Nancy Jo Sales, a contributing editor, writes of the Brant Brothers and Hugh Hefner, of Paris Hilton’s desire to be called a normal teen (back when she was a teen, but far from normal), and of the ‘Golden Suicides’ that rocked the art world. And, crucially, she wrote of a gang of kids whose rabid thirst for luxury goods, specifically, the property of Hollywood celebrities, led them to a crime spree the kids called ‘shopping’. Her story, The Suspects Wore Louboutins, inspired the Sofia Coppola film The Bling Ring and Sales has a book out by the same name that expands on the case in minute detail and provides the zeitgeist: the state of the world while the crimes were being committed.
Sales took five questions via email, even though she had a deadline looming.
1. The kids of the Bling Ring are amazing characters – in a lot of ways stranger than fiction. Did anything about them surprise you while you were interviewing and researching them?
Nick Prugo surprised me with his openness, telling me things that he hadn't even told the police. Alexis Neiers was a surprise in so many ways, although I've heard from kids who live in the Valley that she is more representative of today's Valley girls than I knew. Overall I was surprised by what seemed to be the group's blase attitude towards what they had done (except for Nick, in the end) and the fact that they apparently never discussed either the moral implications or possible real world consequences.
2. You’ve been thorough and comprehensive in talking with the kids (when possible), their lawyers, their parents, their school friends, law enforcement and others. How long did it take to do all this – to lay the groundwork for the article The Suspects Wore Louboutins, then the book version, The Bling Ring?
The article was about three months of research and writing. The book was about six months of research and writing. Both were done pretty fast, especially the book. But these are also things I've been thinking about a long time, reporting on kids for almost 20 years.
3. Your book explains the kids’ MO in great detail: it’s a pretty good how-to guide to robbing the rich and famous. As far as you know, has this case encouraged any copycat crime? Are other kids feeling inspired to go on “shopping” sprees at famous homes?
I've been really glad to hear the feedback I've been getting on the book. Mostly it's young women telling me how much they're glad for the opportunity to have a conversation about our culture's obsession with fame and wealth and how this isn't what they want their generation to be focused on.
4. Alexis Neiers and her mother clearly were upset about your article. What kind of response has she and other Bling Ring kids had to the book and Sofia Coppola movie?
I'm not sure...maybe they have said something which you could find out online?
(Taking Sales’ suggestion, I found this on Perez Hilton: "We already know that Alexis, the real-life inspiration for Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring, is NOT happy about the way she's portrayed in the movie. Since then, Neiers has taken matters into her own hands. She's now in the process of writing a book that will explain how things REALLY went down.")
5. Your book explains a few people have been sort of envious of the kids and their ballsy approach to taking what they wanted in that they’ve said they wished they’d been part of the Bling Ring. Can you imagine, under the right circumstances, yourself doing what those kids did?
I grew up in a loving but strict household; my parents taught me that if you want anything, you should be prepared to work for it. My dad used to come down on me pretty hard if I got anything but As in school, and as soon as I graduated college, I was expected to get a job and support myself. So I can't really imagine doing something like that. I think parents today raise their kids with a lot more indulgence and sometimes this isn't necessarily a good thing.
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