Princess Virginia von Fürstenberg (''Virginia Carolina Theresa Pancrazia Galdina Prinzessin zu Fürstenberg''; born 18 April 1940), known professionally as Ira von Fürstenberg, is an Italian socialite, actress, jewelry designer and former public relations manager for the fashion designer

Valentino Garavani Valentino Clemente Ludovico Garavani (; born 11 May 1932), known mononymously as Valentino, is an Italian fashion designer, the founder of the Valentino brand and company. His main lines include Valentino, Valentino Garavani, Valentino Roma, a ...

. She is a member by birth of the princely family of

Fürstenberg Fürstenberg (also Fuerstenberg and Furstenberg) may refer to: Historical states * Fürstenberg-Baar, county (1441–1559) * Fürstenberg-Blumberg, county (1559–1614) * Fürstenberg-Donaueschingen, county (1617–1698) * Fürstenberg-Fürsten ...

and a former member by marriage of the princely family of

Hohenlohe-Langenburg Hohenlohe-Langenburg () was a German county and later principality in the Holy Roman Empire. It was located in the current northeastern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, around Langenburg. Since the medieval times this small state was ruled by the Hous ...

Background

The daughter of Prince Tassilo zu

and his first wife,

Clara Agnelli Clara Jeanne Nuvoletti (née Agnelli), formerly Princess Clara von Fürstenberg, (7 April 1920 – 19 July 2016) was an Italian socialite and heiress. Early life and family Clara Jeanne Agnelli was born in Turin on 7 April 1920 to Edoardo Agn ...

, she was born in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Her paternal grandparents were Prince Karl Emil von Fürstenberg (1867–1945) and the Hungarian Countess Mária Matild Georgina Festetics von Tolna (24 May 1881– 2 March 1953), who was the daughter of Prince Tassilo Festetics von Tolna and Lady Mary Victoria Douglas-Hamilton. Her maternal great-grandmother was an American heiress, Jane Bourbon del Monte, Princess di San Faustino ( Campbell). The elder of her two brothers was

Prince Egon von Fürstenberg Egon, Prinz von Fürstenberg (Eduard Egon Peter Paul Giovanni Prinz zu Fürstenberg; 29 June 1946 – 11 June 2004) was a socialite, banker, fashion and interior designer, and a member of the former German princely family of Fürstenberg. In ...

, a fashion designer. She also has a younger brother, Prince Sebastian. Her former sister-in-law is the fashion designer Diane von Fürstenberg, and an uncle was

Gianni Agnelli Giovanni "Gianni" Agnelli (; 12 March 192124 January 2003), nicknamed ("The Lawyer"), was an Italian industrialist and principal shareholder of Fiat. As the head of Fiat, he controlled 4.4% of Italy's GDP, 3.1% of its industrial workforce a ...

, the chairman of FIAT. She is a first cousin of Prince Karl von Schwarzenberg, a former

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic ( cs, Ministr zahraničních věcí České republiky) is a senior official of the Government of the Czech Republic, and as the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is concerned with fore ...

. She speaks several languages, including

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

, French,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. She is the patron of a number of charities, including the Children of Africa Foundation set up by

Dominique Ouattara Dominique Claudine Ouattara née Nouvian (born 16 December 1953) is the current First Lady of Ivory Coast, married to President Alassane Ouattara. Early life and education Dominique Claudine Nouvian was born on 16 December 1953 in Constantine A ...

Personal Life

Her first husband, whom she married at

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

, on 17 September 1955, was

Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg Prince Alfonso Maximiliano Victorio Eugenio Alejandro María Pablo de la Santísima Trinidad y Todos los Santos zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg (28 May 1924 – 21 December 2003) was a Spanish businessman known for his promotion of the Spanish resorts of ...

(1924–2003), who founded the

Marbella Club The Marbella Club Hotel is a hotel in Marbella, Spain. The hotel is located on the southern Spanish Costa del Sol, on the " Golden Mile" near Old Town Marbella and Puerto Banús. The Marbella Club Hotel was built in 1954 by Prince Alfonso of ...

