Halston

After rising in the fashion world in the sixties as a milliner for Bergdorf Goodman (and, famously, Jacqueline Kennedy), Roy Halston Frowick launched his eponymous womenswear label in 1968, buoyed by his connections with socialites and celebrities. The label is noted for its luxurious but minimalist, modern designs, like heavyweight cashmere evening dresses, ultrasuede wrap coats, and simple jersey sarongs. Halston expanded to include menswear and perfume in 1975. In its heyday, the label was known for A-list clientele including Lauren Bacall, Bianca Jagger, Liza Minnelli, and Liz Taylor. Newsweek dubbed Halston "the best designer in America" in 1972. But almost as famous as his supporters was the designer's reputation as a hard-partying nightlife king-drugs, booze, and Studio 54 ubiquity-which eventually led to his abrupt downward spiral. In 1973, Halston sold his name to Norton Simon Industries. He was fired from his label a decade later, and he died of AIDS-related causes in 1990. The label has had no less than eight separate owners and six designers since then, from John David Ridge through Randolph Duke and Bradley Bayou. It was revived in fall 2008 by Harvey Weinstein, Jimmy Choo's Tamara Mellon, and stylist Rachel Zoe. The owners installed former Versace designer Marco Zanini as creative chief, who showed his first collection in February 2008. Net-a-Porter signed on to sell pieces immediately following the show. But Zanini was dismissed in July 2008, amid rumors of disagreements among the creative board about the direction of the line. No successor has been named; the subsequent spring 2009 collection was presented at the Museum of Modern Art and created by an unnamed design team.