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Traffic was stopped in Palm Beach — an unheard-of inconvenience, according to neighbors. Rolls-Royces, Benzes, and Teslas idled and honked between the hedgerows. Armed security roamed with German shepherds. A golf cart laden with Veuve Clicquot zoomed by. The groom appeared, driving his own cart, a bichon frise slung over one shoulder. The bride was somewhere behind the hedges, being sewn into a custom Valentino gown. It was a sunny Saturday in April 2022, and police were redirecting traffic for a royal wedding without any royals: Local billionaire’s daughter Nicola Peltz was about to marry Brooklyn Beckham, the eldest son of former footballer David Beckham and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham.
For the occasion, the Peltzes erected three white fairground-size air-conditioned marquee tents along their private beachfront at Montsorrel, their 13-acre neoclassical family compound. During the ceremony, 500 guests gathered as the couple walked down a floating aisle, then stood under a chuppah of white orchids suspended against the blue ocean. It was a luxury fairy tale, perfectly planned and executed — until the vows, when the elderly rabbi called Brooklyn “David.” He stuttered and asked for forgiveness; he was a soccer fan, the rabbi said. He made the mistake only once more before the ceremony was over.
It was, as one witness described it, uncomfortably Oedipal.
