Born On the 11th of September

When the team and I got together to begin brainstorming the concept behind Alexandra Highcrest Magazine the first thing we decided was that magazine would not be about me. The ‘net is filled to overflowing with diary journals (I hate the word “blog”) and most that we’ve read are so boring. Why should we care about the personal lives of individuals we don’t know and have never heard of?

Over the last few months a pattern developed during our editorial meetings. I’d go off on rants that had little or nothing to do with the magazine’s mandate (OK, we do indulge Paddy his love of aviation but why not, airplanes are beautiful and flying was once very fashionable). Occasionally a rant would evolve into an article but more often the point would be sent to the circular file and lost. “Shame!,” said Karen, “we should find a way to incorporate these ideas into the mag.” I agreed and The September Issue category was born. Think of it as a collection of letters from the editor; if Anna Wintour can do it so can I.

Why entitle this category The September Issue? Sure, the September issue of US Vogue is the biggest and most important issue of Vogue, and is considered the Bible for the coming year’s fashions, but that’s not why. I was born on the 11^th of September.

Obviously the 11^th is an infamous date, and it’s not blessed with the cache of say the 4^th of July. Years ago, before he became a spokesmodel for Scientology, Tom Cruise starred in an Oliver Stone movie Born On the 4^th of July, which tells the story of the disabled Vietnam War vet Ron Kovic (who was born on…well, you get it). When Kovic returns home paralyzed from the waist down due to a gunshot wound he finds that America has turned its back on its soldiers. It was a good movie with a great title. Will anyone make a movie entitled Born On the 11^th of September? Not likely in the US-dominated western world.

All the living Highcrest women have been born on significant dates. My mother was born on the 6^th of June (D-Day), my sister on the 13^th of October—Friday the 13^th. I also share my birth date with a number of famous people: Lola Falana, O. Henry, D.H. Lawrence, Ludacris, Kristy McNichol, Jessica Mitford, and Brian de Palma to name a few. I’m pleased that three of the people on this list are writers.

So now you know I was born today, but I won’t say in what year; safe to say I can drink legally in any country with a state-sanctioned drinking age. Happy Birthday to me, happy birthday to….

Ciao for now.

Tags: 9-11, Vietnam, Vogue