an Archival Print Silk Tie Neck Blouse and a fringed scarf.
The shoe everyone will talk about
The A L D / New Balance MT2 comes back as a deconstructed Mary Jane, a sneaker rebuilt with the strap of a dress shoe. It sits next to a Leather Ballet Flat and a Low Profile Suede Trainer. Bags are Italian-made shoulder styles in croc-embossed and nappa leather.
How new is the women’s line?
Very. Finally Offline notes this is only the brand’s second season of women’s clothing, after a Spring/Summer 2026 capsule that went on sale June 4 ( Finally Offline ).
The Nightlife Report take
A L D’s women’s range is built for the part of the night nobody photographs: the walk from the car, the line outside, the 1 A M taco stop. A shearling bomber over tailoring is the LA winter uniform that still looks sharp when the flash goes off.
FAQ
When does it drop? Friday, October 30, 2026, at 11 A M ET.
Where? Online and at Aimé Leon Dore’s New York, Los Angeles and London flagships.
How many pieces? More than 40.
Your move: Want an editorial look built for your own night out? Book a Lillith Magic shoot , see the work at lillithmagic , and catch the latest at Nightlife Report . Hear the full read on The Perlas Protocol .
Chapter eight. Runway Buzz: Irina Shayk After Dark, Galliano’s New Couture Hand and the Philippines’ Crown Count.
Fashion week energy has not left the building. Ten days after the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in Los Angeles, the runway crowd keeps the headlines coming. Here is the Nightlife Report Runway Buzz for Friday, October 30, 2026, with every item linked to our full story and its sources.
Irina Shayk goes after dark for Donna Karan
Donna Karan New York launched its Fall/Winter 2026 campaign on October 28 with Irina Shayk as the face and Mert Alas behind the camera. Think leather trench, strapless leather sheath and a full-length sequin gown under a long wool coat. Read the full story .
Galliano’s Zara team gets a couture insider
Inditex brought in Serge Ruffieux, the former Carven creative director and longtime Dior studio designer, as design director for John Galliano’s team at Zara, as FashionUnited reports. Read the full story .
Aimé Leon Dore’s biggest women’s drop lands in LA
Aimé Leon Dore’s Fall/Winter 2026 women’s collection, its largest so far at more than 40 pieces, dropped today online and at its New York, Los Angeles and London flagships. Read the full story .
Yohji Yamamoto gets his flowers
The British Fashion Council will give Yohji Yamamoto the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Fashion Awards 2026 on November 30 at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Read the full story .
Pageant corner: the Philippines’ crown count
The Philippines has four Miss Universe wins: Gloria Diaz in 1969, Margie Moran in 1973, Pia Wurtzbach in 2015 and Catriona Gray in 2018. Only the USA (9), Venezuela (7) and Puerto Rico (5) have more, and Mexico also sits on four. Across the Big Four pageants, the Philippine total is 15. We dig into the history behind that pride in One Sky-Father, Three Names .
Halloween weekend: dress for the movies
LA Opera’s Halloween residency returns to the United Theater on Broadway with Hercules vs. Vampires , the 1961 Mario Bava cult film with a live orchestra. Get the details .
FAQ
What is Runway Buzz? It is the Nightlife Report’s quick roundup of fashion, runway and pageant news, with each item linked to a full sourced story.
Where can I hear more? Listen to The Perlas Protocol podcast and support the work at .
Chapter nine. Yohji Yamamoto Gets His Flowers: Outstanding Achievement at the Fashion Awards 2026.
The British Fashion Council will give Yohji Yamamoto the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Fashion Awards 2026 on November 30 at London’s Royal Albert Hall ( MILLE World ). He founded his label in Tokyo in 1972 and has spent more than five decades questioning how clothes should fit the body.
Why it matters
Yamamoto made black, asymmetry and oversized tailoring a language. His Y-3 line with adidas, launched in 2003, put runway ideas on sneakers long before “luxury streetwear” was a category. He joins past honorees including Karl Lagerfeld, Miuccia Prada, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren and Tom Ford. Jimmy Choo’s Sandra Choi will also receive a Special Recognition Award that night.
Also this week in fashion
Maison Margiela by Gentle Monster, round four. The collaboration has 43 sunglasses and 25 optical frames built around deconstruction. Margiela’s four white stitches appear to float at the temples. Alex Prager directed the campaign film, and pop-ups open in eight cities including Paris, Seoul and Tokyo ( 10 Magazine ).
Louis Vuitton “Whatever the Weather.” Pharrell Williams’ Spring-Summer 2027 men’s pre-collection features nylon puffers with Monogram leather shoulders and rain-washed Speedy and Keepall bags. It landed in stores October 29 ( MILLE World ).
The couture boom. Hermès debuts couture in January 2027, and Atelier Versace returns the same month ( Vogue ).
The Nightlife Report take
Yamamoto’s lesson for LA creatives is simple: a point of view outlasts every trend cycle. Shoot like you mean it, cut like you mean it, and let the work carry your name.
FAQ
When are the Fashion Awards 2026? November 30, 2026, at the Royal Albert Hall in London.
What is Y-3? Yohji Yamamoto’s long-running label with adidas, launched in 2003.
