Calvin Klein

Calvin Richard Klein (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell; born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery.

Early life and education

Klein was born on November 19, 1942, in the Bronx, New York City. He is the son of Flore (née Stern; 1909–2006) and Leo Klein.<ref name=HouseofKlein>Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Flore Klein, United States Social Security Death Index">Template:Cite web</ref> His father was born in Boiany, Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine) and had immigrated to New York.<ref name="New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909">Template:Cite web</ref> He was born in the United States to immigrants from Galicia and Bukovina, Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine).<ref name="New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940">Template:Cite web</ref>

As a child, Klein attended J.H.S. 80 in the Bronx.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He earned a diploma at the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After graduation, he attended New York's Fashion Institute of Technology,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> leaving for six months after his first year before returning to finish his degree.

He was one of several design leaders raised in the Jewish community in the Bronx, along with Ralph Lauren and Robert Denning.<ref name="citylife">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Career

Klein did his apprenticeship in 1962 at an old line cloak-and-suit manufacturer, Dan Millstein,<ref>Template:Cite webTemplate:Dead link</ref> and spent five years designing at other New York City shops.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1968, Klein launched his first company with his childhood friend Barry K. Schwartz.<ref name="Luxury">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="citylife"/> When Schwartz was considering buying a supermarket in Harlem, Klein informed him that he wanted to "design medium priced clothes with a clean look."<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> "When I said I needed money to start out on my own, he said 'You've got it,'" Klein said.<ref name=":0" /> Schwartz also became his business manager.<ref name=":0" /> After leaving his manufacturing job, Klein set up an office in a hotel room, began designing coats, and eventually brought his creations to Bonwit Teller, where a buyer liked them.<ref name=":0" />

He became a protégé of Baron de Gunzburg,<ref name="citylife" /> who introduced him to the New York elite fashion scene before he had his first mainstream success with the launch of his first jeans line. He was immediately recognized for his talent after his first major showing at New York Fashion Week. He was hailed as the new Yves Saint Laurent, and was noted for his clean lines.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1974, Klein designed the tight-fitting signature jeans that went on to gross $200,000 in their first week of sales.<ref name="Vogue Arabia">Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1998, Klein participated in a celebrity reading of The Emperor's New Clothes for The Starbright Foundation to benefit ill children.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal life

Klein is a supporter of the U.S. Democratic Party, having given over $250,000 to candidates and PACs since 1980.<ref>[1] Template:Webarchive</ref>

Relationships

Klein married Jayne Centre, a textile designer, in 1964.<ref name="NY Magazine">Template:Cite web</ref> Despite going to the same high school and growing up next door in New York, Klein and Centre didn't meet and begin dating until college.<ref name=":0" /> They have a daughter, television producer Marci Klein,<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> who is best known for her work on NBC's Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock. The couple divorced in 1974.<ref name="NY Magazine" />

In September 1986, Klein married his assistant Kelly Rector in Rome while they were on a buying trip in Italy.<ref name="NY Magazine" /> She later became a well-known socialite photographer. After separating in 1996, they divorced in April 2006.<ref name="citylife" />

From 2010 to 2012, Klein dated gay ex-porn star Nicholas Gruber, who is 47 years younger.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2016, Klein began dating model Kevin Baker.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Homes

For many years, Klein owned a home in Fire Island Pines, New York on Fire Island.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> He hosted friends such as artist Andy Warhol, Studio 54 owner Steve Rubell, Fashion designer Chester Weinberg, and media mogul David Geffen.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Although he sold the property in 1995, it is still known as "The Calvin Klein House."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2003, Klein bought an ocean-front estate in Southampton, New York, on Long Island and demolished it to build a $75 million glass-and-concrete mansion.<ref name="citylife" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2015, he put his Miami Beach, Florida mansion on the market for $16 million.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Florida home sold for $12,850,000 in February 2017. In June 2015, Klein bought a mansion in Los Angeles, California, for $25 million.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Awards and honors

In 1974, Klein also became the first designer to receive outstanding design in men's and women's wear from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) award show.Template:Citation needed In 1983, he was placed on the International Best Dressed List.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Also in 1981, 1983, and 1993, he received an award from the CFDA.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1991, he received the American Academy of Achievement's Golden Plate Award.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Klein received an honorary doctorate from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 2003.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In pop culture

Klein made a cameo appearance in season 3, episode 15 ("The Bubble") of the television series 30 Rock.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A fictionalized version of him also appears in season 4, episode 12 ("The Pick") of the television series Seinfeld. The name Calvin Klein was used by Marty McFly in the 1985 film Back to the Future, after a woman in the 1950s sees the name on his underwear.

See also

• High culture
• LGBT culture in New York City
• List of LGBT people from New York City

External links

• Info and photos related to Calvin Klein at askmen.com
• Calvin Klein talks trends on VOGUE.COM
• Calvin Klein's bio at informat.com
• The Biography Channel
• Some History and Background on Calvin Klein
• Calvin Klein — a modern fashion icon
• People magazine, January 18,1982. Calvin Klein, King of clothes Template:Webarchive
• The Latest Calvin by Michael Gross, NY Magazine August 8, 1988 Template:Webarchive