Simply Halston [Paperback]

Steven Gaines (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1993

A biography of the late fashion design describes his Midwestern beginnings, his creation of Jackie Kennedy's pillbox hat, his hold on the fashion world of the 1970s, his drug use, and his tragic death. Reprint. K. NYT.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

There's a sad irony in the glitzy life of fashion designer Roy Halston Frowick, product of a Midwestern Depression childhood with an alcoholic father and the self-made "king of New York night life." Halston, whose clean-cut, all-American style was mass-marketed through J. C. Penney, was hooked on cocaine, booze and Quaaludes and had a nasty anti-Semitic streak, as portrayed here. As his fame peaked, he became increasingly paranoid, capricious and hot-tempered, according to Gaines, author of a Beatles biography ( The Love You Make ). Halston, at the height of his fame, was "almost a caricature of a sissy homosexual fashion designer, haughty and superficial," we are told. There are candid details of his coked-out Venezuelan window-dresser lover, his endless stream of call boys, business reversals, cavortings with the rich and beautiful (Andy Warhol, Liza Minnelli et al.) and his death from AIDS in 1990 at the age of 57. Alternately fawning and damning, this frantic biography has a hollow center where a man should be. Photos. First serial to Vanity Fair.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

When Roy Halston Frowick died on March 26, 1990, the society pages and the world of haute couture lost one of their stars. Gaines has been indefatigable in collecting gossip for his account of the glamorous but dissipated life of the man best known for having dressed many fashionable women, such as Jacqueline Onassis, Liza Minelli, Elizabeth Taylor, and Martha Graham. There is nothing edifying in this expose of the unpleasant high jinks of Halston and his fellow celebrities, nor is any purpose served by spelling out the grim details of his death from Kaposi's sarcoma, a complication of AIDS. It is, however, interesting to read of Halston's self-promotion and marketing genius, as he made his leap from window dresser in Chicago to the top of cafe society in Manhattan. A possible choice for the popular reading sections of public libraries. (Photographs not seen.)-- Margarete Gross, Chicago P.L.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Jove (January 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0515110159
• ISBN-13: 978-0515110159
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #526,215 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steven Gaines is the best-selling author of twelve books, including Philistines at the Hedgerow: Passion and Property in the Hamptons; The Sky's the Limit: Passion and Property in Manhattan; The Love You Make: An Insider's Story of the Beatles; and Marjoe, the biography of evangelist Marjoe Gortner.

The big screen version of his biography Simply Halston starring Brendan Fraser is in pre-production with Killer Films.

His weekly radio interview show, Sunday Brunch Live from the American Hotel in Sag Harbor airs during the summer and fall months on WLIU FM Southampton, New York, a National Public Radio affiliate.

His journalism has appeared in Vanity Fair, the New York Observer, the New York Times, Los Angeles, and Worth, and he is presently a contributing editor at New York magazine. His frequent television appearances include "60 Minutes"; "The Today Show"; "CBS Morning News"; and "Good Morning America."

Mr. Gaines is a co-founder and past vice-chairman of the Hamptons International Film Festival.

He lives in a small hamlet on the East End of Long Island.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shocking but juicy, January 9, 2005

By 

Robbie Granit (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simply Halston (Hardcover)

This book is a no-holds barred portrait of the fashion designer, sometimes more than you want to know, but always gripping. Amazing amount of personal information, and its just as fascinating about the Studio 54 era as it is about the inside of the fashion industry. The Prisoner of Seventh Avenue sold his name for a few rupees and was locked out of his office. I read this in one sitting. Can't wait for the movie.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Engaging and Fair, September 30, 2008

By 

Jody (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Simply Halston (Paperback)

The rise and "fall" of Halston the brand has always been an intriguing story to me. I finally found a copy of this book and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I felt the author fairly portrayed all sides of Halston the designer, he could have gone on the trashy end of Halston's later years but instead the author reported the drug and sex rumors without over embellishing. From a fashion business aspect, the book was fascinating, to see how quickly one can rise a legend and how simple mistakes and choices can make you "out" in the fashion world.

I would have enjoyed more pictures of Halston's fashion designs throughout the year but I suppose there are art books for that aspect.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars horrible halston, January 13, 2004

By 

"houseseller" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simply Halston (Hardcover)

fairly dry reading of a fascinating life, not nearly as naughty or revealing as I expected, I understand that a movie is being made based on this book (Alex Baldwin is expected to portray Halston). Let's hope the movie has more bite than this biography.