Normally shy NY Times street-style photographer Bill Cunningham opened up to Fern Mallis at the 92Y this week, chatting in front of a crowd that included Norma Kamali, Arthur Elgort and Robin Givhan for two hours.
In an emotional start to Fashion Week, Cunningham talked about the AIDS epidemic when discussing the beach party on Fire Island Pines, which appears in the movie “The Normal Heart.”
“We didn’t think of it as a gay party,” Cunningham shrugged. “It was a charity. They were raising money.”
But he also said, “It was the last party before the terrible AIDS epidemic,” before covering his face to compose himself.