All posts tagged: Klein

How Kelly Klein Ended Up With Wallis Simpson’s Pearl Earrings

How Kelly Klein Ended Up With Wallis Simpson’s Pearl Earrings

Published by Sam Flores

Nearly 15 years after Simpson wore the pearl earrings to her husband’s funeral, they fell into the hands of another headline-making couple. Simpson died on April 24, 1986 and some of her possessions were auctioned off by Sotheby’s in Geneva. Enter Calvin Klein, creator of the first designer jeans, who purchased the earrings, necklace, and a pearl pendant for his second wife, photographer Kelly Klein, totaling $1.18 million. Kelly later debuted the pieces to attend the 1989 Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Awards. In 2007, twenty years after acquiring the pieces, the now-divorced Klein couple put the pieces up for sale at another Sotheby’s auction. “The first time I wore them, it created a lot of drama. I hadn’t realized just how much buzz there was surrounding these pearls,” says Klein told W Magazine in 2007, calling a pearl “the ultimate feminine jewel.” She continued, “All evening long, people came up to me and asked, ‘Are those the pearls?’ It was quite a spectacle.” The Windsor estate sale in 1987 raised $50.3 million—seven …

Jung Kook on His Calvin Klein Collab: ‘It Ultimately Is a Secret Message of Appreciation to My Fans’

Jung Kook on His Calvin Klein Collab: ‘It Ultimately Is a Secret Message of Appreciation to My Fans’

Published by Jenni Sidey

In the three years since Jung Kook first appeared in a torso-baring Calvin Klein campaign, a lot has changed. In November 2023, the “golden maknae” of BTS dropped his debut solo album, Golden—which garnered the alluring number-one hit “Seven”—before enlisting to complete his mandatory South Korean military service a month later. Now, he and his bandmates are back and better than ever, currently supporting their smash-hit tenth album Arirang on the equally red-hot Arirang World Tour. Throughout it all, the 28-year-old’s relationship with Calvin Klein has only deepened—first by way of another sexy, internet-breaking campaign last year, and now through a limited-edition capsule campaign that the singer helped design himself. Officially dubbed Jung Kook for Calvin Klein (or “CKJK” for short), the collection comprises 20 styles for both men and women, including a number of the storied label’s most iconic pieces—the ’90s trucker jacket, low-rise jeans, that classic CK underwear—all filtered through Jung Kook’s distinct perspective. The line’s logo, for instance, is inspired by his love of racing; elsewhere, design elements reference his passions for …

Jeff Klein on SVB Expansion, Whether He’d Ever Sell

Jeff Klein on SVB Expansion, Whether He’d Ever Sell

Published by Daniella Wilson

Is Jeff Klein looking to open a San Vicente Bungalow in Palm Springs? Or is he looking to cash out? That was the question left open by The Wall Street Journal’s March 19 bombshell scoop — that Klein, 54, was working with Goldman Sachs and real-estate firm JLL to find a new investment partner for his high-end hospitality empire, long a magnet for A-list celebs and industry climbers, ostensibly as part of an expansion plan. “We are currently looking at several new locations and evaluating different ways to structure the next phase of growth while protecting the magic and exclusivity,” Klein told the Journal. Notably, though, the Journal also reported that Klein would “consider selling a majority or even all of the businesses,” including his West Hollywood and New York properties. In other words, the Journal suggested, he might just take the money and run. Rambling Reporter gave Klein a call to clear up the confusion and learned that it’s definitely the former — unless, of course, the money ends up being stupid enough for …

Alessandro Nivola Talks Calvin Klein and Carolyn Bessette

Alessandro Nivola Talks Calvin Klein and Carolyn Bessette

Published by Daniella Wilson

[This story contains spoilers from Love Story, episode six, “The Wedding.”] Portraying Calvin Klein — a name nearly everyone knows and a designer who defined minimalist fashion in the 1990s — is no small feat, but Alessandro Nivola was up for the challenge. Klein is also largely responsible for launching the career of another fashion icon: Carolyn Bessette. And while FX’s Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette mainly focuses on the relationship — and tragedy — of JFK Jr. (played by Paul Anthony Kelly) and Carolyn (Sarah Pidgeon), viewers also get a glimpse of Carolyn’s life before she met John, when she lived in New York’s East Village and worked for Calvin Klein. He also played a role in bringing the couple together. The first six episodes depict Carolyn’s working relationship with Calvin, her rise through the ranks at the fashion company, and the two’s real friendship. “There was a platonically romantic element to it,” Nivola tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I think he really loves her.” That’s what makes Thursday night’s episode especially painful: …

We Need a ‘Love Story’ Spinoff About Alessandro Nivola’s Calvin Klein Immediately

We Need a ‘Love Story’ Spinoff About Alessandro Nivola’s Calvin Klein Immediately

Published by Jenni Sidey

This is an edition of the weekly newsletter Tap In, GQ senior associate editor Frazier Tharpe’s final word on the most heated online discourse about music, movies, and TV. Sign up here to get it free. The first sign that Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette might be a banger—even for me, someone who has never been intrigued by the titular lovebirds’ doomed relationship—was, naturally, not a scene that revolved around their courtship. Instead, it involves Annette Bening. In that first episode, we watch our heroine Carolyn striding into the Calvin Klein offices as if she’s already the master of the universe, even though she’s actually relatively low on the totem pole, something her manager is keen to remind her of. But you can’t keep a bad bitch down. Carolyn’s voice, and more importantly, her taste, shine through during a styling session with the one and only Ms. Beatty, who’s in the office to get fitted for Warren’s Bugsy premiere. She wants to feel comfortable, but also make a statement; Carolyn is …

