Calvin Klein | |
|---|---|
 Klein in 2011 | |
| Born | Calvin Richard Klein (1942-11-19)November 19, 1942 (age 83) New York City, U.S. |
| Education | Fashion Institute of Technology |
| Occupation | Fashion designer |
| Label | Calvin Klein Inc. |
| Spouses | |
| Partner | Kevin Baker (2016–present) |
| Children | Marci Klein |
Calvin Richard Klein (/klaɪn/KLYNE; born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later becameCalvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range ofperfumes,watches, andjewellery.
Klein was born on November 19, 1942, inthe Bronx, New York City. He is the son of Flore (née Stern; 1909–2006) and Leo Klein.[1][2] His father was born inBoiany,Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine) and had immigrated to New York.[3] He was born in the United States to immigrants fromGalicia andBukovina, Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine/Romania).[4]
As a child, Klein attended J.H.S. 80 in the Bronx.[5] He earned a diploma at theHigh School of Art and Design inManhattan.[6] After graduation, he attended New York'sFashion Institute of Technology,[7] 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 withRalph Lauren andRobert Denning.[8][9]
Klein did his apprenticeship in 1962 at an old line cloak-and-suit manufacturer, Dan Millstein,[10] and spent five years designing at other New York City shops.[11]
In 1968, Klein launched his first company with his childhood friendBarry K. Schwartz.[12][8] When Schwartz was considering buying a supermarket inHarlem, Klein informed him that he wanted to "design medium priced clothes with a clean look."[13] "When I said I needed money to start out on my own, he said 'You've got it,'" Klein said.[13] Schwartz also became his business manager.[13] After leaving his manufacturing job, Klein set up an office in a hotel room, began designing coats, and eventually brought his creations toBonwit Teller, where a buyer liked them.[13]
He became aprotégé ofBaron de Gunzburg,[8] 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 atNew York Fashion Week. He was hailed as the newYves Saint Laurent, and was noted for his clean lines.[14]
In 1974, Klein designed the tight-fitting signature jeans that went on to gross $200,000 in their first week of sales.[15]
In 1998, Klein participated in a celebrity reading ofThe Emperor's New Clothes for The Starbright Foundation to benefit ill children.[16]
Klein is a supporter of the U.S.Democratic Party, having given over $250,000 to candidates andPACs since 1980.[17]
Klein married Jayne Centre, atextile designer, in 1964.[18] 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.[13] They have a daughter, television producerMarci Klein,[19] who is best known for her work on NBC'sSaturday Night Live and30 Rock. The couple divorced in 1974.[18]
In September 1986, Klein married his assistant Kelly Rector inRome while they were on a buying trip in Italy.[18] She later became a well-known socialite photographer. After separating in 1996, they divorced in April 2006.[8]
From 2010 to 2012, Klein dated gay ex-porn star Nicholas Gruber, who is 47 years younger.[20][21][22] In 2016, Klein began dating model Kevin Baker.[23]
For many years, Klein owned a home inFire Island Pines, New York onFire Island.[24] He hosted friends such as artistAndy Warhol,Studio 54 ownerSteve Rubell, Fashion designerChester Weinberg, and media mogulDavid Geffen.[25] Although he sold the property in 1995, it is still known as "The Calvin Klein House."[26]
In 2003, Klein bought an ocean-front estate inSouthampton, New York, onLong Island and demolished it to build a $75 million glass-and-concrete mansion.[8][27] In 2015, he put hisMiami Beach, Florida mansion on the market for $16 million.[28] The Florida home sold for $12,850,000 in February 2017. In June 2015, Klein bought a mansion inLos Angeles,California, for $25 million.[29]
In 1974, Klein also became the first designer to receive outstanding design in men's and women's wear from theCouncil of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) award show.[citation needed] In 1983, he was placed on theInternational Best Dressed List.[30] Also in 1981, 1983, and 1993, he received an award from the CFDA.[31]
In 1991, he received theAmerican Academy of Achievement's Golden Plate Award.[32]
Klein received an honorary doctorate from theFashion Institute of Technology in 2003.[33]
Klein made a cameo appearance in season 3, episode 15 ("The Bubble") of the television series30 Rock.[34] A fictionalized version of him also appears in season 4, episode 12 ("The Pick") of the television seriesSeinfeld.The name Calvin Klein was used byMarty McFly in the 1985 filmBack to the Future, after a woman in the 1950s sees the name on his underwear.
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