, a Spanish resort. At the time of the wedding, the bride was 15 and the groom was 31. They were divorced in 1960, and the marriage was annulled in 1969. They had two children: * Christoph Victorio Egon Humberto (known as "Kiko"; 8 November 1956 – 5 August 2006), who died of massive organ failure a few days after being imprisoned in Klongprem Central Prison in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

on charges of suspicion of illegally altering a visa. His health had been weakened from a weight-loss regimen at a Thai wellness center. * Hubertus Rudolph (known as "Hubi"; born 2 February 1959), a musician and photographer who was on

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

's Olympic skiing team in 1984, 1988, 1992, 1994, 2010 and 2014. Married to Simona Gandolfi on 17 June 2019 in

Vaduz Vaduz ( or , High Alemannic pronunciation: [])Hans Stricker, Toni Banzer, Herbert Hilbe: ''Liechtensteiner Namenbuch. Die Orts- und Flurnamen des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.'' Band 2: ''Die Namen der Gemeinden Triesenberg, Vaduz, Schaan.'' Hrsg. ...

. Her second husband was Francisco "Baby" Pignatari (1916–1977), a

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian industrialist. They married in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

, on 12 January 1961. They divorced in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

in January 1964 and had no children.

Film career

Ira von Fürstenberg was a star of European-made B-movies in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Her film appearances included the spy spoof ''

Matchless Matchless is one of the oldest marques of British motorcycles, manufactured in Plumstead, London, between 1899 and 1966. A wide range of models were produced under the Matchless name, ranging from small two-strokes to 750 cc four-stroke tw ...

'' (1968, co-starring Patrick O'Neal), ''

I Killed Rasputin ''I Killed Rasputin'' (french: J'ai tué Raspoutine) is a 1967 Italo- Franco biographical film directed by Robert Hossein. Gert Fröbe stars as the main subject, Grigori Rasputin. It is based on the work ''Lost Splendor'' by Felix Yusupov, a nobl ...

'' (1967), ''

Dead Run A point of sail is a sailing craft's direction of travel under sail in relation to the true wind direction over the surface. The principal points of sail roughly correspond to 45° segments of a circle, starting with 0° directly into the wind. ...

'' (1967, co-starring

Peter Lawford Peter Sydney Ernest Lawford ( Aylen; 7 September 1923 – 24 December 1984) was an English-American actor.Obituary '' Variety'', 26 December 1984. He was a member of the " Rat Pack" and the brother-in-law of US president John F. Kennedy and se ...

), '' My Bed Is Not for Sleeping'' (1968), ''

The Vatican Affair ''The Vatican Affair'' ( it, A qualsiasi prezzo) is a 1968 Italian crime film directed by Emilio Miraglia and starring Walter Pidgeon and Klaus Kinski. Cast * Walter Pidgeon as Prof. Herbert Cummings * Klaus Kinski as Clint Rogers * Ira von Fü ...

'' (1968), '' The Battle of El Alamein'' (1969), ''

Five Dolls for an August Moon ''Five Dolls for an August Moon'' (Italian: ''5 bambole per la luna d'agosto'') is a 1970 Italian giallo film directed by Mario Bava. It concerns a group of people who have gathered on a remote island for fun and relaxation. One of the guests is ...

'' (1970), '' No desearás al vecino del quinto'' (1970) and ''

The Fifth Cord ''The Fifth Cord'' (Italian: ''Giornata nera per l'ariete'', lit. "Black Day for Aries") is a 1971 Italian giallo film directed by Luigi Bazzoni. The film's Italian title reprises Dario Argento's practice of using animals in the titles of his th ...

'' (1971).

Notable published works

* ''Young at Any Age: Thirty Three of the World's Most Elegant Women Reveal How They Stay Beautiful'' (1981) * ''Tartanware: Souvenirs from Scotland'' (1996) * ''Princesse et Rebelle'' (2002)

References

External links

*
Ira von Fürstenberg
a
aenigma
{{DEFAULTSORT:Furstenberg, Ira Von 1940 births Living people Agnelli family German socialites

Ira Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

Actresses from Rome