Listen to The Perlas Protocol. Fashion, nightlife and the culture behind them, every week. Listen on Spotify , Support the show on Patreon , Book a Lillith Magic shoot , lillithmagic , Nightlife Report
Chapter ten. Sanchit Satish of Reflekt Lab: Forty Shows, Six Countries, Sixty Days.
Sanchit Satish is a creative director, visual artist and VJ, and the founder of Reflekt Lab in Mumbai. He answered the Nightlife Report founder questions in writing, and his answers run below exactly as he wrote them.
What was the moment you stopped playing small, and what did you do the very next day?
After my first gig with AR Rahman, My whole perspective shifted on playing the long game and at a level where I should be playing.
What game is the rest of your industry playing that you refuse to play?
Cheaping out to do more work rather than the quality of work
What's the boldest bet you've made on this brand (price, production, a hire, a show), and how did you justify it when others played it safe?
Agreeing to let go of a lot of work because it wasn’t the quality of work I intended to do
If you restarted tomorrow, what would you do bigger and sooner?
Use the new tools and Build a marketing presence from the beginning
What are you putting into the world in the next 90 days that proves you're moving?
I’m doing about 40 shows in the next 60 days in 6 different countries
Picture ten times the audience you have today. What has to change in how you and your team work to get there?
Structure structure structure
What almost killed a launch, show or shoot, and who on your team refused to let it die?
It was a big Awards night for bollywood stars, there was a lot of chaos on the design, rendering and playback.. the systems failed but we still made the show happen as a team
If you got one cover frame, which image, piece or look would it be, why does it carry the whole idea, and who made it with you?
My work with Rahat Fateh Ali khan
What's the one detail in your work (a stitch, a light, a song, a scent, a gesture) that only your team notices but that changes everything?
The detail in timing of playback, every beat every rhythm is important to what I do.
When you're not in the room, what one sentence do you want people saying about your brand?
This team delivers such good work, once I give it to them I just do not have to worry about delivery anymore, and he is such a good person too.
Chapter eleven. Jason Caceres of Undercroft Co.: Stop Begging for Work, Build the Company.
Jason Caceres is an actor and model in Los Angeles and a co-founder of the production company Undercroft Co. He answered the Nightlife Report founder questions in writing, and his answers run below exactly as he wrote them.
What was the moment you stopped playing small, and what did you do the very next day?
The moment I stopped playing small was when I decided to start a production company with my partner, Bryan Schaub. I was tired of having to basically beg for work and then, when I was cast, have little to no control over any creative decisions. My partner and I opened Undercroft Co and we can now take the projects that speak to us and have a controlling interest.
What game is the rest of your industry playing that you refuse to play?
I'm not really sure what game the rest of the industry is playing that I refuse to play. I'm not even sure I'm in the stadium where the games are being played. I'm over here on the dirt patch trying to play pick up games with my friends in the industry.
What are you putting into the world in the next 90 days that proves you're moving?
Our first double feature we produced will be released soon. We shot two full length features in San Francisco as our inaugural production. We will have out first rough edit within the next week and then lock down a final edit within the next 90 days.
Picture ten times the audience you have today. What has to change in how you and your team work to get there?
We would probably need more help. Right now, we are a team of two. If our company grows exponentially, we would look at onboarding more talent.
What almost killed a launch, show or shoot, and who on your team refused to let it die?
Financing is always the biggest hurdle for any production unless you have backing from a major studio. Luckily, we have a group of dedicated individuals that support indie filmmaking and queer storytelling that refuse to let these stories die.
When you're not in the room, what one sentence do you want people saying about your brand?
I would hope people say that we lead with kindness and joy. The point of starting this company was to tell stories that are fun to make. We get caught up in all the business metrics, especially in the entertainment industry, that we forget that the initial reason we went into this business was to entertain.
Chapter twelve. Jacqueline Strano of Ricamo Strano: Fashion History, Feminism and a Wicked Sense of Humor, One Stitch at a Time.
Follow Jacqueline Strano: Instagram jmstrano , Website strangeembroidery.com
Jacqueline Strano is the artist and founder of Ricamo Strano in Brooklyn, New York, where she embroiders onto historical photographs. She answered the Nightlife Report founder questions in writing, and her answers run below exactly as she wrote them.
What was the moment you stopped playing small, and what did you do the very next day?
The moment I stopped playing small was when I realized I had spent years studying, teaching, and celebrating other people's creativity while quietly putting limits on my own. I had the knowledge, the ideas, and the passion, but I kept waiting for the perfect moment to take myself seriously as an artist.
Eventually, I realized that moment wasn't coming. I had to create it.
The very next day, I started treating my embroidery as more than a creative outlet. I began building what would become Ricamo Strano, a business that brings together my love of fashion history, cinema, women's stories, and textile art.
What game is the rest of your industry playing that you refuse to play?
I think much of the creative industry is caught up in the game of producing more, posting more, and constantly chasing the next trend. There's enormous pressure to turn creativity into content and measure success by likes, followers, and algorithms.
I refuse to believe that art has to move at the speed of social media to be relevant or successful. My work is rooted in history, storytelling, and the slow, deliberate process of hand embroidery. Each piece takes time, and that's part of its value.
What's the boldest bet you've made on this brand (price, production, a hire, a show), and how did you justify it when others played it safe?
