S
ometimes in life you a given opportunities to meet people who can distinctly impact your point of view. When given the opportunity to interview this particular woman, I hoped some of her timeless beauty, quick wit, and charm would rub off on me. Reverend Laurel Tower is the type of woman who, with one look or arch of the brow, can tell a story: and my, does she have a story to tell. Laurel was born and educated in New York City. Her father was an “interesting man whom everybody loved” and he and his wife backed films and Broadway theatre productions. Mentored by some of the greats like actor, Basil Rathbone and famed violinist, Nathan Milstein, you could say Laurel grew up rubbing elbows with some amazing talent. It’s no wonder her passions grew
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to photography and beauty (she was sneaking lipstick at age 11), which led to her first entrance into the world of fashion. Vogue. One of the most esteemed fashion magazines in the world, and Laurel was asked to grace its cover. “Absolutely not!” Was my parents’ response, she said. Understandably, they believed the exposure would be too much at such a young age. Laurel did end up doing editorial pages for the magazine and later covers for other publications like Life, Bazaar, and Look, which then led to stomping down the runway for haute couture designers like Oscar de la Renta. After being in front of the camera, Laurel soon lost interest in performing and looked for other avenues to explore. She was offered a magazine editorship job for Town and Country Magazine. Fifteen editorial fashion pages a month and coordinating with the art director on page layouts took up plenty of hours. Any time leftover was spent making friends with those featured celebrities and covering fashion shows in New York, Milan and Paris. In the ‘80s, Tower was hired as Special Features Editor for Vogue Magazine;
UPGRADED LIVING | MARCH 2014 | UPGRADEDLIVING.COM
VOGUE.
One of the most esteemed fashion magazines in the world, and Laurel was asked to grace its cover.
she also helped produce special editorial pages with world renowned Fashion Editor, Grace Mirabella. “Every girl’s dream” comes to mind as Laurel describes those years. She was married early, hopelessly in love, and had two sons. But due to her independent nature, it wasn’t always easy. She laughed and noted, “It has been hard for men to put up with me and for me to put up with them!” Sitting across from me in her bright coral jacket, with pops of sparkling brooches pinned on, and matching lipstick, it is incredibly easy to believe that Laurel was a high society Park Avenue socialite of New York. However, her warmth and willingness to make people comfortable is the opposite of what you might consider cliché characteristics of the rich and famous. We ambled around her apartment with her diva-esque cat, Victory, following closely behind as we looked at old photographs.