Prince Egon von Fürstenberg

Egon von Fürstenberg
Egon (left) in 1955 with his brother-in-law,
Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
BornEduard Egon Peter Paul Giovanni Prinz zu Fürstenberg
(1946-06-29)29 June 1946
Lausanne, Switzerland
Died11 June 2004(2004-06-11) (aged 57)
Rome, Italy
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1969; div. 1983)​
Lynn Marshall
​
(m. 1983)​
(separated)
IssueAlexander
Tatiana
HouseFürstenberg
FatherPrince Tassilo von Fürstenberg
MotherClara Agnelli
ReligionRoman Catholicism

Prince Egon von Fürstenberg (Eduard Egon Peter Paul Giovanni Prinz zu Fürstenberg; 29 June 1946 – 11 June 2004) was a socialite, banker, fashion and interior designer, and a member of the former German princely family of Fürstenberg.

In 1969, he married fashion designer Diane Halfin, with whom he had two children, Alexandre Egon (born 25 January 1970) and Tatiana Desirée (born 16 February 1971). The couple separated in 1973 and divorced in 1983.[1] The same year, he married Lynn Marshall (born c. 1950), an American from Mississippi who was the co-owner of a flower shop; the couple remained childless.[1] Between his marriages, Egon also had a male partner; he was frank about his bisexuality and the openness of his first marriage.[2]

Fürstenberg wrote two books on fashion and interior design (The Power Look, 1978, and The Power Look at Home: Decorating for Men, 1980), as well as opening an interior design firm. He died in Rome on 11 June 2004.

Family

Eduard Egon Peter Paul Giovanni Prinz zu Fürstenberg, born 29 June 1946 in Lausanne, Switzerland, was the elder son of Prince Tassilo zu Fürstenberg (1903–1989) and his first wife, Clara Agnelli (1920-2016), elder sister of Fiat's chairman Gianni Agnelli.[3] After Clara's departure, his father married Texas oil heiress Cecil Amelia Hudson (née Blaffer).[4]

Fürstenberg's younger brother is Prince Sebastian zu Fürstenberg, and his sister was socialite and actress Princess Ira zu Fürstenberg.[5]

Biography

Egon von Fürstenberg was born in Lausanne, Switzerland.[6] He was baptized by the French nuncio Angelo Roncalli (later elected Pope John XXIII) and was brought up in great privilege in Venice, Italy.[2] He earned a degree in economics from the University of Geneva, followed by a 14-month term on a peace mission in Burundi working as a teacher, and then two years as an investment banker in New York.[2]

While studying at a university, he met 1965 fellow student[2] Diane Simone Michelle Halfin,[6] a Belgian-born Jewish woman of Romanian-Greek descent and daughter of a Holocaust survivor.[7] They married on 16 July 1969, at Montfort-l'Amaury, Yvelines, France. The new Princess Diane von Fürstenberg was pregnant, and Egon's father, who objected to his son marrying a Jew, and other von Fürstenberg family members attended the wedding ceremony but boycotted the reception.[8][9]

His wife opened her fashion house in New York at Egon's urging, creating an eventually iconic wrap dress, a career as designer that pre-dated and arguably eclipsed Egon's. Fürstenberg began his career as a buyer for Macy's, taking night classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology,[2] and Parson's School of Design.

The von Fürstenbergs had two children: Alexandre Egon (born 25 January 1970) and Tatiana Desirée (born 16 February 1971).[6] Despite still making public appearances together, Egon and Diane von Fürstenberg separated in 1972,[10][11] and finally divorced in 1983.[6][1] The same year, he married Lynn Marshall.[1] However, at the time of his death in 2004, it was acknowledged that von Fürstenberg's marriage to Lynn foundered as well, and they were not immediately confirmed to still be married by this time.[12][1]

Fürstenberg began independent work as a fashion designer in 1977, designing clothes for plus-size women, and later expanding to full fashion and product licensing, with ready-to-wear, fragrance, and made to measure lines based in Rome. Next von Furstenberg designed ready-made clothing for the masses, and an off-the-peg (ready-to-wear) line of fashion.[1]

Fürstenberg wrote two top selling books: The Power Look (1978), a guide to fashion and good taste, and The Power Look at Home: Decorating for Men (1980), a book on home furnishings.[13][14] He opened an interior design firm in 1981.[2] In 1991, he exhibited at Alta Moda days in Rome.

Fürstenberg collected art, and his collection included works by Zachary Selig.[15]

His high level of sexual activity resulted in Fürstenberg being nicknamed "Egon von First in bed."[8][16]

Egon von Fürstenberg died at Spallanzani Hospital in Rome on 11 June 2004.[6] The New York Post reported Fürstenberg's widow stating that he died of liver cancer caused by a hepatitis C infection that he acquired in the 1970s. However, it was acknowledged in the 2024 documentary Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge that Egon von Fürstenberg had in fact been diagnosed with HIV in the 1980s.[8][16][17]

Published works

Fürstenberg's published works included:[1]

  • The Power Look, 1978, New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston
  • The Power Look at Home: Decorating for Men, 1980, New York, NY: Morrow

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Rourke, Mary (12 June 2004). "Egon von Furstenberg, 57; Gave Up Banking Career for Fashion Design". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Wohlfert-Wihlborg, Lee (21 December 1981). "The Original Von Furstenberg, Egon, Wakes Up to His Own Potential". People. 16 (25). Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2008.
  3. ^ "Clara Agnelli". The Times. London. 26 July 2016. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  4. ^ Abram, Lynwood (26 November 2006). "Cecil Blaffer "Titi" von Fürstenberg, a patron of the arts and a member of a family that combined two great Texas oil fortunes". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  5. ^ "Clara Agnelli, car magnate's daughter – obituary". The Daily Telegraph. London. 4 August 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Egon von Furstenberg, 'Prince Of High Fashion,' Dies at 57". The New York Times. 12 June 2004.
  7. ^ "Diane von Furstenberg Said a New York Magazine Article "Destroyed" Her Marriage to Prince Egon".
  8. ^ a b c "Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge". Hulu. 25 June 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
  9. ^ "This Day in Jewish History–1946: An ex-serene highness and fashion guru is born". Haaretz. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  10. ^ Morris, Bernardine (18 April 1975). "Basic Dresses in Sexy Prints – and Washable". The New York Times. p. 52. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
  11. ^ Robinson, Katie (2 June 2017). "7 Things You Never Knew About Diane von Fürstenberg". Town & Country. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
  12. ^ "Egon von Fürstenberg". The Times. 17 July 2004. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
  13. ^ Von Furstenberg, Egon; Duhé, Camillé (1984). The Power Look. Fawcett Columbine. ISBN 978-0449901243.
  14. ^ Von Furstenberg, Egon; Fisher, Karen (1980). The Power Look at Home: Decorating for Men. Morrow. ISBN 978-0688035990.
  15. ^ Quinn, Joan A. 1989, "Click: Zachary Selig honors Prince Egon von Furstenberg." The Herald Examiner, 26 January 1989.
  16. ^ a b "Diane von Furstenberg Has No Regrets: 'I Will Laugh When I Die'". New York Times. 6 June 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
  17. ^ Hyland, Veronique (24 June 2024). "If You Thought You Knew Diane von Furstenberg, Think Again". Elle. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
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