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ON VANITYFAIR.COM THIS MONTH:

• EXCLUSIVE: BRUCE HANDY ON J. T. LEROY •V.F. ESSAY CONTEST: WINNER AND RUNNERS-UP • NEW ORLEANS: A FATHER AND SON REMEMBER

FEATURES

124 A FACE ONLY A PRESIDENT COULD LOVE Thirty years ago Dick Cheney was the likable young star of the moderate Ford administration. Today he's a snarling caricature of White House extremism and incompetence. Is his heart condition to blame? The shock of 9/11? The fortune he made at Halliburton? In exclusive interviews with the V.P., his wife, and longtime friends and colleagues, Todd Purdum explores the disconnect between Cheney past and Cheney present. Photographs by David Hume Kennedy.

130 HOW NEW ORLEANS DROWNED As Katrina bore down on New Orleans, the city's survival lay in the hands of a showboating mayor, an ill-prepared governor, a miscast Bush crony at FEMA, and a clueless White House. In an excerpt from The Great Deluge, historian Douglas Brinkley follows the key players through the fateful first week to show that, thanks to meltdowns, infighting, and miscalculations, the Big Easy never had a chance. Portraits by Harry Benson.

136 WALTZING JACINDA Norman Jean Roy and Jim Windolf spotlight the latest Aussie dazzler, Jacinda Barrett, whose multi-movie run starts with Poseidon, Wolfgang Petersen's remake of the 1970s classic The Poseidon Adventure.

138 ANDERSON COOPER'S PRIVATE STORM Covering a hurricane-ravaged New Orleans, Anderson Cooper found himself in uncharted territory, stripped of his normal defenses. In an excerpt from his forthcoming memoir, Dispatches from the Edge, the CNN anchor reveals the private nightmares that surfaced as he shared a city's suffering: the long-buried legacies of his father's death and his brother's suicide. Photographs by Annie Leibovitz.

144 NICOLE WEIGHS IN Nicole Richie isn't anorexicshe's just stressed out! At least that's what she's telling her intimates. And with The Simple Life going into a fourth season, the ups and downs of her romance, and the big decision to focus on a music career, who can blame her? Interviewing the 24-year-old style setter and her adoptive parents in L.A., Leslie Bennetts learns about Nicole's epic hell-raising, her struggle to gain weight, and her real feelings about former best friend Paris Hilton. Photographs by Mark Seliger.

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150 DUBAI'S THE LIMIT In little more than two decades, a mind-boggling metropolis has risen from the sands of Arabia—the ever expanding, hyperkinetic swirl of towers, theme parks, mega-malls, luxury hotels, and enterprise zones that is Dubai. In the swankiest restaurants and darkest corners of the tiny emirate, Nick Tosches discovers what has fueled the unparalleled growth of this Las Vegas on steroids: the royal house of Maktoum's version of the American Dream. Photographs by Robert Polidori.

F A N F A I R

57 30 DAYS IN THE LIFE OF THE CULTURE Live from Carnegie Hall—Rufus Wainwright re-creates Judy Garland. The Cultural Divide. Elissa SchappelPs Hot Type. Lisa Robinson surveys the summer concert festivals. Kristina Stewart's International Social Calendar. Evgenia Peretz on Bottega Veneta's Tomas Maier. Punch Hutton's delightful sensory overload in Aspen; A. M. Homes gets pampered at the Mayflower Inn & Spa; Night-Table Reading. Victoria Mather dives into private pools. Eve Epstein admires Sophie Albou's beauty; My Stuff—Eva Chow; Hot Looks.

COLUMNS

82 GREENWICH MURDER TIME If it's the quiet life you're after, steer clear of the Connecticut countryside. Filing his diary from the sticks, Dominick Dunne reports on the scandal that sent his reclusive gunexpert neighbor to federal prison, the discovery of a cache of Truman Capote's true-crime notes and letters, and Greenwich's latest shocker: the brutal stabbing of disgraced developer Andrew Kissel. Photograph by Matthias Vriens.

88 TALK OF THE TOWN For nearly 20 years, Hollywood insiders have lived in fear of Anthony Pellicano. Now that the bat-wielding, wiretapping private investigator is behind bars, they're downright terrified. As Pellicano's high-profile clients endure intense scrutiny, Bryan Burrough and John Connolly get the lowdown on the wiseguy delusions and contentious divorce that led to his undoing, and on the industry powers who have the most to fear.

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106 ANOTHER FEITELBERG AGAINST THE WAR For its second essay contest, V.F. asked America's youth to defend themselves against the charge of self-indulgent apathy. Deirdre Sullivan meets the challenge, drawing a distinction between the slacker stereotype and the inward-looking skeptics of her experience.

108 THE CONVERSION OF GLORIA TNT A lot has happened to Princess Gloria von Thurn und Taxis since her decadent, "dynamite socialite" heyday in the 1980s. After losing her husband, she fought to save their children's heritage from massive debt, and found herself in a growing friendship with the man who is now Pope Benedict XVI. But whether she's at the Vatican or the Venice Biennale, Bob Colacello writes, the woman he dubbed Princess TNT is still the life of any party.

SPECIAL SECTION

FOLLOWING PAGE 100

ON TIME The world of luxury watches is always evolving. From clock-stopping classics to edgy new designs, Nick Foulkes's pullout hits all the horological marks.

VANITIES

119 WHO ELSE BUT ELSA? George Wayne grills right-wing firebrand Ann Coulter. Are you a celebrity? Take Jim WindolFs quiz and see!

ET CETERA

38 EDITOR'S LETTER

40 CONTRIBUTORS

48 LETTERS Fall of a Fixer

80 PLANETARIUM Get centered, Gemini

190 CREDITS

192 PROUST QUESTIONNAIRE Ron Howard

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