Oscar de la Renta, legendary fashion designer, dead at 82
Legendary fashion designer Oscar de la Renta has died at age 82, according to multiple reports.
De La Renta's gowns were worn by countless celebrities, royal family members around the world, and the wives of presidents and prime ministers. Included in that list were U.S. first ladies Jacqueline Onassis, Nancy Reagan, Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush and Michelle Obama.
He was in the news last month when human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin wore a white lace de la Renta gown at her wedding to movie star George Clooney in Venice.
"He’s such an elegant designer and such an elegant man,” Alamuddin said of de la Renta.
Among his survivors are his wife of nearly 25 years, Annette de la Renta.
De La Renta was born in the Dominican Republic and after heading to Europe in his late teens, came to the United States in the early 1960s, running his own label by the second half of the decade.
His designs were known for their feminine sensibility.
"I make pants, but it is a girl dressed like a man, and it was never really my bag," he told the New York Times in 2002.
Oscar de la Renta LLC, in addition to all manner of fashion apparel, produced, jewelry, handbags, belts, sunglasses, watches and fragrances.
