Was coco chanel gay

In an early scene of the first episode of “The New Look,” it’s 1955 and a fresh couture student at the Sorbonne steps up to the microphone during a Q+A with fashion artist Christian Dior.

“Monsieur Dior, is it true that during the German occupation of Paris Coco Chanel closed her aetelier and refused to design dresses for the wives of Nazis while you kept designing and making money?,” she asks.

“There is the correctness. But there is always another truth that lives behind it,” Dior responds, wisely.

Suddenly, there’s a voice from the peanut gallery. “Yeah, tell us the truth about how Chanel was a Nazi! Say us!”

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It’s me, I’m the voice. It’s 2024, I’m an associate editor at a Jewish pop tradition site and I’m badgering my own computer screen.

A few days earlier I had received screeners for Apple TV+’s “The Recent Look,” a drama series which purported to reveal how Christian Dior and his colleague

The Troubling Truth About Coco Chanel

Evening Standard/Getty Images

Gabrielle Chanel, popularly known as Coco Chanel, was a prominent fashion creator in the 20th century, known for her exemplary serve . Originally from France, her contribution to fashion is noted everywhere to this day. Chanel No. 5, her iconic perfume, is still loved all around the world and is a crowd favorite. Coco had a modest upbringing and fought against all odds to reach the superior, setting an example in the fashion industry with her original thinking and signature style. Several decades after her death, her labor continues to collect immense appreciation globally. She experimented with many styles during her career, reinventing clothing, accessories, perfume, bags, and more.

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However, while Coco Chanel achieved major victory, fame, and adulation during her lifetime, she had a dark side that is not as well-known among her fans and perhaps the fashion earth in general. For instance, she was very active during World War II and openly supported the Nazis as she pursued a romantic alliance with a Nazi officer and even allegedly acted as a spy in Europe, an act for which she was never conv

Famous Gay French Fashion Designers

When you reflect of French fashion designers, whose label springs to thought first? Christian Dior? Yves Saint Laurent? Most of France’s most celebrated couturiersare gay men. In fact, you’d probably be hard-pressed to name a French fashion designer who isn’t gay (apart from Coco Chanel!). As this French Slate article explains, gay men hold excelled in the art of dressmaking since the prior 20th century. While it’s true that haute couture in France traces its origins to two heterosexual designers (Charles Frederick Worth and Paul Poiret), since around WWII, same-sex attracted designers have controlled the industry. 

To last celebrating Pride Month, we’ve put together a list of the most celebrated gay couturiers. You’ll learn about the inspirational careers and most iconic designs of classic couturiers like Pierre Balmain, and also identify newer couturiers love Simon Porte Jacquemus and Olivier Rousteing, who are currently reinventing French identity. Finally, you’ll possess lots of opportunities to brush up on your language skills with our “Practice your French” tips that authorize you to delve deeper into the lives of these revolutionary designers. Desire t

New Coco Chanel biography claims to have proof that fashion legend used drugs, had lesbian affairs and loved a Nazi spy

By DAISY DUMAS
Updated:

Coco Chanel's perfectly set hair, manicured hands, plucked eyebrows and hard stare are as recognisable as some of her enduring designs.

Less well recognizable are allegations of drug apply, Nazi dealings and even homophobia - something that contradicts the widespread acceptance of her sapphic relationships.

Now, a new book claims to have concrete proof of the fashion icon's dalliances and vices.

A story less told: Sophisticated and poised, popular images of Coco Chanel rarely touch upon the lesser-known side of the designer's 'stuff of legends' life

Lisa Chaney's forthcoming biography, Coco Chanel: An Intimate Life, lays bare hard evidence of the fashion maven's use of opiates, as well as new insights into Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel's bisexuality, multiple affairs and love with a Nazi spy.

Penguin says: 'Drawing on newly discovered love letters and other records, Chaney's controversial manual reveals the truth about Chanel's drug habit and lesbian affairs.

'And the question about Chanel's German lover during World War II (was he a watcher for the N