V.F. Diary

DEBORAH MITCHELL

The Whitneys' secret sandcastle; Galliano and Talley bear all; Crispo's asbestos defense

Bad weather is good news for Marylou Whitney, the nation's most glamorous—and most unlikely-purveyor of sand and gravel. Endless snowstorms this winter created a surprise sand rush, and tons of the earthy materiels are mined from large quarries at Whitney Park in the Adirondacks. The Whitney family has owned the 52,000-acre estate since 1896, but after her husband, Sonny, died in late 1992, Marylou tried to sell the place to New York State. Those talks broke down late last year, so Marylou, as chairman of the board of Whitney Industries, decided to revitalize the family's gravel, sand, and lumber businesses instead. Currently, the intrepid Mrs. Whitney is taking a break: she's dogsledding in Alaska.

BURNT TO A CRISPO?

Andrew Crispo has a genius for getting both into and out of trouble. The notorious art dealer served nearly three years in prison for income-tax evasion—easy time compared with what might have been, had he not been acquitted of kidnapping and torture in an unrelated case. Soon after his 1989 release, his Southampton home exploded—leading to an unprecedented $7.6 million settlement from Lilco, the local utilities company. Will he be so lucky with his current troubles? Last November, Crispo moved out of his Madison Avenue office just before he was to be evicted for nonpayment of rent. Crispo's lawyer says his client refuses to settle up, explaining that a leak caused the ceiling to fall, which created an asbestos problem. The landlord, who isn't aware of any asbestos violation, has not yet decided whether to sue his erstwhile tenant. Crispo is now operating his Rittenhouse Fine Art business from his (presumably asbestos-free) Greenwich Village apartment. The 4,500-squarefoot office suite, once the East Coast outpost of MCA's Jules Stein, is now for rent: about $180,000 a year, plus utilities.

AND...

. . . Robin Williams, Sting, and David Letterman were among the 140 celebrities and members of the style monde who dressed up teddy bears, which were then auctioned off at a benefit for Housing Works held at Industria Superstudio. But Andr£ Leon Talley didn't stop with a stuffed animal. Before taking the stage to help sell the teddies, he dressed or, rather, coiffed designer John Galliano.

"I had to stand on a chair," Talley explained. "I didn't want white hair spray on my brand-new Gaultier coat."

... It was a case of good timing for lawyer Herbert Wachtell. The same week that he successfully argued QVC's case before the Delaware Supreme Court, he worked on a deal to sell his Fifth Avenue apartment for about $5.5 million. If the deal closes as expected, buyer Nicholas Forstmann (a partner with his brother Ted at Forstmann Little) will have an impressive first-anniversary present for his new wife, Lana.

. . . Remember when models dreamed of becoming actresses? These days, so many actresses are eager to model that Elite is starting a special division for them. Nastassja Kinski and Drew Barrymore are among those who've signed up. ''I think it's fun for those actresses to assume the role of model," says agency president Monique Pillard.

... In New York, cross-dressers have been crossing over since 1702, when Queen Anne appointed her transvestite cousin, Lord Cornbury, governor. Criticized for presiding over a meeting in drag, Cornbury replied, ''I represent a woman and ought in all respects to represent her as faithfully as I can." His sentiments were taken from an 18th-century diary and are reported by Richard Zacks in History Laid Bare (HarperCollins). A portrait of the early governor, wearing a ball gown but needing a shave, now hangs in the New-York Historical Society.