Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

Happy Birthday | Derek Jeter turns 35 today. Filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson is turning 39. Patty Smyth is 52. Jason Schwartzman is turning 29. Music impresario Irv Gotti is 39. So is former music exec-turned-marketing honcho Steve Stoute. Joanna Molloy of the Daily News is 54. Art director George Lois is turning 78. Actor Sean Hayes is 39. Guitarist Mick Jones is turning 54. Chris Isaak turns 53. Chris O'Donnell is turning 39. Former Jets quarterback Chad Pennington is 33. And scandal-plagued quarterback Michael Vick turns 29 today. Weekend birthdays below.More

• Topshop is offering free bike rentals beginning this Saturday, strangely. [SF]
• Jimmy Choo is the latest brand to climb into bed with H&M. [WWD, SW]
• Helena Christensen is designing a linens line, apparently. [Cut]
• Sophia Kokosalaki is taking over Diesel's Black Gold line. [Vogue UK]
• Is Vera Wang really going to be on Dancing With the Stars? Maybe! [Cut]
• Simon Doonan on the state of things: "Fashion is currently going through a John the Baptist hair-shirt kind of period. Self-indulgence has been replaced by self-flagellation. All I can say is, 'Stop it, girls! Stop it before it's too late.'" [NYO]

• Coco Rocha may not be interning at Vogue this summer, but Tallulah Belle Willis, the 15-year-old daughter of Demi Moore and Bruce Willis, is spending the next couple of months "shadowing" at Harper's Bazaar. [FWD, WWD]
• Goodwill stores are experiencing a boom, as you may have heard. Sales were up 7 percent in the first three months of 2009 compared to the same time period last year. [NYT]
• The fragrance industry introduces an average of 250 scents ever year. And you know what? That's probably a few too many. [NYT]    More

• It looks like it's over for Paris Hilton and boyfriend Doug Reinhardt. Please excuse us while we go get a big box of tissues; we really weren't mentally prepared for news this upsetting this morning. [People, Sun]
• A couple of weeks ago, it was Gwynnie Paltrow who was getting blamed for setting A-Rod up with Kate Hudson. Now real estate "superagent" Adam Modlin is taking credit for brokering the transaction. Go figure. [NYDN]
• Maybe Kanye West and Amber Rose didn't break up, after all. Or maybe they did break up, but they're spending a lot of time together anyway? It's a mystery, really. [P6]
• Coco Rocha is not going to be an intern at Vogue this summer. She's just spending a lot of time there so she can "learn more about the business." [WWD]

• Kate Moss's latest collection for Topshop hits stores (and the web) tomorrow. [Fashionologie]
• Anna, Oscar, Vera, and Carolina—among others—joined Mayor Bloomberg at City Hall this afternoon to announce Fashion's Night Out, which is scheduled for Sept. 10. [NYM]
• A former assistant to Karl Lagerfeld (and the author of a tell-all about the designer) is making waves once again with his descriptions of life inside the house of the Kaiser. [Fashionologie]
• A chat with French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld. [Guardian]
• Halston's new creative director is Marios Schwab. [Vogue UK]
• Nordstrom be eyeing the Virgin Megastore space in Union Square. [WWD]
• It's Fleet Week! Why not get dressed up for the occasion? [Pipeline]

• Mayor Bloomberg will be joined at City Hall tomorrow by Anna Wintour, Vera Wang, and Macy's chief Terry Lundgren to announce an event called Fashion's Night Out. As part of the Sept. 10 extravaganza, stores across town will stay open until midnight and host parties that will—gasp!—be open to the public. [NYT]
• Anna has a busy day tomorrow. In addition to the City Hall thing, she'll also be at Columbia to attend Bee Shaffer's graduation. [Fashionologie]
• The fashion, parties, and sheer stupidity you're missing at the Cannes Film Festival at the moment. [NYT, WWD]
• Michelle wore an Alaïa dress and Thakoon jacket to last night's ABT gala. [AP]
• You may want to try haggling the next time you're at Lord & Taylor. [NYM]
• Burberry backed away from its signature plaid a few years ago over concerns it was way too overexposed. But now they're bringing it back. [WSJ]
• Victoria Beckham is a big fan of the Birkin bag. She has 100 of them. [P6]

Jay McInerney's latest book, How It Ended, was feted at the 21 Club on Wednesday night. On hand for the occasion: McInerney's wife, Anne Hearst, Brooke Shields, Candace Bushnell and Charles Askegaard, Gay and Nan Talese, Morgan Entrekin, Nina Garcia, Pamela Fiori, Bob Colacello, Richard Johnson and Sessa Von Richthofen, Peggy Siegal, Muffie Potter Aston, Bettina Zilkha, Cornelia Guest, Debbie Bancroft, Valesca Guerrand-Hermes, Nina Griscom, Somers White Farkas, Patrick McMullan, Robert Couturier, George Farias, Tatiana and Campion Platt, Kimberly Rockefeller, Pamela Gross, Harry Slatkin, Dana Hammond, Harry Benson, and Deborah Norville. [PMc, VF, P6]More

