Kate Upton: 2013 Model Of The Year, Vanity Fair 100 Anniversary Covergirl

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In an effusion of immodest satisfaction, Graydon Carter, the Vanity Fair editor, launches a semi-rhetorical question in regards of the longevity of Vanity Fair magazine which is launching its 100 Anniversary edition this month:

‘In an age when nothing seems to last—not convictions, not even cities—a centennial, like the one Vanity Fair celebrates this year, makes me marvel at the simple fact of longevity.’

On the cover of its special anniversary edition, Kate Upton holds a mini-cake with one candle and looks as glamorous as Marilyn Monroe did. Back in her 1962s Happy Birthday, Mr. President heydays. So yeah, Mr Carter: I totally approve and join you in marveling at the simple fact of reenacting past glories over and over again and still being published month after month after month (last month’s covergirl? Late Lady Diana!)

I marvel at the stubborn politics of Vanity Fair’s editorial team who seems to be targeting past generations, past glamours of past eras with seemingly nothing worth reading by the new, contemporary demographic but tabloid-quality stories. This issue’s cover must’ve been particularly challenging as they risked and put 21 year old Kate Upton out there as photographed by Annie Leibovitz. In Vanity Fair standards, Kate is practically a newborn. An embryo (fun fact: miss Upton and yours truly share the same birthday. Not year. Just date: June 10th. In other words, I might’ve been more suitable to cover the anniversary issue of Vanity Fair! wink).

But if we’re to trust the very birth of Vanity Fair that we’re celebrating here, it’s suitable to concentrate on past glories: the magazine has been on and off bankruptcy and on and off publishing for so many times, it’s hard to pin-point all that on a coherent timeline (first published from 1859-1863 then from 1913-1936 and finally from 1983 to modern times). Mathematically speaking, we’d have to credit Vogue for the 1936-1983 period when Vanity Fair and Vogue were merged into one (below the ‘official’ first cover from 1913 provided by the Conde Nast archives that Kate Upton is said to re-enact in the inside pictorial of this month’s anniversary edition).

Furthermore into our syllogistic analysis: it’s like Kate Upton covered Vogue US for a second time in less than 6 months! Yeah, that deserves an award! For editorial lack of imagination! Ahem… for 2013 Model of the Year! Hip-hip and so forth!