Remembering a Legend: Hillary Kerr Pays Tribute to Oscar de la Renta

Mr. de la Renta was everything you could possibly imagine. Unquestionably talented—he dressed four first ladies, countless Hollywood stars, and generations of powerful women throughout his 50-year career—he was also gracious, charming, and decidedly funny. Handsome too, in his tall, tan, dashing way. The first time Katherine and I met him, at a small party in his Melrose Place store in West Hollywood, he enchanted us both when he noticed the studs on the lapel of Katherine’s motorcycle jacket. He reached out to pet them, mid-conversation, and purred, “I like these studs,” much to our delight.