# Carly Simon reveals "You're So Vain" inspiration **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 26, 2010, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536 "2010-02-26T17:38:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/61 "2010-02-28T15:36:23Z")
> [@Chicagojeff](#): > > You’ll be very disappointed to know its that geek ass comedian Dave Coulier who was on full house.. > > Alanis should’ve known what a geek he was LOL Has she come out and said that? I know the rumor was going around that he was the subject, but I didn’t know it had been confirmed… ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/62 "2010-02-28T15:39:49Z")
> [@Serenata67](#): > > Has she come out and said that? I know the rumor was going around that he was the subject, but I didn’t know it had been confirmed… She never has. Although Coulier thinks the song is about him. [http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/6447](http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/6447) However, her album Flavors of Entanglement does feature songs describing her breakup with Ryan Reynolds. ---
**Author:** ![42fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/b487fb/32.png) [@42fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/42fish)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/63 "2010-02-28T17:49:15Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > Although Coulier thinks the song is about him. He’s so vain. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/64 "2010-02-28T18:27:03Z")
I guess he would know if she blew him in a movie theater. That’s pretty specific. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/65 "2010-02-28T18:52:37Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > I guess he would know if she blew him in a movie theater. That’s pretty specific. _I’ve_ had that done to me, and I’m a fuckin’ schmendrick. I’d imagine if you’re on Full House, getting a blowjob in a theatre is so tame and common you wouldn’t remember it when you’re lying in bed that night. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2010, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/66 "2010-02-28T19:01:08Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > _I’ve_ had that done to me, and I’m a fuckin’ schmendrick. I’d imagine if you’re on Full House, getting a blowjob in a theatre is so tame and common you wouldn’t remember it when you’re lying in bed that night. You’d remember it if it was Alanis Morrisette doing the blowing, and it wasn’t like she was some random pickup, they actually had a relationship for a while. I don’t think he’d have trouble remembering if she, specifically, ever blew him in a movie theater. ---
**Author:** ![sulamith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@sulamith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sulamith)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/67 "2010-03-01T01:25:13Z")
I remember watching a biopic about Sonny & Cher and there’s a scene in that movie when their marriage was really falling apart but they were still together because of their show, etc… Anyhoo, they are in their hotel room and Cher tells Sonny, “David’s coming up”, and it is plain that she’s telling Sonny to get lost because she and David Geffen are going to sleep together. So, I always thought David Geffen was bisexual. Or am I even recalling this right? Was it even David Geffen depicted in that movie? I was sure it was. I guess ultimately it is every gay man’s dream to sleep with Cher, though. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/68 "2010-03-01T01:54:06Z")
If we’re talking about Chere, “David” could have been just about anyone from David Geffen to Dave the pizza delivery guy. ---
**Author:** ![sulamith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@sulamith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sulamith)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/69 "2010-03-01T01:58:54Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > If we’re talking about Chere, “David” could have been just about anyone from David Geffen to Dave the pizza delivery guy. No, this David was a record producer, and was helping her advance her planned solo career. I am almost positive it was David Geffen. I hear ya on the numerous possibilities regarding Cher, though. She only got with Sonny because she felt he was going to make her famous, and when he did she dropped him. ---
**Author:** ![sulamith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f08c70/32.png) [@sulamith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sulamith)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/70 "2010-03-01T02:11:49Z")
Ah, heck, now Carly’s sayin’ it ain’t even about Geffen according to Perez Hilton. ---
**Author:** ![palindromemordnilap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/db5fbb/32.png) [@palindromemordnilap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palindromemordnilap)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/71 "2010-03-01T02:51:02Z")
> [@sulamith](#): > > Ah, heck, now Carly’s sayin’ it ain’t even about Geffen according to Perez Hilton. Not surprising. Although the article said she revealed it, all she did was put his name backwards on the re-release. Everyone is pretty much used to the idea that it’s about Warren Beatty that CS wants to muddy the water a bit and get people wondering again. Having read the article, I can’t help wondering: Carly Simon and Joni Mitchell were rivals? I guess the pool of female rock artists was so small that they would inevitably get lumped together. Personally I always get Carly Simon mixed up with Carole King. But Joni Mitchell? Their styles were about as similar as the Beach Boys and Jimi Hendrix. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/72 "2010-03-01T15:22:01Z")
Isn’t this about the second or third time that she revealed this? Best wishes, hh ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/73 "2010-03-01T15:39:15Z")
How the hell is “Free Man In Paris” about Geffen? I always thought that song was about Joni fondly looking back to a freer time before success began to make demands on her time? “I’d go back there tomorrow, but for the work I’ve taken on, stoking the starmaker machinery behind the popular song.” This revelation raises more questions than it gives answers! ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/74 "2010-03-02T06:27:12Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > How the hell is “Free Man In Paris” about Geffen? > > I always thought that song was about Joni fondly looking back to a freer time before success began to make demands on her time? “I’d go back there tomorrow, but for the work I’ve taken on, stoking the starmaker machinery behind the popular song.” > > This revelation raises more questions than it gives answers! In the book Girls Like Us, which is about Carole King, Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon, they explain who the song is about. Unfortunately, I’ve completely forgotten who. It’s a good book, though, full of info and gossip. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/75 "2010-03-02T18:01:05Z")
[Carly Simon Says ‘You’re So Vain’ Mystery Not Solved](http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/stopthepresses/119992/carly-simon-says-youre-so-vainmystery-not-solved/) ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/76 "2010-03-02T18:14:23Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > In the book Girls Like Us, which is about Carole King, Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon, they explain who the song is about. Unfortunately, I’ve completely forgotten who. It’s a good book, though, full of info and gossip. I read that book and don’t even remember it being revealed. ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/77 "2010-03-02T18:34:58Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > How the hell is “Free Man In Paris” about Geffen? > > I always thought that song was about Joni fondly looking back to a freer time before success began to make demands on her time? “I’d go back there tomorrow, but for the work I’ve taken on, stoking the starmaker machinery behind the popular song.” > > This revelation raises more questions than it gives answers! [Here you go](http://www.blender.com/guide/67617/greatest-songs-ever-free-man-in-paris.html), **elbows**. > [@](#): > > “I wrote that in Paris for David Geffen,” Mitchell has explained, “taking a lot of it from the things he said.” Geffen and Mitchell went a long way back. ---
**Author:** ![ministryman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@ministryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ministryman)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2010, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/78 "2010-03-02T19:00:00Z")
> [@Jinx](#): > > WHO IS DAVID GEFFEN? Isn’t there a Geffen record label? Whoooooooooosh! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/79 "2010-03-03T07:23:54Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > In the book Girls Like Us, which is about Carole King, Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon, they explain who the song is about. Unfortunately, I’ve completely forgotten who. It’s a good book, though, full of info and gossip. > [@Sigmagirl](#): > > I read that book and don’t even remember it being revealed. You may be right, then. That would explain why I can’t remember it. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2010, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/carly-simon-reveals-youre-so-vain-inspiration/530536/80 "2010-03-03T13:45:31Z")
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