The boldest bet I've made was investing in Ricamo Strano before I had any guarantee it would succeed. I took something deeply personal—my love of fashion history, old Hollywood, women's stories, and embroidery—and decided to build an actual business around it.
If you restarted tomorrow, what would you do bigger and sooner?
I would put myself and my work out into the world much sooner. I spent too much time thinking I needed everything to be perfect before I could take the next step. The perfect website, the perfect collection, the perfect business plan. I've learned that you gain far more from actually doing something than from endlessly preparing to do it.
What are you putting into the world in the next 90 days that proves you're moving?
Over the next 90 days, I'm focused on expanding Ricamo Strano beyond individual works of art and creating new ways for people to experience fashion history through embroidery.
I'm developing embroidery kits, expanding my workshops, and pursuing collaborations with boutiques, museums, and creative spaces that share my appreciation for history, craftsmanship, and storytelling. I'm particularly excited about partnerships that bring embroidery into unexpected places.
Picture ten times the audience you have today. What has to change in how you and your team work to get there?
To reach ten times my current audience, I have to shift from thinking solely as an artist to thinking as both an artist and a business owner. Right now, I'm a one-woman operation, which means I'm the artist, researcher, marketer, administrator, and occasionally the person frantically packing orders at midnight.
Growth means learning to let go of some of those roles. I'd like to build a small, talented team that can handle the operational side of the business, allowing me to focus on what I do best: creating art, researching fascinating stories, teaching, and developing new ideas.
It also means being more intentional about collaborations, expanding workshops, and creating products that can reach people beyond my immediate community.
The challenge is scaling without losing what makes Ricamo Strano special. I never want the work to feel mass-produced or impersonal. I want to build a business that grows around the art, rather than one where the art gets lost in the business.
What almost killed a launch, show or shoot, and who on your team refused to let it die?
When you're a one-woman business, the person who refuses to let something die is usually you! There have been plenty of moments when preparing for a market or workshop felt overwhelming. Between creating the artwork, sourcing materials, organizing logistics, marketing, and managing all the little details, it's easy to wonder whether you've taken on too much.
But I've learned that being an independent artist means becoming very good at problem-solving, improvising, and occasionally working through a little chaos. Things rarely go exactly as planned, and sometimes you just have to figure it out as you go.
If you got one cover frame, which image, piece or look would it be, why does it carry the whole idea, and who made it with you?
I would choose my “Childless Cat Lady” embroidery, the piece that started Ricamo Strano. Inspired by the political rhetoric surrounding women who choose not to have children, it began as a way to express my frustration through something traditionally associated with femininity and domesticity.
What's the one detail in your work (a stitch, a light, a song, a scent, a gesture) that only your team notices but that changes everything?
It's knowing when to stop stitching. Because I work with historical photographs, there's always a delicate balance between the original image and what I add to it.
When you're not in the room, what one sentence do you want people saying about your brand?
Ricamo Strano makes you look at the past differently—it's where fashion history, feminism, and a wicked sense of humor meet, one stitch at a time.
In her own words: Why do you think it's important to revisit the past through art?
Because history is never really finished. We tend to look at old photographs and see beautiful clothes, glamorous women, or a world that feels impossibly far away. But behind those images are real women navigating expectations, limitations, ambitions, and identities that aren't so different from our own.
Chapter thirteen. Parisa Peron: In an Industry Where Everyone Wants to Be Seen, She Chooses to Be Remembered.
Follow Parisa Peron: Instagram peronbeautystudio , Website parisa-peron.com
Parisa Peron is a stylist, makeup artist, model and the owner of Parisa Peron Beauty Studio in Tarzana, California. She answered the Nightlife Report founder questions in writing, and her answers run below exactly as she wrote them.
What was the moment you stopped playing small, and what did you do the very next day?
When i realized i was the only one holding myself back and next day i start believing myself and moving forward to my goals.
What game is the rest of your industry playing that you refuse to play?
I refuse to play the game of comparison and chasing trends just to fit in. In an industry where everyone is trying to be seen, i believe in being remembered.
What's the boldest bet you've made on this brand (price, production, a hire, a show), and how did you justify it when others played it safe?
The boldest decision was choosing to believe in vision before anyone else could fully see it, building a brand requires courage especially when you creating something different.
If you restarted tomorrow, what would you do bigger and sooner?
If I would start over tomorrow, I would dream bigger from day one and trust myself much sooner, I would take more risks, invest in my vision earlier and stop waiting for everything to be perfect .
What are you putting into the world in the next 90 days that proves you're moving?
My focus is on turning my creative vision in to something tangible, for me success isn’t just about being seen, it’s about creating something that leaves a lasting impression, i want my work speak louder than my words.
Picture ten times the audience you have today. What has to change in how you and your team work to get there?
To reach ten times the audience I believe we need to think bigger while staying true to what makes our brand unique, it’s about building a stronger creative team and connecting with people on a global level.
What almost killed a launch, show or shoot, and who on your team refused to let it die?
Things don’t always go according to plan,especially in the creative industry ,unexpected challenges can happen right before an important moment but what truly matters is how you respond, I believe in staying calm and finding the best solution.
If you got one cover frame, which image, piece or look would it be, why does it carry the whole idea, and who made it with you?
I would choose a look that represents the perfect balance between elegance,strength and individuality.