Exclusive: Barcelona Star Raphinha Is the New Face (and Abs) of Calvin Klein Underwear

Exclusive: Barcelona Star Raphinha Is the New Face (and Abs) of Calvin Klein Underwear

Published by Jenni Sidey

Raphinha shouted out everyone at CK for making him feel comfortable wearing nothing but his skivvies, saying the “vibe on set was super cool.” Joining the likes of Bad Bunny, Jung Kook, and Jeremy Allen White as one of the faces of such a beloved brand, stripping down for Calvin Klein was a full-circle moment for the player, who had celebrity aspirations as a kid growing up in Porto Alegre. “I remember when I was young seeing the iconic campaigns with football stars and celebrities and just dreamed of one day being part of this universe,” he said. Now boasting 18 million Instagram followers, he’s certainly in the same universe as the soccer wizards he watched during his youth. But to truly ascend to the level of Pele, Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho, it’s obvious what Raphinha and his Brazilian side must do at the upcoming World Cup: win the whole thing. Currently ranked fifth in the world, the Seleção are among the favorites, along with South American neighbors and 2022 champions Argentina, as well as European …

Will Klein isn’t shocked he saved Dodgers World Series dynasty

Will Klein isn’t shocked he saved Dodgers World Series dynasty

Published by Sam Flores

The day after he saved the Dodgers’ season, Will Klein was hungry. He ordered from Mod Pizza. He drove over to pick up his order. The guy that handed him the pizza told him he looked just like Will Klein. “You should just look at the name on the order,” Klein told him. Chaos ensued. “He actually started screaming,” Klein said. “He just started flipping out, which was funny.” Thing is, if it were two days earlier, the guy would have had no idea what Klein looked like. Neither would you. On Oct. 26, Klein was the last man in the Dodgers’ bullpen, a wild thing on his fourth organization in two years, a last-minute addition to the World Series roster. On Oct. 27, the Dodgers played 18 innings, and the last man in the Dodgers’ bullpen delivered the game of his life: four shutout innings, holding the Toronto Blue Jays at bay until Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off home run. Dodgers pitcher Will Klein celebrates during the 16th inning of Game 3 of the …

Kelly Klein: The Muse Who Shaped ’90s Fashion With Her Friend Carolyn Bessette Kennedy

Kelly Klein: The Muse Who Shaped ’90s Fashion With Her Friend Carolyn Bessette Kennedy

Published by Sam Flores

Together with Kelly, Calvin Klein took his eponymous brand to the next level. She was the one who came up with the idea of adapting men’s underwear for women. From the casual comment “there’s something sexy about wearing your boyfriend’s underwear” came one of the brand’s best-sellers and iconic designs, generating $70 million in 1984. Kelly Rector became a true reflection of the Calvin Klein woman, one who encapsulated glamour and sophistication in a simple cashmere knit dress. The couple married in 1986 while on a business trip to Rome. She wore an ensemble of silk pencil skirt, matching blazer, and a lace bodice, designed by Calvin. They were married until 2006, when their divorce was made official, although the couple had separated 10 years earlier. Ron Galella, Ltd./Getty Images But beyond being Calvin Klein’s wife or his muse, Kelly now defines herself on her Instagram account’s bio as a “designer, photographer, interior designer, author, ceramacist, and mother.” She has edited seven photography books. The first one, Pools, launched in 1992 at a party in …

Brooke Shields on Style, the New “Sex Sells,” and Returning to the Calvin Klein Fold

Brooke Shields on Style, the New “Sex Sells,” and Returning to the Calvin Klein Fold

Published by Sam Flores

To her point, when designers take on legacy brands like this one, they can feel an urge to start fresh. “But they’re not broken, so they don’t really need to be fixed,” Shields says. “They need to be enhanced and nurtured and preserved. I think it’s a strong designer who can incorporate the initial sort of essence or DNA [of a brand], and modernize it and put their stamp on it, I feel like that’s true design.” It’s not just advertising that has changed, but fashion, too. So much of what’s shown on the runways today appears to be a desperate call for attention—from the internet, from the audience at the show, from someone. “In this day and age, there’s shock value and all these different ways to get people’s attention, and that’s not what this brand ever was,” Shields says. Sure, the advertisements of the ‘80s and ‘90s were sparked conversations, and they still do, but those were for the underwear or jeans, not for the collections shown on the runway. At Calvin Klein, …

Did Calvin Klein Really Introduce JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette?

Did Calvin Klein Really Introduce JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette?

Published by Jenni Sidey

No. But she did help her become the face of Calvin Klein. In the first episode of American Love Story, Carolyn Bessette pulls Kate Moss’s headshot out of a pile of rejected photos on Calvin Klein’s desk. Bessette is said to have helped create the look of Calvin Klein’s CK One era, and among her greatest contributions was lobbying—along with art director Fabien Baron—for a then-unknown Kate Moss to appear in a 1992 underwear ad alongside Mark Wahlberg. The resulting TV ad is, to put it in the kindest possible terms, a great reminder that we’ve come a long way as a society in the last 30 years, but it would launch Moss’s career. She would soon go on to become the face of Obsession, and a definitive influence in 1990s fashion in her own right. Was Equinox a thing back in 1992? JFK Jr. in Central Park in 1997. Lawrence Schwartzwald/Getty Images Yup! But JFK Jr. probably didn’t work out there. While he may or may not have ever taken an aerobics class with …