Cafe Society

Book excerpt: Aristocrats, millionaires, painters, fashion designers, choreographers, and musicians of the café society fox-trot aboard cruise liners and mingle at dazzling parties in Paris. Exclusive, extravagant, and beautiful, these cosmopolitan socialites were the patrons who galvanized the phenomenal success of the greatest creators of the early twentieth century. It was a whirlwind of sumptuously decorated villas and yachts, up-and-coming haute couture and jewelry designers, and elite evening parties, immortalized by fashion photographers like Cecil Beaton. Combining elegance and fantasy, the members of the café society enjoyed a sophisticated, avant-garde lifestyle. Some of the century’s most original talents—from Cole Porter to Yves Saint Laurent—stepped into the limelight via the café society. Through archival photographs and period documents, this volume recounts in historical detail the intrigue and impact generated around the world by this stylish jet-set.