What's the one detail in your work (a stitch, a light, a song, a scent, a gesture) that only your team notices but that changes everything?
For me it’s always the smallest detail that makes the biggest difference.
The way the hair make up and even the dress looks or how the light touches a design of everything.
The things people may not consciously notice but they can feel.
When you're not in the room, what one sentence do you want people saying about your brand?
It’s more than a brand,it’s a statement of confidence and elegance that makes every woman feel powerful and beautiful.
In her own words: What do you hope women feel when they experience your brand?
I want every woman to feel confident and powerful.
I believe true beauty begins with self confidence and fashion is one of the most beautiful way to express it.
Chapter fourteen. Halloween in LA: Hercules vs. Vampires at the United Theater Is the Night to Dress For.
LA Opera’s annual Halloween residency returns to the United Theater on Broadway (929 S. Broadway, Downtown) with Hercules vs. Vampires . The show is Mario Bava’s 1961 cult film Hercules in the Haunted World , starring Christopher Lee and former Mr. Universe Reg Park, played on the big screen while the LA Opera Orchestra and singers perform Patrick Morganelli’s score live ( LA Opera ).
The details
When: Friday, October 30, and Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 8 PM. It runs 1 hour 15 minutes with no intermission, sung in English with subtitles ( Time Out ).
Halloween night extras: After the October 31 show there’s an afterparty with themed drinks and a DJ, plus a costume contest. The grand prize is ten thousand dollars, two VIP tickets and a tour of the LA Opera Costume Shop. Second and third places also win cash and VIP tickets.
Contest rules: You must be 18 or older and register at entry, and you must be present at the afterparty to win. Costumes must cover standard swimsuit areas, shoes are required, and political or offensive costumes are out ( LA Opera rules ).
Tickets: TodayTix or LAOpera.org .
How to prepare
Theme it. Togas and fangs are encouraged. Think sword-and-sandal heroes, Gothic vampires or a full Bava color palette of crimson, cobalt and acid green.
Build for the judges. LA Opera Costume Department artisans are on the panel, so craftsmanship, fit and finish will matter more than store-bought shine.
Plan the night. Downtown streets fill up on Halloween. Take Metro or a rideshare, arrive early to register, and bring a small kit with safety pins, lash glue and blotting papers.
Get the photos. The United Theater’s Gothic interior is one of LA’s best backdrops. Book a portrait before you go.
FAQ
Is Hercules vs. Vampires all ages? Ages 9 and up are suggested for the show. The costume contest is 18+.
Where is the United Theater on Broadway? 929 S. Broadway, Downtown LA, inside the United Artists Building.
Listen to The Perlas Protocol. Fashion, nightlife and the culture behind them, every week. Listen on Spotify , Support the show on Patreon , Book a Lillith Magic shoot , lillithmagic , Nightlife Report
Chapter fifteen. Halloween Weekend in Los Angeles: The Final Guide, From Descanso Mornings to the WeHo Carnaval and Code Red.
LA Nightlife , Halloween
A Saturday Halloween, finally. Here is how to spend every hour of it.
Darlings, it is finally here: a Saturday Halloween, the first since 2020, and Los Angeles intends to use every hour of it. This is the Nightlife Report final guide, built for planning on Friday and checking again on Saturday morning. Daytime is for gardens, zoos and the little ones; nighttime is for Santa Monica Boulevard; and the very late hours belong to Code Red. Every time below is Pacific.
Saturday morning and afternoon
Descanso Gardens, La Cañada Flintridge, 9 A M to 5 P M Halloween Day at Descanso is included with regular admission, according to the gardens, and the Pumpkin Express train runs from 9 A M to 4 P M It is the elegant choice: costumes among the oaks, and home before the traffic turns.
Boo at the L.A. Zoo, Saturday and Sunday. The zoo’s Halloween weekend offers trick-or-treating from 10 A M to 3 P M, and on Saturday the Bob Baker Marionettes perform at 11 A M and 1 P M, according to the zoo’s event page. Costumes are encouraged.
DTLA Halloween Festival, Grand Hope Park, 5 to 8 P M The DTLA Alliance hosts a free festival for children ages 2 to 8 at 919 S. Grand Ave., according to its event page; children under 3 are free. It is the bridge between the daytime parties and the evening ones.
Saturday night: West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval
The big one is free, 6 to 11 P M The City of West Hollywood’s Halloween Carnaval fills Santa Monica Boulevard between North Doheny Drive and North La Cienega Boulevard, with a DJ stage at San Vicente Boulevard, according to the city.
Know the rules before you go. The city says no alcohol is permitted on the route and backpacks are not allowed, though clear bags are fine. The event is not recommended for young children or pets.
Road closures. Santa Monica Boulevard closes in stages from 10 A M Saturday between Croft and Holloway and La Cienega, is fully closed by noon, and reopens by 6 A M Sunday, November 1, according to the city. If you are passing through WeHo on Saturday for any reason at all, take Sunset or Beverly instead.
The free ride. The city’s free WeHo Halloween Ride runs from 6 P M to 3 A M between La Brea Avenue and Kings Road, and a link to the Hollywood/Highland Metro station runs from 6 P M to midnight, the city says. Details are posted at wehopickup.com.
