Newlyweds Bezos and Sanchez gear up for final party
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sanchez, flush from their Venice wedding ceremony, are gearing up for the final day of partying in the lagoon city with scores of celebrity guests from media, fashion and show business.
The three-day gala, estimated to cost $US50 million ($A76 million), will culminate on Saturday evening with the closing party in a former medieval shipyard where Lady Gaga and Elton John are expected to perform.
Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, exchanged rings on Friday evening on the small island of San Giorgio, across the water from Saint Mark's Square, accompanied by singing from Matteo Bocelli, son of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli.
The bride at the ceremony wore a high-necked silhouette dress and a tulle and lace veil by Dolce and Gabbana, which she told magazine Vogue was based on Sophia Loren's dress to marry Cary Grant in the 1958 film Houseboat.
Sanchez was also wearing a pair of diamond earrings by Dolce & Gabbana, which, according to Vogue, were lent to her in keeping with the tradition that it brings good luck for a bride to wear something borrowed.
Bezos, who is No.4 on Forbes' global billionaires list, donned a black tuxedo and bow tie over a white shirt.
The ceremony had no legal status under Italian law, a senior city hall official told Reuters, suggesting the couple may have already legally wed in the United States, avoiding the bureaucracy associated with an Italian marriage.
Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady, Jordan's Queen Rania, Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner and Kim and Khloe Kardashian, as well as Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner and Domenico Dolce from Dolce & Gabbana were among the 200-250 guests.
While the celebrities rub shoulders in the isolated halls in the east of the city, not far away activists will be protesting at what they see as Venice being gift-wrapped for ultra-rich outsiders.
A protest march is planned at 5pm on Saturday from the railway station to the Rialto Bridge.
For days, members of the "No Space for Bezos" movement have been trying to spoil the party, hanging anti-Bezos banners on the iconic Rialto Bridge and laying out a huge canvas in central Saint Mark's Square telling the tech-tycoon to pay more taxes.
While some residents and activists see Bezos' extravaganza as a symbol of inequality and arrogance, Venice's businesses and the city authorities have welcomed the event, claiming a major boost for the local economy.
"Those who protest are in contradiction with the history of Venice, which is a history of relations, contacts and business," the city's mayor Luigi Brugnaro told Reuters in an interview.
"Bezos embodies the Venetian mentality, he is more Venetian than the protesters," said the mayor, adding that he hoped Bezos, who donated 3 million euros ($A5.4 million) to local institutions, would return to the city to do business.
Brugnaro said Bezos had attached no conditions to holding his wedding celebrations in Venice, and City Hall had only learned about his donations after they had already been made.
Bezos, Amazon's executive chair, became engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the collapse of his 25-year marriage to MacKenzie Scott.
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Sydney Morning Herald
2 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
The Bezos-Sanchez wedding party proves it – the age of vulgarity is upon us
One should never be cynical about love, but it is impossible to not be a little bit cynical about the nuptials of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and his recently acquired bride, former television host Lauren Sanchez. The happy couple this week took over Venice for their wedding festival, which commenced with a foam party aboard the $500 million Bezos mega-yacht, moored in view of paparazzi off the coast of Croatia. For the uninitiated, a pre-wedding foam party seems to be a yacht-based, poolside romp in which the bride and groom-to-be frolic in their swimwear, covered by soapy bubbles that have presumably been prepped by one of the many invisible workers who have toiled to make this $50 million special day come true. Just as the working-poor labour force that powers Amazon has invisibly toiled to make Bezos one of the world's richest men (currently fourth-richest, as per the Forbes 'Real Time Billionaires List). We know about the foam party – from which the couple was helicoptered to Venice – because it was abundantly photographed. Like the Zen koan about the tree falling in the forest, there is zero point in a billionaire wedding unless it is telegraphed widely across the world in exquisite detail: the guest list (which included Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Kim Kardashian and sundry other Kardashi), the rolling schedule of parties, the flight logs of the 90-odd private jets expected to land at local airports, the price tags, and the dresses, the dresses (for the bride did not have just one). The publicity is the point. The transparent vulgarity is even more the point. As reported in New York magazine, 'Sanchez, in some respects, represents the aesthetic and moral pinnacle of the Mar-a-Lago era.' It was not so long ago that stealth-wealth was in vogue, and that so-called quiet luxury was aspirational. But the re-election of Donald Trump, and the slavish compliance the tech-bro oligarchs immediately bestowed on his administration (Sanchez managed to upstage the president by wearing a cleavage-driven inauguration outfit that Vogue noted 'forgoes inauguration style codes'), has changed all that.
