Prince Egon 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 1969, he married fashion designer
Diane Halfin, with whom he had two children,
Alexandre Egon (born 25 January 1970) and
Tatiana Desirée (born 16 February 1971). The couple separated in 1973 and divorced in 1983.
[ The same year, he married Lynn Marshall (born c. 1950), an American from Mississippi who was the co-owner of a flower shop; the couple remained childless.]
Family
Eduard Egon Peter Paul Giovanni Prinz zu Fürstenberg, born 29 June 1946 in Lausanne, Switzerland
Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Swiss French-speaking canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway between the Jura Mountains and the Alps, and facing the ...
, was the elder son of Prince Tassilo zu Fürstenberg (1903–1989) and his first wife, Clara Agnelli
Clara Jeanne Nuvoletti (née Agnelli; 7 April 1920 – 19 July 2016), formerly Princess Clara von Fürstenberg, was an Italian socialite and heiress.
Early life and family
Clara Jeanne Agnelli was born in Turin on 7 April 1920 to Edoardo Agn ...
(1920-2016), elder sister of Fiat
Fiat Automobiles S.p.A., commonly known as simply Fiat ( , ; ), is an Italian automobile manufacturer. It became a part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2014 and, in 2021, became a subsidiary of Stellantis through its Italian division, Stellant ...
's chairman Gianni Agnelli
Giovanni "Gianni" Agnelli (; 12 March 192124 January 2003), nicknamed ("The Lawyer"), was an Italian industrialist and principal shareholder of Fiat S.p.A., Fiat. As the head of Fiat, he controlled 4.4% of Italy's GDP, 3.1% of its industrial ...
. After Clara's departure, his father married Texas oil heiress Dr. Cecilie Amelia Hudson (née Blaffer).
Fürstenberg's younger brother is Prince Sebastian zu Fürstenberg, and his sister was socialite and actress Princess Ira zu Fürstenberg.
Biography
Egon von Fürstenberg was born in Lausanne
Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...
, Switzerland.[ He was baptized by the French nuncio Angelo Roncalli (later elected ]Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII (born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death on 3 June 1963. He is the most recent pope to take ...
) and was brought up in great privilege in Venice, Italy
Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are linked by 438 bridge ...
.University of Geneva
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public university, public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by French theologian John Calvin as a Theology, theological seminary. It rema ...
, followed by an 14-month term on a peace mission in Burundi working as a teacher, and then two years as an investment banker in New York.[ a Belgian-born ]Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
woman of Romanian-Greek descent and daughter of a Holocaust survivor
Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, its collaborators before and during World War II ...
. They married on 16 July 1969, at Montfort-l'Amaury
Montfort-l'Amaury () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It is located north of Rambouillet. The name comes from Amaury I de Montfort, the first ''seigneur'' (lord) of Montfort.
Geography ...
, Yvelines
Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.[wrap dress
"Wrap dress" is a generic term for a dress with a front closure formed by wrapping one side across the other, and is fastened at the side or tied at the back. This forms a V-shaped neckline. A faux wrap dress resembles this design, except that it ...]
, a career as designer that pre-dated and arguably eclipsed Egon's. Fürstenberg began his career as a buyer for Macy's
Macy's is an American department store chain founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. The first store was located in Manhattan on Sixth Avenue between 13th and 14th Streets, south of the present-day flagship store at Herald Square on West 34 ...
, taking night classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public college under the State University of New York, in New York City. It focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. It was founded in ...
,[ They divorced in 1983.][
Fürstenberg began independent work as a fashion designer in 1977, designing clothes for plus-size women, and later expanding to full fashion and product licensing, with ready-to-wear, fragrance, and ]made to measure
Made-to-measure (MTM) typically refers to custom clothing that is cut and sewn using a standard-sized base pattern. Suits and sport coats are the most common garments made-to-measure. The fit of a made-to-measure garment is expected to be superi ...
lines based in Rome. Next von Furstenberg designed ready-made clothing for the masses, and an off-the-peg (ready-to-wear) line of fashion.[
Fürstenberg wrote two top selling books: ''The Power Look'' (1978), a guide to fashion and good taste, and ''The Power Look at Home: Decorating for Men'' (1980), a book on home furnishings.][Quinn, Joan A. 1989, "Click: Zachary Selig honors Prince Egon von Furstenberg." ''The Herald Examiner'', 26 January 1989.]
Egon von Fürstenberg died at Spallanzani Hospital in Rome on 11 June 2004.New York Post
The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative
daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...
'' reported Fürstenberg's widow stating that he died of liver cancer
Liver cancer, also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy, is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary in which the cancer starts in the liver, or it can be liver metastasis, or secondar ...
caused by a hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection period, people often have mild or no symptoms. Early symptoms can include ...
infection that he acquired in the 1970s.
Published works
Fürstenberg's published works included:[
* ''The Power Look,'' 1978, New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston
* ''The Power Look at Home: Decorating for Men,'' 1980, New York, NY: Morrow
]
References
External links
Homepage Egon von Fürstenberg
* FMD, 2015, "Designers: Egon von Fürstenberg, ''Fashion Model Directory'' (''FMD'', online), se
accessed 14 July 2015.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuerstenberg, Egon Von
1946 births
2004 deaths
Egon von Fuerstenberg
Agnelli family
German socialites
German people of Italian descent
German fashion designers
LGBTQ fashion designers
German bisexual men
German bisexual artists
LGBTQ Roman Catholics
Fashion Institute of Technology alumni
Bisexual male artists
LGBTQ royalty
Swiss fashion designers
People from Lausanne
20th-century German LGBTQ people
21st-century German LGBTQ people