Carmen Dell'Orefice

8.3	Listal rating

Stats

Birth Name: Carmen Dell'Orefice

Age: 81, born 3 June 1931

Born and residing in: United States

Height: 5' 10"

Ethnicity: White / Caucasian

Lists

97 votes

Youth and old age (51 items)
list by lili

Published 9 months, 4 weeks ago

10 comments

78 votes

Photos by Richard Avedon (41 items)
list by nusch

Published 1 year, 10 months ago

7 comments

48 votes

Supermodels - Then and Now (21 items)
list by Daniela_C_xx

Published 1 year, 8 months ago

5 comments

22 votes

Hey, gorgeous dress! (19 items)
list by Rheuai

Published 1 year, 6 months ago

3 comments

16 votes

Former High Fashion Models (284 items)
list by brazilfashion

Published 11 months, 1 week ago

2 comments

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Photos

5 votes

3 votes

View all Carmen Dell'Orefice pictures (91 more)

Carmen Dell'Orefice Videos

Many faces of Delvaux

36 Views

Added 10 months ago

Carmen Dell'Orefice in conversation with Prof Frances Corner, OBE

29 Views

Added 10 months ago

View all Carmen Dell'Orefice videos

About: Carmen Dell’Orefice is an American model and actress, born in New York, NY. She is known within the fashion industry for being the world's oldest working model as of the Spring/Summer 2012 season. She covered Vogue at the mere age of 15, and has been modelling ever since. In 1942, Carmen reunited with her mother and moved to New York City. At the age of 13, while riding a bus to ballet class, she was approached to model by the wife of photographer Herman Landschoff. Her test pho Carmen Dell’Orefice is an American model and actress, born in New York, NY. She is known within the fashion industry for being the world's oldest working model as of the Spring/Summer 2012 season. She covered Vogue at the mere age of 15, and has been modelling ever since.

In 1942, Carmen reunited with her mother and moved to New York City. At the age of 13, while riding a bus to ballet class, she was approached to model by the wife of photographer Herman Landschoff. Her test photos, taken at Jones Beach, were a “flop” according to Carmen.Her godfather though introduced her to Vogue, where Carmen signed a contract for $7.50 per hour in 1946 at age 15. Carmen became a favoured model of photographer Erwin Blumenfeld who took her first Vogue cover in 1947. She appears in the December 15, 1947 issue of US Vogue as Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and Cinderella along with supermodel Dorian Leigh, actors Ray Bolger and Jose Ferrer.

Despite modeling, Carmen and her mother were poor. They had no telephone and Vogue sent runners to their apartment to let Carmen know about modeling jobs. She roller-skated to assignments to save bus fares. Carmen was so malnourished that famed fashion photographers Horst P. Horst and Cecil Beaton had to pin back dresses and stuff her body with tissue.Carmen and her mother were also accomplished seamstresses and made extra money making clothes. One of their customers was Dorian Leigh. Carmen would later become best friends with Dorian’s younger sister, model Suzy Parker. Together they would be bridesmaids at Dorian’s second wedding to Roger Mehle in 1948.

In 1947, Carmen got a raise to $10–$25 per hour. She appeared on the October 1947 cover of Vogue, at age 16, one of the youngest Vogue cover models ever (along with Niki Taylor, Brooke Shields, and Monika Schnarre). Carmen was also on the November 1948 cover of Vogue. She worked with the most famous fashion photographers of the era including Irving Penn, Gleb Derujinsky, Francesco Scavullo, Norman Parkinson, and Richard Avedon. Carmen was photographed by Melvin Sokolsky for Harper’s Bazaar in 1960. The iconic image titled Carmen Las Meninas is world famous and has been collected internationally. Sokolsky also photographed Carmen for the classic Vanity Fair Lingerie campaign in which Carmen obscures her face with her hand.

She also became Salvador Dalí’s muse.
Despite early successes at a very young age, modeling agent Eileen Ford refused to represent her and Vogue lost interest in her. After doctors prescribed shots to start puberty, she instead started working for catalogs and lingerie, making $300 per hour. It was then that she joined Ford in 1953. ... (more)

Model (2), Aged Gracefully (1), 50's (1), 40's (1), Supermodel (1)

Movies

1. Celebrity (1998)

Rating:

235 Watched

2. The Guru (2002)

Rating:

4.8

195 Watched

3. Bill Cunningham New York (2010)

Rating:

7.7

25 Watched

4. The Sunchaser (1996)

Rating:

6.3

19 Watched

5. About Face: Supermodels Then and Now (2012)

Rating:

6.8

4 Watched

View all Carmen Dell'Orefice movies

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lili added this to a list 3 months, 1 week ago

Youth and old age (51 person items)

lili voted for 6 images [View All] 3 months, 1 week ago

brazilfashion added this to a list 4 months, 2 weeks ago

Former High Fashion Models (284 person items)

Rheuai added this to a list 1 year, 6 months ago

Hey, gorgeous dress! (19 person items)

Daniela_C_xx added this to a list 1 year, 8 months ago

Supermodels - Then and Now (21 person items)

"Date of birth: June 3, 1931 *First Vogue cover was at 15 *Was Salvador Dali's muse *Continues to model and walks the runway now at 80 years old Then: Now: "

nusch added this to a list 1 year, 10 months ago

Photos by Richard Avedon (41 person items)

mojack added this to a list 2 years, 4 months ago

World's greatest supermodel (25 person items)