Ernő László (11 July 1897 – March 1973) was a Hungarian-born American

dermatologist Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin.''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary.'' Random House, Inc. 2001. Page 537. . It is a speciality with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist is a specialist medi ...

and

cosmetics Cosmetics are substances that are intended for application to the body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. They are mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either Natural product, natural source ...

businessman who founded The Ernő László Institute.

Early life

László was born in the Kingdom of Hungary and raised in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

. He studied skin

pathology Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

and skin disease at the Royal Hungarian University of Medical Sciences in Budapest, and completed his clinical studies in Berlin, Germany, under Max Joseph. In 1927, László opened his first institute in Budapest with his brother, William Laszlo, the dr. Med. László Institute for Scientific Cosmetology. He achieved fame when he created a special foundation cream for

Princess Stéphanie of Belgium Princess Stéphanie Clotilde Louise Herminie Marie Charlotte of Belgium (21 May 1864 – 23 August 1945) was a Belgian royal family, Belgian princess who became Crown Princess of Austria through marriage to Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, Crown P ...

who lost her self-confidence due to an acute case of acne. His reputation was further solidified after he treated actress Frida Gombaszoegi's facial scars after being shot in the face by a man she rejected. Soon, women from all ranks of society wanted to see László for skin and make-up advice.

The Ernő László Institute

In 1939, at the onset of World War II, László moved to New York. On 3 November 1939, the ''

New York Herald Tribune The ''New York Herald Tribune'' was a newspaper published between 1924 and 1966. It was created in 1924 when Ogden Mills Reid of the '' New York Tribune'' acquired the '' New York Herald''. It was regarded as a "writer's newspaper" and compet ...

'' reported that the Ernő László Institute, specializing in beauty treatments and cosmetics, had leased a floor in a building on 677

Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...

, Manhattan. László's poor command of the English language threatened his institute, for despite the efforts of a language coach he could not pass the American Medical Association's accreditation examinations. The Ernő László Institute was aimed at the rich, famous and powerful. One needed to be recommended to gain admittance. Among his clients were the

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Doris Duke Doris Duke (November 22, 1912 – October 28, 1993) was an American billionaire tobacco heiress, philanthropist, and socialite. She was often called "the richest girl in the world". Her great wealth, luxurious lifestyle, and love life attracted ...

Marjorie Merriweather Post Marjorie Merriweather Post (March 15, 1887 – September 12, 1973) was an American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist. She was the daughter of C. W. Post and the owner of General Foods, General Foods Corporation. For much of Post's l ...

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress and a premier star during Hollywood's Silent film, silent and early Classical Hollywood cinema, golden eras. Regarded as one of the g ...

Lillian Gish Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993) was an American actress best known for her work in movies of the silent era. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was dubbed the "F ...

Grace Kelly Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982), also known as Grace of Monaco, was an American actress and Princess of Monaco as the wife of Prince Rainier III from their marriage on April 18, 1956, until her death in 1982. ...

Ava Gardner Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress during the Golden Age of Hollywood. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' att ...

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, and

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular f ...

. In the early 1940s,

Helena Rubinstein Helena Rubinstein (born Chaja Rubinstein; December 25, 1872 – April 1, 1965) was a Polish and American businesswoman, art collector, and philanthropist. A cosmetics entrepreneur, she was the founder and eponym of Helena Rubinstein Incorporate ...

approached László and offered to buy his business, but he declined. In 1945, László became a United States citizen. In 1966, László entered the retail marketplace, with partner

Chesebrough-Ponds Pond's is an English brand of beauty and health care products, currently owned by Unilever. History Pond's Cream was invented in the United States as a patent medicine by pharmacist Theron T. Pond (1800–1852) of Utica, New York, in 1846. Mr ...

, which later bought the Ernő László Institute.

Personal life

László married actress , whom he met while treating her sister, fellow actress . His wife died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

in 1967. Three years later, in 1970, he married Sibille Schulz in a ceremony near

Lugano Lugano ( , , ; ) is a city and municipality within the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland. It is the largest city in both Ticino and the Italian-speaking region of southern Switzerland. Lugano has a population () of , and an u ...

, Switzerland.

Death and legacy

László died of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to Cardiac cycle, fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF ...

in March 1973. In 1995, the company László founded was bought by Mana Products from

Elizabeth Arden Elizabeth Arden (December 31, 1881 – October 18, 1966), also known as Elizabeth N. Graham, was a Canadian-American businesswoman who founded what is now Elizabeth Arden, Inc., and built a cosmetics empire in the United States. Backg ...

. Mana Products' founder, Nikos Mouyiaris, had once worked for Ernő László as a chemist. The company was purchased in 2002 by Cradle Holdings Inc., a division of corporate finance group Fox Paine. In February 2011, the

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Special Opportunities Fund, managed by RBS Equity Finance, backed Charles Denton in the acquisition of Ernő László.

References

External links

Official Product Website (Erno Laszlo Inc.)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laszlo, Erno Cosmetics people 1897 births 1973 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American cosmetics businesspeople Hungarian dermatologists Dermatologists Jewish physicians Hungarian emigrants to the United States Physicians from Budapest People from Partizánske District 20th-century Hungarian physicians