Audrey Hepburn News

Audrey Hepburn stamp fetches $93,000 at auction

2009-05-29T03:20:00.002-04:00

"BERLIN - A rare stamp portraying movie star Audrey Hepburn smoking sold for $93,800 at an auction in Germany Tuesday. Both buyer and seller were anonymous.

Only five copies of the 2001 stamp are known to exist.

The print run was ordered destroyed after Hepburn's son, Sean Ferrer, objected to the cigarette holder dangling from the "Breakfast at Tiffany's" star's mouth and refused to grant copyright.

Thirty proof copies escaped incineration. Most probably ended up in the trash can, but a few have wound up in the hands of collectors.

"We can only guess that whoever took the Hepburn stamps from Deutsche Post didn't realize their value, thought they would save 55 cents and just used them on normal letters," auctioneer Andreas Schlegel said.

Hepburn died of colon cancer in 1993. Her son said he hoped the stamp seller would use his windfall to benefit cancer research or an anti-smoking campaign."

new york daily news
associated press

Collectible Audrey Hepburn dolls coming this July

2009-05-27T01:12:00.002-04:00

"Limited edition products to be based on Breakfast at Tiffany's and Funny Face.

Specialist doll maker Madame Alexander has teamed with Paramount Pictures to create two limited edition dolls based on classic Audrey Hepburn films, Breakfast at Tiffany's and Funny Face.

The Breakfast at Tiffany's doll stands 21-inches tall and comes dressed in a short black dress and hat with parasol, purse, necklace and sunglasses.

The 16-inch Funny Face doll, meanwhile, is dressed in a red evening gown, with the film's signature black turtleneck sweater and capris outfit packaged with the doll.

Both dolls will be available in specialty stores from July, priced around $449.95."

licensing.biz

Unseen photographs of Audrey Hepburn exhibited

2009-05-26T23:30:00.007-04:00

"Unseen photographs of Audrey Hepburn are to go on show in a display timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the actress's birth.

Some of the images were taken by Sam Shaw in Paris during a break on-set of the 1957 film Love In The Afternoon. The actress was 28 years old at the time and had recently suffered a miscarriage while trying to start a family with Mel Ferrer, according to The Sunday Telegraph.

Melissa Stevens, Shaw's granddaughter, said that Hepburn had been "professional and very sweet".

"Nobody had a bad word to say about her and she travelled around the world for her career which must have been personally quite demanding," she said.

The exhibition, entitled Proud Galleries And The Sam Shaw Archives, Ltd. Presents Audrey And Marilyn, will be on display at London's Proud Central from April 20 to July 26."

digitalspy.com
proud.co.uk

Hepburn dress sells for $192,000

2007-06-04T19:18:00.001-04:00

A pink cocktail dress worn by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's has sold at auction for $192,000 (£97,233) - more than six times its estimate.

The dress went under the hammer at a sale of film and entertainment memorabilia at Christie's in New York.

The auction house said it had expected the dress to fetch $30,000 (£15,192).

In December, a black Givenchy dress created for Hepburn as Holly Golightly in the 1961 film caused an auction frenzy, selling for £467,200.

The pink cocktail dress is believed to have been a late addition to the film and was used in the scene where Golightly learns of her brother's death and smashes crockery in a fit of grief.

BBC News

Hepburn's pink 'Breakfast at Tiffany's dress is up for grabs

2007-05-17T20:34:00.001-04:00

Washington, May 8: The pink dress Audrey Hepburn wore in 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' is going under the hammer.

And though the starting price for the silk and rhinestone ensemble has been put at 30,000 dollars, auctioneers are hoping that the final amount that the dress rakes in will be a lot higher, especially since the famous black dress she wore in the same movie fetched a whopping 800,000 dollars.

DailyIndia.com

Tiffany Diamond Shines at Smithsonian

2007-04-14T09:32:00.000-04:00

Guardian Unlimited
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Light flashes across the 82 facets of the Tiffany Diamond, highlighting the brilliance of the giant gem at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.

One of the world's largest yellow diamonds, the stone is on loan from Tiffany & Co., from Wednesday through Sept. 23. It joins such famed jewels as the Hope Diamond, Hooker Emerald and Oppenheimer Diamond.

