On Saturday John Galliano failed to show up at the Savannah College of Art and Design to accept his André Leon Talley Lifetime Achievement Award. But it sounds like André Leon Talley might have been more disappointed by his absence than the students. Not only did Talley miss out on buddy time with John, he told WWD it took two years of planning to get John to go because of his "busy schedule." He comforted himself by reminding WWD that Galliano stood up the Queen of England and then–French president Jacques Chirac in 1996 because of a "panic attack."

The students didn't seem that upset Galliano was a no-show. They were more excited about the real purpose of the event: a fashion show to showcase their work:

"I heard a lot of students that were like, '[Galliano]'s coming here? I'll believe it when he gets here,'" says senior Ebonee Moore, a self-proclaimed skeptic after seeing a documentary that cast Galliano in a temperamental light. "I don't think his not being here overshadows the excitement of being in the show."

Others were more interested in the present attendees. "It's sad and regrettable [that Galliano couldn't attend], but it's great that André supports us. I look up to him personally," said Liz Goff, who added she was also happy to see representatives from Anthropologie, Abercrombie & Fitch and other companies looking to recruit. "I think it's more exciting that the industry is here looking to hire than a designer who's here for an award."

Pomp and Circumstance [WWD]
Related: Galliano a No-Show at Georgia Design School