Late night: Code Red
When the Carnaval ends at 11, the night does not. Code Red’s HALLOWEEN! ft. Don Woezik starts at 11 P M Saturday. Tickets are in the box at the end of this article. Wear the costume you planned in August.
One more thing: the clocks
Daylight saving time ends at 2 A M Sunday, November 1. Clocks fall back one hour, so the party technically gains an hour, and so does your sleep. Your phone will adjust itself; the oven clock and the car will not.
The Nightlife Report checklist
Charge your phone and download your tickets before you leave.
Pick a meeting point in case the group splits; phones get slow in a crowd that size.
Use the free WeHo ride or a rideshare, and keep the car at home.
Clear bag only for the Carnaval; no backpacks, no alcohol.
Eat before 6 P M; every restaurant on the strip will be full.
City of West Hollywood: Halloween in West Hollywood
Visit West Hollywood: Halloween Carnaval
Descanso Gardens: Halloween Day at Descanso 2026
Los Angeles Zoo: Boo at the L.A. Zoo 2026
DTLA Alliance: Halloween Festival
timeanddate.com: Daylight saving time changes in Los Angeles
You are invited: Code Red, Halloween night.
Nightlife Report is funded by readers. Back the reporting at .
Chapter sixteen. The Pulse: Manhattan’s Harry Styles Day, the Village Parade, LA’s Gas Relief and Eileen Ford’s Business of Beauty.
The Pulse , LA / NYC
“Models are a business,” Eileen Ford said. This Halloween weekend, so is everything else.
Darlings, Eileen Ford ran the most famous modeling agency in the world on one unsentimental rule. “Models are a business,” she told the Toronto Star in 1988, “and they have to treat themselves as a business.” On the last Friday before Halloween, both coasts are proving her right. New York is treating a pop star as civic infrastructure, Los Angeles is doing arithmetic at the pump, and everyone is planning a costume as though it were a launch.
New York: a borough proclaims a pop star
Today is officially Harry Styles Appreciation Day in Manhattan. Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal proclaimed Friday, October 30, in honor of the singer, according to his office’s release and Rolling Stone . The timing is not accidental: Styles is closing his 30-night Together, Together residency at Madison Square Garden, which began Aug. 26 and, by the borough president’s estimate, drew some 540,000 people. The release calls Styles “a once-in-a-generation musical talent.”
The final two nights are billed as Harryween, at 8 P M Eastern tonight and Saturday, with doors at 7, according to the Garden’s event page. Expect a crowd on Seventh Avenue: the borough president’s office lists merchandise sales from noon to 5 P M both days on Seventh Avenue between 31st and 33rd Streets.
The Ford verdict: a month of sold-out nights is not luck; it is booking discipline. Mrs. Ford told People in 1983, “I create a look and I create a style.” A residency is the same idea at stadium scale: one look, one address, thirty nights, and a city that ends up proclaiming it.
New York: Body & Soul on Sixth Avenue
The Village Halloween Parade returns Saturday at 7 P M The 53rd edition steps off rain or shine, according to the parade’s official site, with the theme “Body & Soul.” Downtown legend Joey Arias is the grand marshal, and a new puppet performance, Firehorse , by puppeteer Basil Twist leads the procession. Anyone in costume may march; Spectrum News NY1 carries it live at 8 P M The official parade parties, The Vampire Ball at Industry City, run Friday and Saturday from 9 P M to 5 A M for guests 21 and over.
The Ford verdict: the parade is New York’s open casting call, and Mrs. Ford’s daughter Katie once said her mother’s “greatest thrill was to spot a model in the daily course of life.” Saturday on Sixth Avenue, the daily course of life arrives in sequins.
Los Angeles: the pump finally blinks
Gas is falling, slowly. The Auto Club’s weekly report, released October 29, put the Los Angeles–Long Beach average at about 6 dollars and 1 cents a gallon, down 14 cents in a week but still 1 dollars and 39 cents higher than a year ago. The California average was 5 dollars and 94 cents; the national average, 4 dollars and 22 cents. Separately, 2UrbanGirls reported that the Los Angeles County average had dropped for the 26th time in 27 days, to about 6 dollars and 5 cents, against a record of 6 dollars and 49 cents set October 5, 2022.
The Ford verdict: “Models are a business,” and so is a Saturday night. Fourteen cents a gallon is not a windfall, but it is the first good news in weeks for anyone planning to drive across town in a costume. Plan the route before the outfit.
Los Angeles: a rare Saturday Halloween
The city is treating Saturday as a holiday. On r/AskLosAngeles, a widely shared planning thread opens, “We have the rare gift of a Saturday Halloween this year. What is the move?” The official answer from West Hollywood is the free Halloween Carnaval, Saturday from 6 to 11 P M on Santa Monica Boulevard between North Doheny Drive and North La Cienega Boulevard. The city recommends leaving the car at home; our full weekend guide, with road closures, free shuttles and family-friendly daytime options, is on the homepage today.
The Ford verdict: Mrs. Ford was famous for firing models with a taste for late-night revelry, the Associated Press recalled. We would never go that far. But the discipline she demanded, sleep, preparation and a plan, is exactly what separates a legendary Halloween from a long walk home.
