“I have dressed so many people but I have to be sincere: The person that made me feel so very, very happy was Julia Roberts,” Garavani told The Telegraph at the 2008 premiere of Valentino: The Last Emperor. “When she got the Academy Award for Erin Brockovich I watched it on television and really I was so excited that she appeared in my dress. It makes me so very happy and proves once more that movie stars love my clothes.”
Roberts reportedly keeps the dress at home, in a box beneath her bed.
Jackie Kennedy, wedding dress, 1968
For her wedding to Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis in 1968, on the island of Skorpios, former US First Lady Jackie Kennedy selected a couture ensemble from Valentino’s spring 1968 collection.
Jackie Kennedy in her Valentino wedding ensemble for her marriage to Aristotle Onassis in 1968.Credit: BETTMANN ARCHIVE
Valentino with Jackie Onassis in 1970 in Capri.Credit: AP
The high-neck lace top with a pleated skirt shaped wedding dress trends for the coming decade and was auctioned in 2024 for $US24,320 ($36,234) by Bonhams.
“Jacqueline Kennedy’s 1968 couture ensemble is not only an important piece of fashion history marking the emergence of one of the most stylish women in the world – Jackie O – but it also showcases an important design in maison Valentino’s history,” said Marissa Speer, Bonhams head of fashion.
Princess Diana, Paul McCartney concert, 1992
The burgundy velvet and lace dress worn by Diana, Princess of Wales in 1992 to a Paul McCartney performance in France, along with events in London, is almost as famous as the Valentino dress she never wore.
In 1994 Diana had planned to wear a Valentino dress to the Serpentine Gala in London on the night her husband Prince Charles confessed to having an affair on television, but when the design details were prematurely leaked she turned to the infamous revenge dress, designed by Christina Stambolian.
Diana, Princess of Wales, wearing Valentino in Lille, France, 1992.Credit: Getty Images
The designer was close to the princess, with his business partner Giancarlo Giammetti posting pictures to his Instagram account in 2020 of Valentino hosting Diana on his yacht for a holiday in 1990.
Elle Macpherson, Met Gala, 1995
Australian supermodel Elle Macpherson was one of countless fashion figures who turned to Valentino’s signature shade of red to make an impact. Macpherson wore red Valentino gowns to the Met Gala in 1995 and the BAFTA Awards in 2000.
Elle Macpherson with Valentino in one of his designs at the 1995 Met Gala in New York.Credit: WireImage
Elle Macpherson wearing Valentino with Hugh Grant at the 2010 BAFTAs after party.Credit: Getty Images
Scarlett Johansson, Iman, Anne Hathaway and Jennifer Garner all turned to the designer’s searing take on scarlet, which made its debut in his 1958 collection with the Fiesta dress.
“Valentino has superstitions that became status symbols,” Giammetti told Vogue in 1985. “He did red once, and now you have red in every collection.”
Cate Blanchett, Academy Awards, 2005
Australian actor Cate Blanchett is known for pushing the sealed envelope at awards ceremonies, with elegant yet extreme looks. But to collect her first Oscar for The Aviator in 2005 she willingly succumbed to the full princess fantasy.
Cate Blanchett at the Academy Awards wearing Valentino in 2005.Credit: Getty Images
Blanchett wore a pale yellow Valentino silk taffeta gown with a single shoulder and burgundy belt.
“I never wear yellow,” Blanchett said on the red carpet. “But I saw this and liked it.”
“I chose the colours and he made it. He’s the genius, not me.”
While Blanchett went on to sign a deal with Armani, she has continued to champion Valentino on the red carpet.
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