Bill CunninghamFashion Climbing: A New York Life

I loved this book so much I couldn’t put it down. After becoming away of Bill from the amazing DVD Bill Cunningham New York I was delighted to discover this book written by him and it is such an honest and often comical insight into this amazing mans life. I would highly recommend to any fashion fans.

Most of us know Bill Cunningham (yes, THAT one; with the camera, the bike, and the denim jacket) from his street-savvy photography and his New York State of Mind notoriety. But, lucky for us, when he died Bill left this memoir in one of the drawers of his many file cabinets. And as he would say, this book is a lulu. I keep turning over rocks trying to find out if he intended this book to be published. I mean -- One assumes that Bill Cunningham would only have to make one phone call to have a juicy book deal. And yet this typed manuscript languished in a drawer; only to be discovered after he passed. So - draw your own conclusions.It's a slim volume full of goodness. It is written in a breezy personal "oh, WAIT for the punchline" style, punctuated by Bill-isms like "It's a dilly!". Best of all, it gives us a deep dive into his earliest days; revealing a lifelong Creative who got anything-but a standing ovation at home. He needed to get out into the world in order to find his tribe; and all that ignited in Manhattan circa 1948 and onward. While we learn about Bill's earliest days in retail, the story quickly transitions into his career as a milliner. A hat guy. His moniker, William J, was a non de plume for a young man whose family would have been scandalized to learn what he was actually doing. But Bill always amassed his own custom-ordered cheering section; whether they were fresh young things who became fabulous mannikins for his creations, and protective grand dames who bought his hats and then brought their friends. The irrepressible "hey kids, let's give a show!" vibe prevails -- I lost track of how many times he moved and moved and moved his studio/storefront -- but each time he managed to create beauty in the midst of creepy/moldy low-rent brownstones, and his career was defined by both epic feasts and dire famines. Decrepit walls were covered -- voila! -- with brocade drapes found in a dumpster and ostrich feathers. (no, really...…) He was famous for carting around his own bed, because he always "lived above the store". Any money he had was always put right back into the business, and lean times found him eating hot dogs at Nedick's. He was a total misfit for the world of retail and manufacturing -- but was a whiz atOne Of A Kind. When the Sixties arrived he realized that hats were going to be a non-issue; so he pivoted to writing for Women's Wear Daily and seemingly taught himself photography. Like Zelig, he seemed to be everywhere before it became Somewhere. He had a storefront in the Hamptons before it was considered anywhere special. When uptown was hip, he was in The Village -- and when downtown was "the place" he was up on Museum Row. He loved theatricality and occasions. The book has a generous handful of his personal scrapbook snapshots, and we see a wide-eyed grinning Bill having Quite The Time.Bill arrived in New York City about 19 years before I did - and I thoroughly loved reading his recollections of Living Large On A Shoestring. Like me, he considered the place to be his personal Shangri La -- a glittering metropolis that could still be decorated on a dimestore budget. He snuck into operas, fashion shows, ateliers, invitation-only galas, and ballrooms. He commented it felt "peculiar" to walk in the FRONT entrance of the Waldorf since he had been sneaking in through the Laundry Door all those years. (smile) When he was low (and even hungry) he could always re-boot by witnessing beauty. Midnight walks past store windows would restore his spirit and launch new ideas.Rarely do we get to hear such granular details of the great expectations of a creative mind. He muses about how he came to prize his originality, and how he stayed faithful to his own best ideas, whether they paid the rent or not.A wonderful book - an amazing man.

Even before the book was published I had read a brief summary I think in The New York Times and at first was disappointed that the book would not cover up to most recent events in Bill Cunningham's life and the fashion world. But once I read it boy was I glad it didn't because through the very time distance it brings across the past even more intensively.Bill Cunningham's language is a very pleasure to read, and if you have a thing for language, as I do, you'll surely enjoy the sometimes old fashioned words, expressions or idioms he uses. The book is an extraordinary read, I frankly had a hard time to put it aside and as a matter of fact it took me only say three or four days to finish it. What I found most fascinating was how Cunningham described the different eras and what it felt like to live the and there.On a personal side it gives you a very close view into Cunningham's view of the world, how he lived his life, and why he did it the way he did. It complements the picture of him you might have from reading his column in The Times, and from other sources, like news articles and the media.I had the pleasure to run into Bill a few times in New York City - he on his bike on street say a year before he passed, and another time earlier at one of the fashion shows at Lincoln Center. On the latter he was chatting with Isabella Blow when I asked him if I could take a picture - as expected he shook his head and turned the other way.This book is a must for people interested in fashion in general and the wonderful person of Bill Cunningham in particular. Beyond that, it shows you how you can find your own way in life, despite - or even - because of supposed adverse circumstances.I am happy the manuscript was discovered in Bill Cunningham's estate that and his family decided to have it published its a winner for all of us.

I came from discovering Bill from the documentary film, more from a photographer's perspective than a perspective of fashion, which the book is heavily geared towards, slightly disappointing it didn't detail how and why he decided to pick up a camera, but a wonderful read non-the-less. His strength of personality comes through, like chatting to an old friend, with an frank portrayal of his life and not omitting bad decisions from his life, or pretending a good decision was born from design.Printing quality was a slight issue on my early copy, the print on a few pages was very faint; however it is a nice read.

Everything I had ever read about Bill Cunningham was flattering and kind. This is exactly the style of this book. Mr Cunningham wants to comment( kindly) and instruct his readers in the art of dressing l.p.fashionably. He succeeds admirably. Charming book written by the late Bill Cunningham.