The superintelligence read
Read the two coasts together and the pattern is clear. The cultural conversation this week is not about novelty; it is about logistics. A borough office publishes merchandise hours. A parade publishes march-in rules. An auto club publishes a weekly price. A Reddit thread asks for a plan. Eileen Ford understood that beauty is a business of details, and in 2026 the details are public, searchable and free. The best-dressed person this weekend will also be the best-informed.
Office of the Manhattan Borough President (via Forth): Harry Styles Appreciation Day release (October 29, 2026)
Rolling Stone: Harry Styles Appreciation Day declared in Manhattan
Madison Square Garden: Harry Styles event page
NYC Village Halloween Parade: official site
AAA Auto Club of Southern California newsroom (weekly gas price report, October 29, 2026)
AAA weekly gas price report (mirror)
Reddit r/AskLosAngeles: What are we doing on Halloween?
City of West Hollywood: Halloween Carnaval
The Globe and Mail (Associated Press): Agency founder Eileen Ford set standard for modelling industry
You are invited: Code Red, Halloween night.
Nightlife Report is funded by readers. Back the reporting at .
That's the full read for Friday, October 30. Every story is on the Nightlife Report blog, at nightlife report dot app. To support the show and get more, join us at patreon dot com slash aperlas.
The Perlas Protocol. Lillith Magic, directed by Anthony Perlas. You know you love us. X O X O.
Part Two: We forgot some things
We forgot some things. This is Part Two.
Hello, Nightlife. This is The Perlas Protocol, the Nightlife Report, for Friday night, October 30, 2026. Earlier tonight we gave you ten and a half minutes. It was not enough. The stories we published over the last forty-eight hours did not fit in one episode, and some of them are the ones that matter most.
So tonight we go back in. Back to the runway, where a nurse refuses to pay to walk. Back to the Philippines, where four collaborators carry four rewrites of history. Back to a theater inside an old mortuary chapel. And back to the oldest rivalry in modeling, the house that Eileen Ford built, and the empire called Elite.
Every story you will hear comes from an article you can open tonight on blog.nightlifereport.app. Every source is on your screen. Nothing is invented. And if you want to argue with us, good. We have a Discord. Find it on the website.
Story one. Who is paying for the walk?
Fashion season just wrapped in Los Angeles. Front row was the hot ticket. But a ticketed front row is only half of the economy. The other half is backstage. Who gets cast. Who gets paid. And who gets asked to pay for the privilege.
Enter Bryan Vargas. A model based in Palm Desert, California. And a registered nurse. The man who walks a runway at night may be the one keeping someone alive in the morning.
We asked him what game the rest of his industry is playing that he refuses to play. He did not hedge. He told us the industry can be obsessed with age, height, appearance and connections. And then he said this: "I also refuse to pay for opportunities just to prove I belong."
Read that again. In an industry where emerging talent is told that exposure is the payment, that is not a complaint. That is a line in the sand.
Bryan came from the Philippines. He started over in the United States. He walked into casting rooms knowing he was not, in his words, the typical model the industry was looking for. He bet on himself anyway, all the way to New York Fashion Week.
And here is the twist that the hustle crowd will hate. With the invitations piling up, Bryan is slowing down. For the next ninety days, he told us, he is choosing his body, his health and the people who matter. "I'm not stepping away from modeling," he said. "I'm simply learning that success isn't always about constantly being busy."
So let us say it plainly, for every gatekeeper who still sells a runway slot to the artist who should be paid to fill it. The talent is not the customer. The talent is the product. Pay the walk.
Source: Nightlife Report, "I Don't Like Him. The Model Who Wants You to Say It."
Story two. Four collaborators. Four rewrites of Philippine history.
It started with a viral YouTube episode from the channel My Lunch Break. It opens with a promise: "Welcome to the destruction of the mainstream history." Its subject is Borobudur in Central Java, and its question is a good one. Who decides which parts of the past we get to see?
We took that instinct and paired it with a method. D.A.R.E. Decompose the problem. Audit the assumptions. Recombine the facts. Experiment against reality. Then we pointed it at the Philippines, with four Filipino creatives as our guides. Model Sofhia Flores. Model and nurse Bryan Vargas. Actor Lance Raymundo. And model Nicole Anne Williams.
The textbook short version of Philippine history rests on four claims. People arrived late. Writing began with Spain in 1521. The islands were a backwater until the galleons. And the rice terraces are two thousand years old. Every one of them has been rewritten by evidence.
Finding one, with Bryan Vargas. We were here far earlier. In 2018, a team led by Thomas Ingicco reported a butchered rhinoceros and fifty-seven stone tools at Kalinga, in Luzon, dated to about seven hundred and nine thousand years ago, published in Nature. In 2019, Florent Detroit and colleagues named a new human species, Homo luzonensis, from Callao Cave. The late arrival story was a convention, not a fact.
Finding two, with Sofhia Flores, from Nueva Ecija. We were writing before Magellan. The Laguna Copperplate Inscription is dated to the year 900. It records the cancellation of a debt, and it names Tondo. No history before 1521? That was a convention.
Finding three, with Nicole Anne Williams. We were a sea power and a gold economy. Butuan's balangay boats carry radiocarbon dates as early as 320, according to the National Museum of the Philippines. The Golden Tara, almost two kilograms of cast gold, was found in Agusan in 1917. And the Song dynasty history records envoys from Butuan in the year 1001.