The Age
2 hours ago
- The Age
The Bezos-Sanchez wedding party proves it – the age of vulgarity is upon us
One should never be cynical about love, but it is impossible to not be a little bit cynical about the nuptials of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and his recently acquired bride, former television host Lauren Sanchez. The happy couple this week took over Venice for their wedding festival, which commenced with a foam party aboard the $500 million Bezos mega-yacht, moored in view of paparazzi off the coast of Croatia. For the uninitiated, a pre-wedding foam party seems to be a yacht-based, poolside romp in which the bride and groom-to-be frolic in their swimwear, covered by soapy bubbles that have presumably been prepped by one of the many invisible workers who have toiled to make this $50 million special day come true. Just as the working-poor labour force that powers Amazon has invisibly toiled to make Bezos one of the world's richest men (currently fourth-richest, as per the Forbes 'Real Time Billionaires List). We know about the foam party – from which the couple was helicoptered to Venice – because it was abundantly photographed. Like the Zen koan about the tree falling in the forest, there is zero point in a billionaire wedding unless it is telegraphed widely across the world in exquisite detail: the guest list (which included Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry, Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Kim Kardashian and sundry other Kardashi), the rolling schedule of parties, the flight logs of the 90-odd private jets expected to land at local airports, the price tags, and the dresses, the dresses (for the bride did not have just one). The publicity is the point. The transparent vulgarity is even more the point. As reported in New York magazine, 'Sanchez, in some respects, represents the aesthetic and moral pinnacle of the Mar-a-Lago era.' It was not so long ago that stealth-wealth was in vogue, and that so-called quiet luxury was aspirational. But the re-election of Donald Trump, and the slavish compliance the tech-bro oligarchs immediately bestowed on his administration (Sanchez managed to upstage the president by wearing a cleavage-driven inauguration outfit that Vogue noted 'forgoes inauguration style codes'), has changed all that.
The Advertiser
4 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Newlyweds Bezos and Sanchez gear up for final party
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sanchez, flush from their Venice wedding ceremony, are gearing up for the final day of partying in the lagoon city with scores of celebrity guests from media, fashion and show business. The three-day gala, estimated to cost $US50 million ($A76 million), will culminate on Saturday evening with the closing party in a former medieval shipyard where Lady Gaga and Elton John are expected to perform. Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, exchanged rings on Friday evening on the small island of San Giorgio, across the water from Saint Mark's Square, accompanied by singing from Matteo Bocelli, son of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The bride at the ceremony wore a high-necked silhouette dress and a tulle and lace veil by Dolce and Gabbana, which she told magazine Vogue was based on Sophia Loren's dress to marry Cary Grant in the 1958 film Houseboat. Sanchez was also wearing a pair of diamond earrings by Dolce & Gabbana, which, according to Vogue, were lent to her in keeping with the tradition that it brings good luck for a bride to wear something borrowed. Bezos, who is No.4 on Forbes' global billionaires list, donned a black tuxedo and bow tie over a white shirt. The ceremony had no legal status under Italian law, a senior city hall official told Reuters, suggesting the couple may have already legally wed in the United States, avoiding the bureaucracy associated with an Italian marriage. Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady, Jordan's Queen Rania, Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner and Kim and Khloe Kardashian, as well as Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner and Domenico Dolce from Dolce & Gabbana were among the 200-250 guests. While the celebrities rub shoulders in the isolated halls in the east of the city, not far away activists will be protesting at what they see as Venice being gift-wrapped for ultra-rich outsiders. A protest march is planned at 5pm on Saturday from the railway station to the Rialto Bridge. For days, members of the "No Space for Bezos" movement have been trying to spoil the party, hanging anti-Bezos banners on the iconic Rialto Bridge and laying out a huge canvas in central Saint Mark's Square telling the tech-tycoon to pay more taxes. While some residents and activists see Bezos' extravaganza as a symbol of inequality and arrogance, Venice's businesses and the city authorities have welcomed the event, claiming a major boost for the local economy. "Those who protest are in contradiction with the history of Venice, which is a history of relations, contacts and business," the city's mayor Luigi Brugnaro told Reuters in an interview. "Bezos embodies the Venetian mentality, he is more Venetian than the protesters," said the mayor, adding that he hoped Bezos, who donated 3 million euros ($A5.4 million) to local institutions, would return to the city to do business. Brugnaro said Bezos had attached no conditions to holding his wedding celebrations in Venice, and City Hall had only learned about his donations after they had already been made. Bezos, Amazon's executive chair, became engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the collapse of his 25-year marriage to MacKenzie Scott. