And finally today, watching movies in actual movie theaters is a thing again, at least for the moment.
FOLKENFLIK: “House Of Gucci” tells the story of how the Gucci family lost control of the company that still bears their name and of how the company’s former CEO, Maurizio Gucci, lost his life to a hitman hired by his former wife, Patrizia Reggiani.
But, no, I spent two years of my life writing this book and went deep into all the twists and turns of this family’s saga, and it was really quite incredible to see it on the big screen with a director of the caliber of Ridley Scott and the star-studded cast.
I was covering this incredible moment in the history of the Italian fashion industry, as many family-owned labels like Armani and Prada and Versace were making this quantum leap from being family brands to being mega brands.
And they’re also, all of them, flawed, even Maurizio, who starts off seemingly uninterested in the wealth, uninterested in the family practice, uninterested in the glitz of it.
FORDEN: You know, I had to kind of lose myself in this narrative and in these characters in order to kind of come out the other end with the book.
FORDEN: Part of the foundation for the tension and the infighting in the family had to do with the family’s shareholding structure and the fact that, you know, Rodolfo and Aldo each had 50%.
But then when Rodolfo passed on and his 50% went to his son Maurizio, and then Aldo started to divide up his share of the company with his sons, then things started to get complicated.
And I think with this – my book, with the movie and, you know, Gucci now moving forward to the next – into its next century, it’s really, in a way for the first time, connected its past with its future.
I mean, you, as a fellow Washingtonian, may recall that the floor of Congress was was famously nicknamed Gucci Gulch at one point in the ’80s because all the lobbyists were wearing Gucci loafers.
FORDEN: And that’s actually – you point to a really critical moment in Gucci’s history and a critical question that the family struggled with but that also, you know, its private owners struggle with now.
And it’s now filled with objects from over the decades, everything from the first carrying case with the precursor to the GG logo, fabric, to things like desk sets and cocktail sets.
FOLKENFLIK: That’s Sara Gay Forden, author of “The House Of Gucci: A Sensational Story Of Murder, Madness, Glamour And Greed.” The new film based on that book stars Lady Gaga and Adam Driver, and it’s out now.
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