fashion inc

Description

The October, 1950 issue of Vogue Magazine featured Jean Patchett not just on its cover, but on many pages of the feature section! In this publication there were five full page illustrations, 3 partial page illustrations, and 4 full page advertisements! The number and frequency of Jean's appearances in fashion magazines was amazing. She had become the center of fashion photography, and was in great demand. Jean Patchett was referred to as the "Queen of Fashion Inc." by fashion editors and photographers during this decade. "An absolutely stunning creature with a signature beauty mark, Jean was a supermodel decades before the term 'supermodel' was coined, and, staggeringly, has had more covers than any fashion model in history," Said agency owner Jerry Ford of Ford Models, who represented Jean in her heyday during the Fifties. "Jean Patchett was to Ford what Babe Ruth was to the Yankees." Jean's distinct features helped define the face of fashion for over a decade, the body of work she did is enormous, and the legacy she and fashion photographers created together is monumental. Jean Patchett was prolific, her date book documented numerous photo sessions each day in New York. The camera loved Jean and Jean loved the camera. Jean worked in the same glamorous era as cover girls Dorian Leigh, Suzy Parker and Lisa Fonssagrives. Jean Patchett was the first star model for New York's Ford Models, a new agency when Jean walked in the door the spring of 1948. "I don't remember everyone, but I do remember her," Eileen Ford said. "You just had to take a deep breath, even then. She had on a black coat with black velvet at the shoulders and a black velvet beret--all made by her mother--and garnet earrings, bracelet and necklace. She really was a country girl." As her career sky rocketed, Vogue assignments with renowned photographers came her way. The March 1952 issue of Esquire featured Jean in the article "Beauty Is Her Business: Jean Patchett is a model in a million." By the time she retired from full-time in 1963 Jean Patchett had appeared on more than 40 magazine covers, according to Eileen Ford. At the peak of her career (1956), Jean was earning $50,000 a year.