• The Costume Institute Gala is a mere five days away. Fashion Week Daily has a roundup of who's going, who isn't, and what everyone will not be eating. (Chicken, in case you were wondering.) [FWD]
• The Observer on Alexandra Kotur, the "Viscountess of Vogue."  [NYO]
• It seems some women are so addicted to the discount designer site Gilt Groupe that they're practically going bankrupt buying stuff they really don't want or need. [TDB]
• It's official: Madonna is attached to Louis Vuitton's new ad campaign. [Grazia]
• Isaac Mizrahi rang the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. The market has been having a surprisingly solid week so far. Could the two be connected? We'll say yes, if it's okay with you. [Facebook, WWD] More

• Barneys' owner pumped more cash into the struggling retailer today, which will allow it to pay for its shipments for the rest of the year. And thank goodness for that! [Reuters]
• Rumor has it Madonna will return as the face of Louis Vuitton this fall. [NYM]
• Rocawear's roving pop up shop—a 50-foot-long tractor-trailer filled with zebra-striped furniture—rolled into town today. [Racked]
• Getting married? Bridal dresses at Vera Wang are now 50 percent off. [NYM]More

• And you were thinking Naomi Campbell was devoid of sympathy and compassion. The supermodel has been all over Mumbai's Lakmé Fashion Week, where she's raising money for victims of last year's terrorist attacks. [SF]
• Vera Wang's Lavender label may be in trouble now that Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue appear to be dropping the line for spring. [NYM]
• Sketches of Gwyneth Paltrow's collection with French label ZOEtee—"a mélange of Seventies glamour, rock inspiration and men's casual suiting"—are now available for your viewing pleasure. [WWD]
• Anna Wintour was in Miami to see Roger Federer this past weekend. [FWD]More

• Matt Lauer's "deer incident" won't keep him down for long. He's reportedly in "good spirits" after undergoing surgery yesterday to repair a separated shoulder and will be back to work in a few days. [Star]
• How did Bruce Willis meet his new wife, Emma Heming? He picked her out during a casting call, just like any normal person. [P6]
• Lindsay Lohan is sick of "people telling lies" about her since she's "really a good person" who just wants to put in a honest day's work. Got that? Good. [People, Us]
• Barbara Walters is planning to quit ABC in the near future so she can "spend more time with her boyfriend, Dr. Robert Butler." Or at least that's what "industry insiders" are telling the Enquirer. [NE]
• The cutbacks at Condé Nast continue: Editors like David Remnick and Ruth Reichl have been forced to take the subway! [NYP]More

Fashion Week is finally coming to a close. Click through for a final recap of the shows, parties, and gossip from the past day or two.More

• Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabanna are playing priests in Rob Marshall's new movie, Nine. Yes, that's right, priests. [WWD]
• McDonald's is the official coffee of Fashion Week. Yes, that's right, McDonald's. Free espresso all week, folks! [AdAge]
• Did Saks screw up retail forever when it slashed prices last November? Possibly. [WSJ]
• Istithmar says it has no plans to sell Barneys. [NYT]
• Vera Wang plans to branch out to footwear this spring. [WWD]
• Henry Holland's Grammy dress for MIA earned him tons of attention last night; he's now gearing up for London Fashion Week. [Telegraph, Independent]
• Jason Wu talks about what he has planned for Fashion Week. [NYDN]
• Alexander Wang is introducing limited-edition condoms. They'll be sold at Thompson Hotels and the proceeds go to Planned Parenthood. [NYM]

Vera Wang Never Passes Up Free Press | What's a tabloid to do when there are no C-list celebrities willing to talk about Jessica Simpson's weight gain? Talk to the woman who designed her wedding dress in 2002, of course! Unfortunately, Vera Wang doesn't actually know much about what Jessica has been up to as of late—and you thought they gabbed on the phone every day!—which is probably why her answer comes off as a little bit vague: "Weight is a very personal issue. I think it has to do with a lot of other conditions. And, you know, I don't know what's going on in her life. I certainly can't comment, but she's a very good girl, so I'm sorry to hear that." Thanks for weighing in anyway! [Us]

Vera Wang, Ice Queen | It's a question we've pondered for ages: Who's the best competitive figure skater-turned-famous fashion designer, Vera Wang or Richie Rich? We may finally have an answer! Wang will be inducted into the U.S. Figure Skating Hall of Fame on January 23rd, although Richie can take some comfort in knowing the coveted honor is for Wang's "contribution to costume design," not because she, like, had better technique or anything. [WWD]