The Legend of Franck Muller - Westime

Franck Muller Long
Island Crazy Hours
Tourbillon
Immediately, I recognized many friends.
The first person I saw was Marcus Margulies,
who was my distributor in London and
someone I love. He presented me to many of
his friends and I immediately felt at home
amid so much warmth and kindness.”
Unfortunately, Muller’s reverie would
not last long. He exclaims, “Suddenly, I was
pulled out of this state of comfort by the
hotel director. He explained that the Royal
Palm was an icon and that its restaurant was
the most prestigious dining establishment
and had strict rules. One of these rules is
that at dinner, black tie is strictly required
for the men. I didn’t know what to do. I had
not packed a tuxedo as this was a beach
vacation. I went upstairs to my room and I
found a black jacket. But I didn’t have a
black bow-tie.”
Ever the creative genius, Muller soon
hatched an audacious plan that hinged
around his capacity to pass off total
absurdity with total conviction.
He says, “As it happened, I looked around
and saw that there was a white bathrobe
and hanging from it was a cloth belt. So I
quickly looped this around my neck, tied it
into a bow and went back downstairs. The
“Here we were in a tropical paradise
and yet, we were clinging to as many
rules as we could because somehow
it made us feel better, more superior
to others”
director saw me and looked shocked. He
immediately exclaimed, ‘Mr Muller, what
kind of bow-tie is that?’
“I replied to him, ‘Pardon me, but do you
know Gianni Versace?’ He said, ‘Well, I do
not know Monsieur Versace personally, but
of course I know OF him.’
“I stated emphatically, ‘Well, Gianni
Versace is one of my best friends and this is
his bow-tie from next year’s collection,
which has not even been shown to the public
yet! In three months’ time, it will be shown
on the runways of Milan and Paris. It will be
the biggest trend of the year, but it is a secret
so you must not tell anyone.’
“He replied, ‘Of course, Monsieur
Muller,’ winking conspiratorially at me. The
director looked immediately appeased and
brought us to our table. Inside, I was
thinking that my friend Gianni would have
particularly appreciated this joke, as he
actually wrote an autobiography called Men
Without Ties. You see, he never wore a tie
and didn’t like them at all. I thought if he
were here with me, he would be laughing. I
was thinking how surreal this environment
was. Here we were in a tropical paradise
and yet, we were clinging to as many rules as
we could because somehow it made us feel
better, more superior to others.”
But Muller pushed aside any negative
thoughts in order to spend time with his
family. Sadly, these thoughts would soon
come flooding back.
He remembers, “When we were seated, I
asked for some water and the director
clicked his tongue disapprovingly. He
explained, ‘Monsieur Muller, here at the
Royal Palm, we do not serve water, we serve
only Perrier.’
“At this point, I was becoming a bit
irritated. So I pointed to the wine menu and