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sanchez, flush from their Venice wedding ceremony, are gearing up for the final day of partying in the lagoon city with scores of celebrity guests from media, fashion and show business. The three-day gala, estimated to cost $US50 million ($A76 million), will culminate on Saturday evening with the closing party in a former medieval shipyard where Lady Gaga and Elton John are expected to perform. Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, exchanged rings on Friday evening on the small island of San Giorgio, across the water from Saint Mark's Square, accompanied by singing from Matteo Bocelli, son of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The bride at the ceremony wore a high-necked silhouette dress and a tulle and lace veil by Dolce and Gabbana, which she told magazine Vogue was based on Sophia Loren's dress to marry Cary Grant in the 1958 film Houseboat. Sanchez was also wearing a pair of diamond earrings by Dolce & Gabbana, which, according to Vogue, were lent to her in keeping with the tradition that it brings good luck for a bride to wear something borrowed. Bezos, who is No.4 on Forbes' global billionaires list, donned a black tuxedo and bow tie over a white shirt. The ceremony had no legal status under Italian law, a senior city hall official told Reuters, suggesting the couple may have already legally wed in the United States, avoiding the bureaucracy associated with an Italian marriage. Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady, Jordan's Queen Rania, Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner and Kim and Khloe Kardashian, as well as Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner and Domenico Dolce from Dolce & Gabbana were among the 200-250 guests. While the celebrities rub shoulders in the isolated halls in the east of the city, not far away activists will be protesting at what they see as Venice being gift-wrapped for ultra-rich outsiders. A protest march is planned at 5pm on Saturday from the railway station to the Rialto Bridge. For days, members of the "No Space for Bezos" movement have been trying to spoil the party, hanging anti-Bezos banners on the iconic Rialto Bridge and laying out a huge canvas in central Saint Mark's Square telling the tech-tycoon to pay more taxes. While some residents and activists see Bezos' extravaganza as a symbol of inequality and arrogance, Venice's businesses and the city authorities have welcomed the event, claiming a major boost for the local economy. "Those who protest are in contradiction with the history of Venice, which is a history of relations, contacts and business," the city's mayor Luigi Brugnaro told Reuters in an interview. "Bezos embodies the Venetian mentality, he is more Venetian than the protesters," said the mayor, adding that he hoped Bezos, who donated 3 million euros ($A5.4 million) to local institutions, would return to the city to do business. Brugnaro said Bezos had attached no conditions to holding his wedding celebrations in Venice, and City Hall had only learned about his donations after they had already been made. Bezos, Amazon's executive chair, became engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the collapse of his 25-year marriage to MacKenzie Scott. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sanchez, flush from their Venice wedding ceremony, are gearing up for the final day of partying in the lagoon city with scores of celebrity guests from media, fashion and show business. The three-day gala, estimated to cost $US50 million ($A76 million), will culminate on Saturday evening with the closing party in a former medieval shipyard where Lady Gaga and Elton John are expected to perform. Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, exchanged rings on Friday evening on the small island of San Giorgio, across the water from Saint Mark's Square, accompanied by singing from Matteo Bocelli, son of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The bride at the ceremony wore a high-necked silhouette dress and a tulle and lace veil by Dolce and Gabbana, which she told magazine Vogue was based on Sophia Loren's dress to marry Cary Grant in the 1958 film Houseboat. Sanchez was also wearing a pair of diamond earrings by Dolce & Gabbana, which, according to Vogue, were lent to her in keeping with the tradition that it brings good luck for a bride to wear something borrowed. Bezos, who is No.4 on Forbes' global billionaires list, donned a black tuxedo and bow tie over a white shirt. The ceremony had no legal status under Italian law, a senior city hall official told Reuters, suggesting the couple may have already legally wed in the United States, avoiding the bureaucracy associated with an Italian marriage. Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady, Jordan's Queen Rania, Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner and Kim and Khloe Kardashian, as well as Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner and Domenico Dolce from Dolce & Gabbana were among the 200-250 guests. While the celebrities rub shoulders in the isolated halls in the east of the city, not far away activists will be protesting at what they see as Venice being gift-wrapped for ultra-rich outsiders. A protest march is planned at 5pm on Saturday from the railway station to the Rialto Bridge. For days, members of the "No Space for Bezos" movement have been trying to spoil the party, hanging anti-Bezos banners on the iconic Rialto Bridge and laying out a huge canvas in central Saint Mark's Square telling the tech-tycoon to pay more taxes. While some residents and activists see Bezos' extravaganza as a symbol of inequality and arrogance, Venice's businesses and the city authorities have welcomed the event, claiming a major boost for the local economy. "Those who protest are in contradiction with the history of Venice, which is a history of relations, contacts and business," the city's mayor Luigi Brugnaro told Reuters in an interview. "Bezos embodies the Venetian mentality, he is more Venetian than the protesters," said the mayor, adding that he hoped Bezos, who donated 3 million euros ($A5.4 million) to local institutions, would return to the city to do business. Brugnaro said Bezos had attached no conditions to holding his wedding celebrations in Venice, and City Hall had only learned about his donations after they had already been made. Bezos, Amazon's executive chair, became engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the collapse of his 25-year marriage to MacKenzie Scott. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sanchez, flush from their Venice wedding ceremony, are gearing up for the final day of partying in the lagoon city with scores of celebrity guests from media, fashion and show business. The three-day gala, estimated to cost $US50 million ($A76 million), will culminate on Saturday evening with the closing party in a former medieval shipyard where Lady Gaga and Elton John are expected to perform. Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, exchanged rings on Friday evening on the small island of San Giorgio, across the water from Saint Mark's Square, accompanied by singing from Matteo Bocelli, son of Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The bride at the ceremony wore a high-necked silhouette dress and a tulle and lace veil by Dolce and Gabbana, which she told magazine Vogue was based on Sophia Loren's dress to marry Cary Grant in the 1958 film Houseboat. Sanchez was also wearing a pair of diamond earrings by Dolce & Gabbana, which, according to Vogue, were lent to her in keeping with the tradition that it brings good luck for a bride to wear something borrowed. Bezos, who is No.4 on Forbes' global billionaires list, donned a black tuxedo and bow tie over a white shirt. The ceremony had no legal status under Italian law, a senior city hall official told Reuters, suggesting the couple may have already legally wed in the United States, avoiding the bureaucracy associated with an Italian marriage. Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady, Jordan's Queen Rania, Oprah Winfrey, Kris Jenner and Kim and Khloe Kardashian, as well as Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner and Domenico Dolce from Dolce & Gabbana were among the 200-250 guests. While the celebrities rub shoulders in the isolated halls in the east of the city, not far away activists will be protesting at what they see as Venice being gift-wrapped for ultra-rich outsiders. A protest march is planned at 5pm on Saturday from the railway station to the Rialto Bridge. For days, members of the "No Space for Bezos" movement have been trying to spoil the party, hanging anti-Bezos banners on the iconic Rialto Bridge and laying out a huge canvas in central Saint Mark's Square telling the tech-tycoon to pay more taxes. While some residents and activists see Bezos' extravaganza as a symbol of inequality and arrogance, Venice's businesses and the city authorities have welcomed the event, claiming a major boost for the local economy. "Those who protest are in contradiction with the history of Venice, which is a history of relations, contacts and business," the city's mayor Luigi Brugnaro told Reuters in an interview. "Bezos embodies the Venetian mentality, he is more Venetian than the protesters," said the mayor, adding that he hoped Bezos, who donated 3 million euros ($A5.4 million) to local institutions, would return to the city to do business. Brugnaro said Bezos had attached no conditions to holding his wedding celebrations in Venice, and City Hall had only learned about his donations after they had already been made. Bezos, Amazon's executive chair, became engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the collapse of his 25-year marriage to MacKenzie Scott.
