Manuscript of Casanova to be displayed in Paris

February 19, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

PARIS — The manuscript given to France’s national library Thursday begins simply, yet seductively: “The story of Jacques Casanova ... written by himself.”

“Himself” is the 18th-century lothario, spy, writer and adventurer whose name has become an international synonym for lover. And the original, $9.5 million manuscript contains Casanova’s memoirs, a work that shocked publishers two centuries ago, was spirited away from the Nazis on a bicycle during World War II and is soon to go on public view for the first time on Paris’ Left Bank.

Giovanni Giacomo Casanova, born in Venice in 1725, wrote the 3,700 pages of memoirs between 1789 and 1798, the year of his death. He bequeathed them to his nephew. Titled “The Story of My Life,” the memoirs depict the manners of the Age of Enlightenment as well as Casanova’s personal adventures, sexual and otherwise.

Alexander McQueen’s label will continue despite death

PARIS — Alexander McQueen’s namesake label will continue despite the death of the designer, the parent company PPR SA said Thursday. Robert Polet, chief of the Gucci Group subsidiary, said the collection McQueen was working on before his death will be shown at Paris fashion week next month.

A week after the designer’s suicide, found hanged in his wardrobe, PPR CEO Francois-Henri Pinault and Polet paid homage to McQueen. Pinault called him a genius, a poet and a friend. McQueen’s label belongs to PPR’s Gucci Group subsidiary, which comprises luxury fashion and leather brands.

Robert Polet, who heads the group, said he spoke with McQueen a few weeks ago when the two men decided that “we have transitioned from being the name of a designer to putting in place the building blocks of a brand.”

“That means that will be my legacy,” McQueen had said, according to Polet. “That’s something I will always leave behind.”

Idol contestant dropped because of contract

LOS ANGELES — A person close to “American Idol” says contestant Chris Golightly was dropped from the top 24 because of a “lack of veracity” during the Fox TV show’s audition process.

The person said Thursday that Golightly didn’t disclose that he’d had a music contract, a point on which all contestants are queried because the show doesn’t include singers with current contracts. It was Golightly’s failure to mention the contract, not whether it was in force, that led to his departure, the person said.

The person, who lacked authority to comment publicly, spoke on condition of anonymity.

Golightly, a shoe salesman from Los Angeles, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Today’s birthdays

Singer Smokey Robinson is 70. Singer Lou Christie is 67. Guitarist Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath is 62. Actor Jeff Daniels is 55. Singer Seal is 47. Actress Justine Bateman is 44. Actor Benicio Del Toro is 43.