Ironically Tommy Hilfiger presented his wonderful and wearable Spring 2012 collection on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and he and I actually spent the terrifying day of 9/11 together and he was heroic. Here’s what happened.
Tommy Hilfiger was my personal hero on 9/11.
That’s because he took care of me, his daughter Ally, now the designer of the NAHM collection, and a number of his employees on that very terrifying day.
Tommy and I were at a scheduled breakfast together on the morning of 9/11. We’d been friends for many years and were chatting about all our latest work and family news when a man came running through our restaurant at about 8:45 am, shouting that planes had hit the World Trade Center and that it was a terrorist attack.
All of a sudden a hush went over the entire restaurant and we could see outside that people began pouring out of the subways as the public transit system closed down.
Tommy sprang into action and invited me upstairs to the safety of his apartment while we figured out what was actually going on. Thank goodness he did.
Cell phones or even regular phones weren’t working. I couldn’t reach my husband Michael to tell him that I was safe and that I’d taken shelter with Tommy and that it was clear that I had no way of getting home.
From Tommy ‘s living room window we watched horrified as the Twin Towers fell while his daughter Ally and a group of Tommy’s employees gathered because like me, they had no where else to go. Graciously Tommy ordered everyone lunch and kept up our spirits as we watched the smoke from the burning towers envelop the lower Manhattan and as terrible TV news updates ,depressingly kept rolling in.
At about 5 pm Tommy decided that despite reports that all the bridges and tunnel out of Manhattan had been closed, he would try driving me and a few of his employees who lived outside NYC, home. He was also anxious to get home to his younger children in Connecticut.We all piled into his car and sure enough, the reports were wrong and we made it out of the city.
Thanks to Tommy I arrived at my doorstep, safe and sound.
Tommy and I talk about that shocking day in our video interview below as well as discuss his optimism about today and the future, expressed in his bright; pop art meets preppy Spring 2012 collection.
He was inspired by legendary 60′s artist Andy Warhol and his pop art colors. I love the bright houndstooth sundresses, skirt suits and shoes, and the turquoise and pink camouflage dresses are fantastic!
It’s a bold, optimistic collection and Tommy says that optimism was exactly the point he wanted to make.
“It’s time for Americans to be strong and to look ahead,” he told me. “I believe that positive energy pulls people out of bad places. We have to show young people that you can move forward with positive energy-you have to ride it!”
Well said Tommy! It’s exactly what you’ve done yourself.
Now Hollywoodlifers- take a look at photos and video of Tommy Hilfiger’s collection below. Have fun!
Bonnie Fuller
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