Finding four, with Lance Raymundo. The terraces may be younger, and that is the brave part. For most of the twentieth century, guidebooks said the Ifugao terraces were two to three thousand years old. That number came from estimates, not from dating. Filipino archaeologist Stephen Acabado ran radiocarbon and Bayesian analysis and found that many terraces were built after about 1600. His later work argues that Ifugao communities expanded the terraces while resisting Spanish control in the mountains.
Read that slowly. The debunk did not shrink our history. It made it braver. A people built mountains of rice to stay free.
And we audited the debunkers too. The so-called Code of Kalantiaw, taught in Philippine schools for decades, was shown by historian William Henry Scott in 1968 to be a twentieth-century forgery. Evidence cuts both ways. That is the point.
And the fourth power on today's world stage? Four Miss Universe crowns. Gloria Diaz. Margie Moran. Pia Wurtzbach. Catriona Gray. A nation told it was small keeps refusing the small story.
Source: Nightlife Report, "Four Collaborators, Four Rewrites of Philippine History."
Story three. The buried panels.
The same video makes three big claims about Borobudur. That three temples sit on one perfect line. That the monument was a machine. And that its hidden panels were taken, and, quote, "somebody has those."
We checked every one against the record. Credit where it is due: his panel counts are right. Two thousand six hundred and seventy-two relief panels. One hundred and sixty on the hidden foot, all about cause and effect. And the line is real. Mendut, Pawon and Borobudur lie close to a straight line about three kilometers long.
But the cover-up does not hold. Engineer J. W. IJzerman uncovered the hidden foot in 1885. Between 1890 and 1891, the Javanese photographer Kassian Cephas photographed all one hundred and sixty panels before they were covered again. Those plates are held at Leiden University Library, and you can view them online. Four panels remain exposed at the southeast corner today.
The machine? No evidence. The 1970s restoration was led by an Indonesian archaeologist, Professor Soekmono, with UNESCO support, to stop the monument from collapsing in the rain. Not to switch anything off.
So here is our verdict. Ask who decides what you get to see. Always. Then open the archive. The truth was never stolen. It was waiting in a library for someone to look.
Source: Nightlife Report, "Borobudur's Buried Panels: The Video, the Record and the Filipino Thread."
Story four. Lance Raymundo takes The Hot Seat.
Actor Lance Raymundo answered our questions exactly as he wrote them, and he did not waste a word.
Most overrated? Brand hype and logos.
His unpopular opinion: TikTok and Instagram greatly govern the trends, sometimes diminishing creativity and originality.
The rule to break tonight? The dress shoes rule for men. What does LA get wrong? Comfort over fashion.
In five years, he expects climate change to hit hard, and he foresees a lot of menswear in breathable fabric. The one change he wants at Fashion Week? Stop allowing late celebrities in mid-show.
And when we offered him the golden apple, he passed.
Think about that. In a room full of people who would trade anything for a trophy, the actor shrugged it off. That is not modesty. That is a man who knows the work is the prize.
Source: Nightlife Report, "Lance Raymundo Takes The Hot Seat."
Story five. "I'm not done yet."
There is a theater in Pasadena that lives inside an old mortuary chapel. It is called the Parsons Nose Theater. And when its founders, Lance and Mary, semi-retired to be near their grandchild in New York, someone had to step up so the lights would not go dark.
Gary B. Lamb stepped up. His first show as Producing Artistic Director, "A Complete History of the American Musical, in Ninety Minutes or Less," sold out all seven performances.
It nearly broke him. He told us that working out the kinks in a new lighting and projection system almost gave him another heart attack. They calmed down, and they changed the hierarchy.
What game is his industry playing that he refuses to play? "We don't care about others right now," he said. "All we care about is improving everything about our image in the community and the value of our product."
Next: "Shakespeare On Love," which weaves couples therapy scenes into Shakespeare. A bolder Christmas Carol. And in February, a new play about the early life of Frederick Douglass.
What has to change to reach ten times the audience? "Marketing, marketing and marketing."
And why now, at his age? "I'm not done yet."
Neither are we. The pandemic slowed theater down. Gary is refusing to let it stay down. Go see a show at parsonsnose.com.
Source: Nightlife Report, "I'm Not Done Yet: Gary B. Lamb Keeps a Theater Alive Inside an Old Mortuary Chapel."
Story six. The house of Ford, and the empire of Elite.
Darlings, Eileen Ford ran the most famous modeling agency in the world on one unsentimental rule. "Models are a business," she told the Toronto Star in 1988, "and they have to treat themselves as a business."
Her daughter Katie told the Associated Press that her mother's greatest thrill was to spot a model in the daily course of life. Not at a party. On a street. In a crowd. Before anyone else.
That eye still echoes. This week we interviewed Lorin Cole, a New York makeup artist whose story begins at the Philadelphia College of Art, when she was offered a modeling contract with the Ford Agency. On a French Vogue beauty shoot, the photographer handed the model the brushes and asked her to do everyone's face. She never looked back.
Now look at the other side of the ledger. Elite World Group: Elite, The Society, Women Management and Supreme. According to WWD, the group has counted about four thousand talents under contract, and a Delaware court ruled on who actually controls it. Years of ownership litigation, fought over control.
So here is the drama. One house was built on a woman's eye and a business rule. The other became a portfolio, argued over in court. And four thousand faces on one roster raises one question every model should ask. Are you the talent, or are you the inventory?
