ICE to Get a Raise; the Man Behind Trump 2.0; Remembering William Langewiesche

Plus: Meghan Markle's Wish

View in browser | Update preferences SUBSCRIBE FOR FULL ACCESS CLAIRE HOWORTH, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, FEATURES & DEVELOPMENT As any longtime reader of Vanity Fair knows, William Langewiesche, who died yesterday at age 70, was one of the all-time greats—of this magazine, and any for which he wrote. He also happened to look like a casting director's idea of a swashbuckling magazine journalist. Ruggedly handsome, winkingly authoritative, somewhat mysterious, and—the most fabulous casting detail of all—an airplane pilot. It was at some Vanity Fair Oscar Party many years ago, where I, lucky to be seated next to him, confided an intense dislike of air travel. William lit up. No reason to ever fear flight, he assured me, as he used his forearm and palm to illustrate the marvel of aerodynamics, the beauty of lift, and the art of an airship in thrall to its commander. The celebrities and staffers around our part of the table leaned in, rapt, as he waxed animated on the joys of controlling a cockpit (plus a few scares, for the sake of the dinner party). Aviation was the basis for some of Langewiesche's very best reporting, and he wrote like he flew. For Vanity Fair, he applied his expert knowledge to the pitot tubes that doomed Air France flight 447; a collision between a private jet and a Boeing over the vast Amazon; and—three cheers for pilots—the miracle on the Hudson. The first Langewiesche story I recall ever reading was his award-winning investigation, for The Atlantic, into the cause of the crash of EgyptAir flight 990. But William wasn't just a disasters guy, and disasters themselves weren't ever the thing he was after. The through line in his work is the tension between human consequence and humanity itself, whether he was describing a lethal game of thrones among Camorra dons, recounting a dire final exchange between crew members as the El Faro sank to the bottom of the Atlantic, or assessing the futility of the spanking-new US embassy in Baghdad, circa 2006. At the VF party, William had particularly relished explaining the phenomenon of flying upside down—here he flipped his arm over, palm to ceiling, fingers corkscrewing skyward—and how even then a passenger would be totally safe, should feel totally at ease. Caveat being, the table concurred, we'd only want William in command. A Modern Prometheus BY CRISTIAN FARIAS No one in the capital is more responsible for Donald Trump's destructive second term than Supreme Court chief justice John Roberts, VF's Cristian Farias argues. Why? Forgotten in the arc of John Roberts's nearly two decades as chief justice of the United States is his role, behind the scenes, to herald the result in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. READ MORE Read All About It ON THE SCENE How Los Angeles Is Reclaiming the Protest Narrative BY JOY PRESS VF's TV correspondent and local Angeleno Joy Press reports on the citywide protests on Saturday: "This Is What Los Angeles Looks Like." READ MORE TIP OF THE ICEBERG Surprise: The "Big, Beautiful Bill" Takes From the Poor and Gives to ICE BY BESS LEVIN According to one analysis, the legislation "would make all but the top 20% of households worse off." READ MORE SAY AHHH Chris Evans Felt Like a Third Wheel Next to Dakota Johnson and Pedro Pascal—At First BY KARA WARNER The Materialists lead spoke with VF about his beloved costars ("we hung out constantly"), masculine energy, and the role that got away: "I would be so thrilled if that one came back to life." READ MORE Remembering William Langewiesche The Last Words on the Bridge BY WILLIAM LANGEWIESCHE The late VF international correspondent William Langewiesche reported on the worst maritime disaster in decades, where a recording salvaged from three miles deep told the story of the doomed El Faro, a cargo ship engulfed by a hurricane. READ MORE In Case You Missed It How Famous Amos's Daughter Is Running Toward Her Father's Complicated, One-of-a-Kind Legacy Sarah Amos confessed that her father's legend and his contributions to the Black community have made unearthing some of the less savory parts of his past a challenge. Remembering MTV's Ananda Lewis When the late MTV VJ was handed the microphone, she used it, time and again, to conduct some of the most taboo-busting conversations on TV. Meghan Markle Wishes People Would "Tell the Truth" About Her In an upcoming interview with entrepreneur Emma Grede, the duchess opens up about how her public image has changed since she was known only as an actor. MORE FROM VANITY FAIR POLITICS BUSINESS HOLLYWOOD STYLE ROYALS CELEBRITY This e-mail was sent to you by VANITY FAIR. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, vanityfair@newsletter.vf.com, to your address book. View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2025. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.