A "lucky charm" Christian Dior dress worn by Elizabeth Taylor on the night she won best actress at the 1961 Oscars is to be sold at auction next month after being stored in a suitcase in London for over 50 years. It had been assumed the floral print gown with a crimson silk bloom at the waist was already in the Christian Dior archive in Paris.
In fact, the gown – along with 11 other garments owned by the star – had been carefully stored in a large plastic suitcase in her former personal assistant's spare room since 1971.
Taylor, accompanied by fourth husband Eddie Fisher, wore the dress designed by Marc Bohan for Dior to the 33rd Academy Awards.
Her relationship with Fisher, whom she was accused of stealing from actor Debbie Reynolds, was considered a scandal and had sparked a storm of negative publicity. The outcry had left Taylor convinced she would not win, said Kerry Taylor, whose specialist vintage fashion auction house is selling the dress.