That is where OTTE comes in. OTTE Models is the Admiral's brand, built to carry the Eileen Ford standard forward: spot the talent in the daily course of life, and treat the model as a business, her business. Our unpopular opinion: the next great agency will be a creator collective that owns its own audience. And the big houses know it.
Sources: Nightlife Report, The Pulse, on Eileen Ford; Nightlife Report, Lorin Cole; WWD, on Elite World Group.
Story seven. Silence, then one word.
After more than five years off social media, Bottega Veneta switched its Instagram back on. On October 28, the account posted a single Story on a dark background. One word. "Ciao." About two point four million followers were still waiting, according to MilanoFinanza.
Bottega proved a brand can build desire by stepping away. Its return proves something else. Even the quietest house eventually needs a direct line to its audience. Own your channel. Keep your archive.
And Adriana Lima does not need a comeback. Brands need her. Baccarat Hotel and Residences Maldives unveiled a campaign starring the Brazilian supermodel on October 23, photographed by Russell James against the Indian Ocean. James called it one of the most authentic and logical photographic series he has had the pleasure to create.
Sources: Nightlife Report Fashion Desk and Supermodels Desk; Vanity Fair Italia; PR Newswire via The Manila Times.
Story eight. They are firing the photo studios.
On October 28, PetaPixel reported photo studios closing as retailers change how they make product images. Reuters, carried by The Japan Times, reviewed shoot contracts with language that lets brands alter, swap and reuse a person's likeness.
Faster. More uniform. Same inputs, same output.
Now meet the opposite. Marianna Di Giansante, the Brooklyn founder of Argilla NYC, sculpts every porcelain ring by hand. She was a line cook who imagined her food on vessels of her own making. The next day she was in her first pottery class. "A mold would be faster," she told us, "but it would also make every ring a copy of the last one."
And that is why we published "If You Made It and Can't Prove It, You Don't Own It." The record of Nikola Tesla and Wardenclyffe is a warning to every artist. Genius without paperwork gets demolished. Document your work. Sign your work. Credit your collaborators. Own it.
Sources: Nightlife Report, Marianna Di Giansante; PetaPixel; Reuters via The Japan Times; Nightlife Report Culture, on authorship and credit.
Story nine. Discipline in black tailoring.
By day, Rajesh Karnam works in enterprise IT infrastructure. On the runway, he is all-black tailoring and what he calls unapologetic intensity. And he thinks the industry's favorite advice is wrong. "Trying to be versatile by watering yourself down just makes you invisible."
He audited every photo in his portfolio. He archived anything dated. He stopped chasing every random casting call. "I started curating the exact rooms I wanted to be in."
The gatekeepers want volume. Rajesh wants the right room. Guess who wins the long game.
Source: Nightlife Report, "Discipline in Black Tailoring: Rajesh Karnam in The Hot Seat."
Story ten. How to spot a pile-on.
Every artist who refuses to play the game meets the same thing eventually. The pile-on. So we published a research brief on spotting online bullying by pattern, not by one comment.
Researchers define bullying by three things together. Repetition. A power imbalance. And intent to harm or exclude. One rude reply is noise. The same tactic, from linked accounts, again and again, is a signal. Harsh criticism of your work usually fails the repetition test.
And short videos that name a manipulation tactic before people meet it make audiences better at spotting it, according to research in Science Advances. Name the tactic. Use the silent tools. Keep creating. Sparta trained warriors. Rome built institutions. The communities that last are the ones that protect their makers.
Source: Nightlife Report research brief, "Spot Online Bullying by Pattern: What Sparta and Rome Teach Creatives."
Story eleven. The red carpets that set the season.
Four nights in five weeks will decide what Los Angeles wears until January. Women In Film opens the run on November 5 at The Beverly Hilton, where Jane Fonda will present Salma Hayek Pinault with the Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award. The LACMA Art plus Film Gala follows on November 7, honoring Vija Celmins and Denis Villeneuve. The Academy's Governors Awards arrive on November 15. And on December 7, the Golden Globes nominations land.
In New York, Keke Palmer hosts the CFDA Fashion Awards on November 2 at the American Museum of Natural History, where Anthony Vaccarello is International Designer of the Year. And the Gotham Awards close the month on November 30 at Cipriani Wall Street.
Sources: Nightlife Report LA Desk and NYC Desk; WIF; LACMA; CFDA.
So that is what we forgot. And here is what it adds up to.
A nurse who will not pay to walk. Four Filipinos who carry a history older and braver than the textbooks admit. An actor who passed on the golden apple. A man who saved a theater in a chapel. A woman whose eye built an industry, and a rival that ended up in court. A ring maker who refuses the mold.
The gatekeepers still sell the slots. The artists are still told exposure is payment. We are done asking politely. Build the company. Own the channel. Pay the talent.
Every article is on blog.nightlifereport.app. We have a Discord. Find it on the website, nightlifereport.app, and join the conversation.
This has been The Perlas Protocol, Part Two. Lillith Magic. Directed by Anthony Perlas. Good night, Nightlife.
#NightlifeReport #ThePerlasProtocol #FilipinoCreatives #PayTheTalent #LosAngeles
Lillith Magic · Directed by Anthony Perlas.
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