Jane Derby (May 17, 1895 – August 7, 1965) was an American

fashion designer Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...

. Born Jeanette Fleming Barr in

Rocky Mount, Virginia Rocky Mount is a town in and the county seat of Franklin County, Virginia, United States. The town is part of the Roanoke Metropolitan Statistical Area, and had a population of 4,903 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the Roanoke Region of ...

in 1895, Derby first worked as an apprentice designer before opening her own business in 1936 in New York. She later opened Jane Derby, Inc., in 1938, which she ran continuously until her death in 1965 (with the exception of during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

). She was one of the first fashion designers to show the short dinner dress. In 1951 she received the Winnie award of the Coty American Fashion Critics' Awards. She was married to Arthur Lawrence Derby from 1915 until his death in 1961, and in December 1964 remarried to Ross Cuthbert (1892-1970), a former Olympic ice hockey player and retired lieutenant colonel of the British Army. Derby had children, including a son, Arthur (1916-1944), who was killed in action in

. Derby died in

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

in August 1965, aged 70.

Oscar de la Renta Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo (22 July 1932 – 20 October 2014), known professionally as Oscar de la Renta, was a Dominican fashion designer. Born in Santo Domingo, he was trained by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Antonio del Castillo. De la Renta ...

then took control of her company, having worked there before her death.

References

American fashion designers American women fashion designers 1895 births 1965 deaths 20th-century American women 20th-century American people {{US-artist-stub