The Tiffany Diamond weighs 128.54 carats and is in a cushion cut. Perched on it is a gem-encrusted bird known as the ``Bird on a Rock,'' designed in the early 1960's by Jean Schlumberger. The bird is gold and platinum with white and yellow diamonds accented by a ruby eye.

"It's the largest diamond on public display in the United States," Jeffrey E. Post, curator of gems at the museum, said. It's more than two-and-one-half times the size of the famed Hope Diamond, which weighs in at 45.5 carats.

"It's on summer vacation," Fernanda M. Kellogg, president of the Tiffany & Co. Foundation, said of the loan. The stone is priceless, she said.

It has only been worn twice, once by a Rhode Island socialite and once by actress Audrey Hepburn in a promotion for the film ``Breakfast at Tiffany's,'' Linda Buckley, a Tiffany vice president, said.

Post said displaying the gem is part of a celebration of the foundation's endowment to the museum, which allows it to purchase gems to fill in its collection.

The Tiffany Diamond's 82 facets are 24 more than a traditional brilliant cut diamond, a step intended to maximize the sparkle - called fire in diamonds.

Discovered in South Africa in 1877, the stone was purchased by New York jeweler Charles Tiffany. His gemologist, George Frederick Kunz studied the gem for a year before beginning to cut it -reducing it from 287 carats to its current size.

Post said in addition to the giant yellow diamond, the museum is also marking its first two acquisitions using the Tiffany endowment.

Now the museum no longer has to wait for gifts, Post said, but can buy gems when they become available.

Joining the collection are a heart-shaped dark green garnet, a very unusual color, Post said. Garnets are usually red, he explained, and this unusual one was found near the Kenya-Tanzania border. In addition the museum has purchased a square purple tourmaline from Mozambique. While tourmalines can come in several colors, its deep purple is rare.

Hepburn Dress Funds Educational Centres In India

2007-02-20T19:04:00.000-05:00

PR-Inside.com

LATEST: The money raised by the sale of the iconic black dress worn by Audrey Hepburn in movie Breakfast At Tiffany's will be used to fund educational centres in India.

The Givenchy-designed frock sold for $800,000 (£410,000) at auction last year (DEC06) in London, with proceeds going to Calcutta-based charity City Of Joy Aid.

The first of 15 planned centres will be built in Bengal and is set to open later this month (FEB07). It is hoped the scheme will help teach English to underprivileged children through computer training and audio aids.

French writer Dominique LapierreE, who established City of Joy Aid, was originally given the dress by designer Hubert De Givenchy before selling it to raise money for the charity, which provides clinics, schools, and hospital boats in poor areas of India.

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" dress fetches $800,000

2006-12-05T21:23:00.000-05:00

Yahoo News
By Mike Collett-White Tue Dec 5, 5:06 PM ET

LONDON (Reuters) - The iconic black dress worn by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film "Breakfast at Tiffany's" sold for 410,000 pounds ($800,000) on Tuesday, around seven times its pre-sale estimate.

Including the premium paid to auctioneers Christie's, the total cost for the sleeveless, floor-length Givenchy cocktail gown rose to 467,200 pounds ($920,000).

The sale room at Christie's broke into applause at the end of a long and tense session when it was finally bought by an anonymous telephone bidder. Christie's would only say that the successful bidder was European.

The dress, one of three versions made for Hepburn for her role as socialite
Holly Golightly in the classic romantic comedy, was being auctioned on behalf of the City of Joy Aid charity which helps underprivileged children in India.

"There are tears in my eyes," said Dominic Lapierre, who runs the charity. Givenchy gave the dress to his friends the Lapierres to raise money for the charity.

"I am absolutely dumbfounded to believe that a piece of cloth which belonged to such a magical actress will now enable me to buy bricks and cement to put the most destitute children in the world into schools."

Hepburn wears one of the black fashion classics as she emerges from a cab onto a deserted, early-morning New York street and peers through the window of jeweller Tiffany while she eats breakfast from a brown paper bag.

Christie's said the auction set a new world record for a movie dress, but it fell short of the auction house's own world record for any woman's costume.

That belongs to the white silk evening gown worn by Marilyn Monroe the night she sang "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to John F. Kennedy in 1962, which fetched $1.27 million at a New York auction in 1999.

