Five protestors were arrested for criminal mischief and disorderly conduct after they slithered onto the sidewalk in front of 4 Times Square's 42nd Street entrance, wearing long fur coats and shackled in leg-hold traps. The group proceeded to douse themselves with red Gatorade and crawl up to the building, some managing to partially wedge themselves in a revolving door before the police could restrain them. As supporters chanted, "Trapped by Greed, Fur is Murder," the three men and two women continued to smear "blood" on the windows and doors until they were dragged away and into a waiting police van -- along with one Associated Press photographer, who was later released at the scene.

Before, during and after this main event, PETA members milled in front of the Conde Nast building, wielding the group's latest poster, which features Wintour caught in a contorted grimace, with the slogan, "Fur is Worn by Beautiful Animals and Ugly People." They also offered passersby postcards of the image, which list the editor's email address and direct phone number and encourage concerned citizens to register their complaints. PETA told FWD last week that this portion of the protest would hopefully disable Vogue's phone lines just as the magazine's ad sales are closing for the next issue. Dan Mathews, PETA's vice president of campaigns, said the group was tipped off to the closing dates by "a few people who work at Vogue and are unhappy about their fur policy."

A call to the number this afternoon, however, was picked up on the second ring, by a seemingly unharried assistant, who said her boss' office has not been flooded with calls.

This isn't the first time that PETA has protested Vogue's pro-fur stance at Conde Nast's offices -- there were several incidents back in the 350 Madison Avenue era -- but today marked the group's 4 Times Square debut. The sizeable crowd that gathered at the height of the action, however, seemed to be made up predominantly of confused Times Square tourists. "What am I filming?" asked one as she joined a group of news photographers with her video camera. "Do you know who's arriving over there?" queried another excited visitor, eager to spot a celebrity, as she pointed to the police presence and roped off entrance.

PETA spokesman Michael McGraw assured FWD that the afternoon protest would be the group's only one today, leaving tonight's CFDA awards, across the street at the New York Public Library, in the clear. Lisa Franzetta, a San Francisco-based campaign coordinator for PETA, warned though that, "wherever Anna Wintour goes, there are people in and out of the animal rights community who oppose her promotion of fur." Franzetta said the editor is such a popular PETA target because she is "a shameless pimp for the fur industry."

At 1pm this afternoon, however, that target was calmly ensconced in her office. It was the maintenance crews of 4 Times Square who were scrubbing a sticky red mess of the sidewalk.