By Mark La Monica
The question was met with stunning bewilderment. What could my answer possibly have been to a question like this?
Waiting in the holding are for the Carmen Marc Valvo show with Web compadre Sheed, we were asked, "Do you guys want runway access?"
Um, er, uh, excuse me? Did our new favorite fashion organizing person really use those words in the interrogative form?
I paused for roughly .23 seconds to analyze the situation and proceeded with a simple "Yes!"
It would appear Valvo is a fan of Newsday, most likely because he got some good play in the newspaper one day. But, really, who cares why? In fashion, it's all about who you know and how far that can get you.
[Public disclosure: Access works like this for the media: It is at the designer's discretion who goes on the A list, who goes on the B list and who goes on the F- list. One show, you're a prima dog. The next, you're a dog with fleas.]
Armed with "Sorry, Mr. Security Man, but you can't stop me now" passes, Sheed and I decided to maximize the moment. Much needed to be done. We had to walk around and look for famous people if for no other than we could walk around and look for famous people. After spending all the shows in the pit with the grimy paparazzi (and a few nice ones, too), it was time to stretch our legs. Plus, there is the fact that we can tell our grandkids, "Oh, modeling? Yeah, yeah, I been there, kid."
Runway access allows the media to get closer and more personal to famous people, which apparently is more important to some photographers than the clothing.
For much of my time on the runway, we had no celebrities to gawk at. Just some dude in a half-Prince, half-David Lee Roth 'Just a Gigolo' suit with an orange feather sticking out of his purple hat.
That's typical La Monica luck. Then, just as I was being asked to leave the runway for the third time, Vanessa Williams strolled by. I won.