Photo via Advanced Style

Sorry for the lack of updates.  I’ve been busy trying to figure out how to make a living and this is probably the least likely of my pursuits to assist in that mission.  But I couldn’t stay away for long.

I am addicted to TruTV (formerly CourtTV.)  I don’t actually sit and watch it.  I like to have it on while I’m doing other things, especially when there is a large block of episodes of Forensic Files, or The Investigators, or Mission Road, which are all pretty much the same: like a candle, it creates a certain ambiance in my room.

One show that draws me in more is Dominick Dunne: Power Privilege and Justice where crime writer Dominick Dunne narrates the stories of various high-profile crimes and sometimes casually mentions that he had once hung out with the criminal or murderer in question at a fancy party somewhere.

I recently saw an episode called Maternal Instinct about the murder of Pati Margello, the girlfriend of a son from a prominent family.

During the episode there was a quick interview with a woman.  She wasn’t involved in the crime, but she was an older New York socialite who knew the people involved and described their lifestyle.  Her name was Anne Slater and she was wearing the coolest glasses.

They’re somewhere in between regular glasses and sunglasses.  Cobalt blue frames AND lenses.  That is the kicker- that the frames and lenses are the exact same color. I immediately googled her and found that these glasses are her trademark.  I learned from a 2004 New York Times article by Cathy Horyn
that Ms. Slater bought 36 pairs of these glasses in the late 1950’s from a Philidelphia optician, which is a good thing since she later found out the frames couldn’t be manufactured anymore because they were flammable.

I so wish I could have one of her pairs of glasses, as a collector’s item, and I’d try them on in my room from time to time.  But I should probably find my own trademark.  For a while I was wearing ‘The Claw’ but too many people thought it was for doing Cocaine.

There are so many eccentrically stylish older people on the UES.  I’m often too shy to approach them for a photograph but I’ll work on it.  For now, here are some photos of Anne Slater in her blue glasses.  And if anyone has any photos please send them in.

Photo via TheresaLDuncan

Photo by Leonard Mccombe, 1961, via LIFE.

Afterthoughts:

It’s funny to think that Anne Slater has been seeing the world through blue lenses for most of her life.

Also, it’s kind of interesting to note that I learned of Anne Slater on a show whose host, Dominick Dunne, is also identifiable by his glasses.

Photo via Newsday

Links:
Anne Slater on Advanced Style
Cool old family photos of Dominick Dunne
Anne Slater’s Apartment on NYMag