"SKINNY LITTLE NOBODY"

Hepburn first met Givenchy in 1953, when the Belgian-born actress described herself as "a skinny little nobody." The Oscar winner's collaboration with Givenchy went on to re-define Hollywood chic.

The Hepburn dress was the star lot of the annual film and entertainment sale at Christie's, in London's upmarket South Kensington.

According to Christie's, a second version of the dress remains in the Givenchy archives while a third is part of a collection of the Museum of Costume in Madrid.

Elsewhere in the sale, a Walther PP handgun from the first James Bond film -- "Dr. No" starring Sean Connery -- was sold for 54,000 pounds including premium, more than double its estimate of around 20,000 pounds.

Rare Audrey Hepburn stamp fetches 66,500 dollars at auction

2006-10-15T09:14:00.000-04:00

The Raw Story
dpa German Press Agency
Published: Friday October 13, 2006

Dusseldorf, Germany- A rare stamp honouring Hollywood legend Audrey Hepburn was sold for 53,000 euros (66,500 dollars) at an auction in Germany on Friday. The 1.10-mark stamp was withdrawn before release in 2001 after Hepburn's family objected because she was shown smoking a cigarette in a scene from the film Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Most of the 14 million stamps printed were destroyed. But five sheets of 10, which had been set aside for the German post office archive, went missing.

However, three individual stamps reached the public domain, among them the one sold to a German telephone bidder on Friday.

Another of the stamps fetched 135,000 euros at an auction last year.

In 2003, the United States Postal Service issued a stamp honouring the actress. It has a drawing of her based on a publicity photo from the movie Sabrina.

© 2006 dpa German Press Agency

"Breakfast at Tiffany`s" voted top fashion trend setting film ever

2006-09-16T10:52:00.000-04:00

Zee News
"Breakfast at Tiffany`s" has been voted as the top trend setter in the world of fashion, by leading designers and style editors across the globe.

In director Blake Edwards` 1958 hit, legendary beauty Audrey Hepburn`s Givenchy little black dress, sunglasses and pearls are still valued as essentials, that have influenced the fashion industry the most, reports the Mirror.

Fashion gurus like Paul Smith and Vivienne Westwood rated "American Gigolo" second due to Giorgio Armani`s work with star Richard Gere. And while Victor Fleming`s "Gone With The Wind" came in third on the list, 1967 hit

"Bonnie & Clyde" took the fourth slot leaving Desperately Seeking Susan in fifth position.

The full list compiled by American Express Red is:

1. Breakfast at Tiffany`s

2. American Gigolo

3. Gone With The Wind

4. Bonnie & Clyde

5. Desperately Seeking Susan

6. My Fair Lady

7. Pulp Fiction

8. The Great Gatsby

9. Thomas Crown Affair

10. The Graduate.

Gap Marketing Campaign Featuring Original Film Footage of Audrey Hepburn

2006-09-06T19:57:00.000-04:00

New Gap Marketing Campaign Featuring Original Film Footage of Audrey Hepburn Helps Gap "Keeps it Simple" This Fall

PRNewswire
SAN FRANCISCO, CA UNITED STATES 09/06/2006

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- This week, the skinny
black pant is back at Gap with the introduction of a new, groundbreaking
campaign featuring original film footage of timeless style icon Audrey
Hepburn. The campaign, entitled "Keep it Simple," is centered on innovative
television spots incorporating a memorable scene of Audrey Hepburn dancing
in the classic film Funny Face. Celebrating Gap's re-launch of the perfect
black pant, the ads mark Gap's third and final marketing campaign of the
fall season.

"Gap has a rich history of integrating memorable choreography and music
into our advertising, but we've never done anything quite like this
before," said Trey Laird, creative director of Gap. "We wanted to do
something really special to re-launch our skinny black pants and thought
who better to showcase them than actress Audrey Hepburn -- an iconic woman
famous for dressing with sophistication and classic style."

Debuting September 7, Gap's new "Keep It Simple" TV spots juxtapose
classic footage of Audrey Hepburn dancing in skinny black pants to the 1980
AC/DC hit song "Back in Black." The ad opens with a scene from Funny Face
as Audrey Hepburn dances through a Parisian cafe. It continues as she jumps
out of the movie and onto a backdrop resembling the look and feel of an
iconic Gap ad. Special effects and graphics help her navigate her way
across the screen in a series of energetic dance steps. She then jumps back
into Funny Face as the spot concludes with the tagline "It's Back -- The
Skinny Black Pant."

