Kennedy Onassis

Jacqueline (1929-1994). As wife of President John Kennedy, her first role was as the “First Lady” of the United States, and her second marriage made her the wife of the richest Greek shipbuilder of the second half of the century. She was born Jacqueline Lee Bouvier in East Hampton (New York). Her neat and rigorous style deeply influenced fashion for at least two decades. She married John Fitzgerald Kennedy in 1953; in 1960 her husband was elected President of the United States and, while in the White House, Jacqueline appointed Oleg Cassini as her official designer. This marked the start of unforgettable bon-ton tailleurs with bag-shaped jackets and three-quarter sleeves, however, it was Roy Halston who created her celebrated pill-box hats that are nowadays synonymous with the Jackie style. It became a style immortalized by the press on the covers of worldwide magazines. She was even called “Her Elegance” by the magazine Women’s Wear Daily. But it was not only Oleg Cassini behind Jackie: there was also Givenchy and, at the time of her wedding with Onassis, Valentino too, who in 1967 dedicated her an entire Collection and, in 1968, created the bridal dress for her second wedding ceremony. In her last years she often wore clothes by the designer Caroline Herrera. Several accessories were also linked to her name: from the strap bag with the classic H-shaped buckle designed by Hermès, to the Capri sandals she had manufactured by the dozen by Canfora, a renowned Capri shoemaker, and the big oval sunglasses and backcombed hairstyle.