Jake Gyllenhaal - making a lasting impression

Vanity Fair is celebrating its 95th anniversary and to mark the occasion the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is presenting 'Vanity Fair Portraits: Photographs 1913-2008.' And this site tantalisingly says 'The most engaging part of the exhibit (backstage footage of Jake Gyllenhaal’s photo shoot excluded) is the "Vintage Vanity Fair" section.'


Jake's photoshoot left an impression, not least because of the video footage of the shoot, done for Tom Ford's 2006 Hollywood Issue, which features photographer Annie Leibovitz, artistic director Tom Ford himself and a stunning and confident Jake Gyllenhaal.



The photos - and the video - were shot at Smashbox Studios in Culver City, California, on November 19, 2005. A day to remember, three years on. The cover for the special issue featured Tom alongside the nakedly draped Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson (seen below) but there was a rumour that the original idea for the cover had been somewhat different: 'Could the Tom Ford-directed Vanity Fair be any hotter? Apparently, it could have been. Sources say the cover shot of Ford with the very naked Scarlett Johansson and Keira Knightley is not the lineup the maestro first envisioned. "The idea was to have Tom between a guy and a girl, and he wanted Jake Gyllenhaal" ... The official word from Gyllenhaal's rep: "He was never asked to be on the cover or pose nude. He was asked to be featured inside, which he did." There is a lesson here - VF, ask the right questions!


In 2004, W magazine suggested that Jake and Heath had turned to Tom Ford for advice before the filming of Brokeback Mountain: 'Despite reports that their onscreen kiss was a no-go, it appears that Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger shared a passionate canoodle on the set of Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain" after all. The actors, both straight, had turned to Tom Ford for advice about the whole man-on-man thing at this year's Vanity Fair Oscar party. (Gyllenhaal was riveted, and Ledger squeamish, says a witness.) When filming began near Calgary this summer, they did further research at the city's annual gay rodeo. "Everybody was anxious before the kiss happened," says a source on the set, who couldn't confirm whether the smooch would make the final cut. "But when the day came, they just went for it. And it was amazing."'



Back in 2003, Jake had attended a Goddess gala at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art along with Tom Ford, Stella McCartney and Nicole Kidman. Outside the event a fan asked Kirsten for her autograph - you can read Jake's cheesy but sweet response here.


And finally...

One of the oddest headlines today related to Jake was this one. As a fan of Snow Patrol, it seems there is only one thing that can make a Snow Patrol video better and that's the inclusion of Jake Gyllenhaal. No arguments there, then.


Includes pictures from IHJ and Amazon.