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Vogue legend André Leon Talley is reportedly being dragged out of his $1 million New York home by the former CEO of Manolo Blahnik USA who alleges the former editor is $500,000 behind in rent.
Talley, 72, has long insisted that the historic 11-room colonial home, with sumptuous gardens at 75 Worthington Road, is his own, saying in a New York Times article, “It is my sanctuary.”
However court papers allege that the real owners are Malkemus and his business partner and husband Anthony Yurgaitis, who bought the home in 2004 for just over $1 million.
The pair have known Talley for nearly 40 years. Yet on November 12, 2020, Malkemus, “Commenced a summary non-payment proceeding in White Plains City Court … seeking to evict Talley from the home and for a money judgement against Talley in the amount of $515,872,97 representing alleged arrears,” new court papers state.
While Malkemus and Yurgaitis allege Talley is behind in rent, the former Vogue editor-at-large’s filing alleges, “This action arises out of the Defendents’ improper attempt to evict Talley from a home … that is rightfully his, so that they may sell the property.”
Andre claims that he has lived at the home since and paid back more than the purchase price, totaling $1,075,588, as of January 2020, with his court papers stating: “He has also paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to third parties to maintain and improve the home.”
Talley’s lawsuit alleges he, Malkemus and Yurgaitis entered into a “gentleman’s agreement” and that Talley would provide a $120,000 down payment and Malkemus and Yurgaitis would “use the down payment and funds of their own to purchase the home for Talley’s benefit.”
“The parties agreed that Talley would exclusively own, occupy and care for the home. It was agreed and always understood that Talley would, over time, ‘pay off’ the balance of the purchase price paid by the defendants at which point title would then formally be transferred to Talley,” the former editor’s legal paper work claims.
The papers detail a highly unusual arrangement that, “while Talley has resided in the home from 2004 to the present, he has made episodic payments to the Defendants that he understood to be equity payments.