And let your life be a lesson to today’s young starlets, who could learn a lot from the way you disappeared from the scene while at the top and then lived long enough to see yourself become a pop-culture icon, all the while steadfastly refusing to be photographed, preferring instead to be remembered for the glorious curves of your youth. Well done, Betts. Bravo!

Read the full obit on NYTimes.com.

For a prime example of why you never fiddle with a designer’s proportions, check out Cate Blanchett’s alteration of an Alexander McQueen dress versus the runway version. It is a total fuck-up of a wisp of material. First of all, why lose even a millimeter of the scoop? The nude cami provides terrific tromp l’oeil with total coverage. Second, modifying an adorable Judy Jetson of a bubble into a lampshade — why? why? And finally, a nude-colored slip is never cool — it is emphatically not the southern-hemisphere equivalent of a black bra strap. Most baffling is why Cate, of all people, made these changes. She is beautiful and fabulous, and her figure is fantastic. She would have scored a perfect 10 in the McQueen original.

Anyone else get the feeling that when Grace Jones had her head cast in chocolate, she was daring the world to make some kind of race joke?

Jerry Hall for Chanel! [The Cut]

Ron Rosenbaum says Obama needs to smoke lots and lots of cigarettes in the White House. Agreed! [Slate]

Phil Zuckerman confirms what I’ve known all along: The atheists among us are the nice guys. [Slate]

Finally! Someone is publicly admitting what my shopaholic neighbor has been insisting upon all along: the acquisition opportunities are too good to pass up right now. Barneys for me this Saturday, baby! {NYT]

In the red and in the nude: fashion mags embrace the one trend that may make sense right now, winter notwithstanding. [Refinery29]

Everyone is sad about the absence of the Marc Jacobs holiday party. Maybe it’s a ruse to keep the bash tres privee! You read it here first. [WWD]

A grooming upside to the downer economy: More men wear beards! [WSJ]

A really sad week for celebrity siblings: RIP Scott Ruffalo and Dakota Culkin. [Jossip]