Party of the Century:
http://scalaregia.blogspot.com/2009/01/ ... arles.html
http://www.pinterest.com/disraeli/the-d ... mber-1951/
http://scalaregia.blogspot.com/search/l ... n%20Welles
Rococo Revisited:
http://a-l-ancien-regime.tumblr.com/pos ... i-ball-she
Don Carlos de Beistegui y de Yturbe
NICKNAME: “The Count of Monte Cristo”
NATIONALITY: Mexican/Spanish. Left Mexico after the execution of Emperor Maximilian in 1867
WEALTH: Multi-millionaire (silver, agriculture, and real estate)
OCCUPATION: Art collector and interior decorator.
PASSION: Throwing massive galas. His ball in 1951 at the Palazzo Labia in Venice is still referred to as “The Party of the Century.”
Being a good friend also means being a good host, of course, and no one was better than Don Carlos de Beistegui. His Le Bal Oriental held on September 3rd, 1951 is still considered “The Party of the Century.” Christian Dior and Salvador Dalí designed each other’s costumes.
—C.B.S.
http://thefrenchsampler.blogspot.com/20 ... ntury.html
On September 3rd 1951, Don Carlos de Beistegui y de Tturbe (or Charlie de Beistegui to his acquaintances) threw a lavishly extravagant, decadent, masked, costume ball, which he called 'Le Bal oriental'. The venue was his newly restored Palazzo Labia in Venice. The ball was the first grand ball to be held after the second world war, quite a bold move considering Europe was still picking up the pieces and rationing was still in place in many countries, (food rationing in Britain ended in 1954).
Charlie was of Mexican and Spanish origin, he was the heir to a Mexican Silver fortune although he only went to Mexico twice, he was born in France and educated in England. Charlie was an eccentric, multimillionaire, art collector and interior decorator and one of the most flamboyant characters of the 20th century. Despite all this he was not the most popular person, he was often described as being personally aloof and shadowy with a reputation of treating his friends and mistresses poorly.
Cecil Beaton wrote in his diary:
"Beistegui is utterly ruthless. Such qualities as sympathy, pity or even gratitude are sadly lacking. He has become the most self-engrossed and pleasure-seeking person I have met."
He commissioned Spanish weavers to create tapestries in the style of Goya.
Beistegui was not troubled by the Germans during their occupation of France, because he had a Spanish diplomatic passport, and was treated as a citizen of a neutral country.
Cecil Beaton's photographs of the ball display an almost surreal society, reminiscent of the Venetian life immediately before the fall of the republic at the end of the 18th century. The "party of the century" launched the career of Pierre Cardin, who designed about 30 of the costumes. Nina Ricci was another designer who was involved.
Despite this colossal extravagance and the enormously high-profile guest list he was able to attract, Beistegui did not generally warm to people, nor they to him. He remained personally aloof and shadowy, (like Gatsby) and was often accused of treating his friends and mistresses very poorly. He never married, and although he was said to have had many mistresses, his sexuality was often the subject of speculation.