"We're thrilled because this is the first time in more than 12 years
that a film clip of Audrey Hepburn has been authorized to endorse a
commercial product in North America," said Kyle Andrew, vice president of
Gap Marketing. "This ad is a true testament to timeless style and we
couldn't be more excited to have Audrey Hepburn -- the ultimate style icon
-- represented in our campaign."

Gap became known for fabulous "must-have" black pants more than a
decade ago -- they flew off shelves and helped millions of women across the
country dress with sophistication and style. Gap's reintroduction of the
perfect fitting pair of skinny black pants this fall is a celebration of
this classic, iconic piece. Named after timeless fashion icon Audrey
Hepburn -- "The Audrey Hepburn(TM) Pant" is sleek and simple with modern
details that are undeniably cool. It has an updated bi-stretch fabrication,
which allows for greater flexibility and movement and helps the pant keep
its shape. Gap's new skinny black pants are destined to become a modern day
classic.

In addition to black pants, Gap has a long heritage of offering a wide
variety of clean, classic and simple styles. And this fall Gap is back with
a collection of great fitting, sophisticated pants in a range of lengths
and shapes, as well as classic shirts, turtlenecks, sweaters and outerwear.
Worn day or night, dressed up or down, these are the simple, iconic pieces
that will never go out of style. In Gap stores this fall, the clean
collection is featured in a one-stop shopping destination. You'll find a
new dedicated space within Gap stores filled with the classic "must-have"
items you always need and want.

The "Keep It Simple" television campaign features 30 and 60-second
spots that will air in the United States on all major networks, spot
markets and cable from September 7 through October 5. The spots will
premiere on network television shows including "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC),
"CSI" (CBS) and "Studio 60" (NBC). Gap.com will also feature the new "Keep
It Simple" television commercial, as well as exclusive, behind-the-scenes
footage of the making of the ad. Complimenting this outstanding broadcast
effort are a series of black-and-white print ads featuring models in clean,
simple looks anchored in skinny black pants will run in October issues of
major national magazines including Vogue, InStyle and Elle. There will also
be outdoor ads in major markets.

Laird+Partners, Gap's creative agency, developed the "Keep It Simple"
marketing campaign. The TV spots were developed using visual effects by
Method Studios and graphic design and animation by Logan and print ads were
photographed by famed fashion photographers Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh
Matadin.

In celebration of the launch of the "Keep It Simple" ad campaign, Gap
is making a generous contribution to the Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund.
The Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund is a non-profit organization created to
continue Ms. Hepburn's international appeals on behalf of children around
the world.

CONTACT:
Erica Archambault
Gap PR
415.427.2397

Book & DVD New Releases

2006-08-26T13:50:00.000-04:00

Audrey Hepburn will be the subject of two books this fall: Donald Spoto's "Enchantment" (September 19, 2006) and a memoir by her son, Sean Hepburn Ferrer, "The Audrey Hepburn Treasures."

They All Laughed (1981) Starring: Audrey Hepburn, Ben Gazzara Director: Peter Bogdanovich will be released to DVD on October 17, 2006.

Audrey Hepburn's iconic black dress to go on sale

2006-08-13T00:50:00.000-04:00

LONDON (Reuters) - The iconic black dress worn by Audrey Hepburn in the 1961 film "Breakfast at Tiffany's" will go on sale in December with an estimated price tag of 50-70,000 pounds ($90-130,000), Christie's auctioneers said on Wednesday.

The dress, designed by Givenchy and worn by Hepburn in the memorable opening scene of the classic romantic comedy, is being auctioned on behalf of the City of Joy Aid charity which helps underprivileged children in India.

It is the star lot of the annual film and entertainment sale at Christie's, in London's upmarket South Kensington, held this year on December 5.

Hepburn, who plays Holly Golightly in the movie, emerges from a cab onto a deserted, early-morning 5th Avenue in New York and peers through the window of jeweller Tiffany's while she eats her breakfast from a brown paper bag.

Reuters UK