Paolo Gucci

Paolo Gucci (29 March 1931 – 10 October 1995)^[2] was an Italian businessman and fashion designer. He was the one-time chief designer and vice-president of Gucci.^[3] He is credited with helping design Gucci's famous double G logo.^[4]

Paolo Gucci
Gucci in 1977
Born	29 March 1931 (1931-03-29) Florence, Tuscany, Kingdom of Italy
Died	10 October 1995(1995-10-10) (aged 64) London, United Kingdom
Occupation(s)	Businessman and fashion designer
Spouses	Yvonne Moschetto ​ ​ (m. 1952; div. 1977)​ Jenny Garwood ​ ​ (m. 1977; sep. 1990)​
Partner	Penny Armstrong (1990–1995)^[1]
Children	5
Parent	Aldo Gucci (father)
Relatives	Guccio Gucci (grandfather) Rodolfo Gucci (uncle) Maurizio Gucci (cousin)

Early life and career

Paolo Gucci was born on 29 March 1931 in Florence, the son of Olwen Price and Aldo Gucci, who was the son of Gucci founder Guccio Gucci.^[2] He was the chief designer of Gucci in the late 1960s. In 1978, his father named him the vice-president of Gucci.^[3]

In 1980, Paolo secretly launched his own business using the Gucci name without telling his father, nor his uncle Rodolfo. When they found out, they were both infuriated and fired him from Gucci in September 1980. In addition, his father Aldo sued him, threatening to cut off any Gucci supplier who signed on with Paolo.^[5]

In 1984, seeking revenge, Paolo got his father Aldo removed from the company with the help of his cousin Maurizio Gucci, who had recently become the majority shareholder.^[6] In addition, Paolo also tipped off the IRS about his father's tax evasion. In 1986, Aldo was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for tax evasion.^{[7][8][9][10]} In 1987, Paolo sold all his shares in Gucci to Investcorp for $42.5 million.^[8] Due to spending extravagant amounts of money and bad business decisions, he filed for bankruptcy in 1993.^[6]

Personal life

In 1952, Paolo Gucci married Yvonne Moschetto and had two daughters with her, Elisabetta and Patrizia.^[11] Their marriage dissolved, and in 1977, he married British socialite Jenny Garwood and had one daughter with her, Gemma Gucci.^[12] In 1990, he separated from his second wife Jenny Garwood after having an affair with 19-year-old Penny Armstrong. He had two children with her out of wedlock, Alyssa and Gabriele.^[1] In 1994, he spent five weeks in prison for failing to pay alimony and child support to his second wife Jenny Garwood and their daughter. Paolo Gucci died in London on October 10, 1995, at age 64 of chronic hepatitis in the midst of divorce proceedings.^[8][13]

Arms

 

The Gucci coat-of-arms

Guccio Gucci; his eldest living biological son, Aldo Gucci; Aldo Gucci's sons, Giorgio Gucci, Paolo Gucci, and Roberto Gucci; and grandson Uberto Gucci claimed the right to use an inherited, ancestral coat of arms after the Kingdom of Italy, which was ruled by the House of Savoy, transitioned to the Italian Republic in 1946.^[14]

The blazon recorded, as recorded in the Archives of Florence,^[15] is as follows: "Blue, three red poles bordered with silver; a head of gold, to the right a blue wheel, and to the left a red rose." ("D'azzurro, a tre pali di rosso bordati d'argento; e al capo d'oro caricato a destra di una ruota d'azzurro, e a sinistra di una rosa di rosso.")

Translation: "Family of San Miniato; Giacinto Gucci and his brothers were admitted to the nobility of San Miniato in 1763 (on that occasion it is declared that the family had come from Cremona in 1224); Giuseppe di Gaetano Gucci, on the other hand, was admitted to the nobility of Fiesole in 1839. Francesco di Benedetto Gucci obtained Florentine citizenship in 1601, for the Golden Lion banner; Giovanni Battista by Giovan Piero Gucci obtained it in 1634, in the Scala banner."

Court documents, records, and subsequent rulings indicate that, because the Gucci family trademarked the coat-of-arms in 1955, the trademark transferred with the sale of the Gucci company by Maurizio Gucci to Investcorp, and subsequent company owners, in 1993.^[16] However, Uberto Gucci (b. 1960), the son of Roberto Gucci, the nephew of Paolo Gucci, and the grandson of Aldo Gucci, claims that the Gucci family still has the right to use the ancestral Gucci coat-of-arms.

In popular culture

In the film House of Gucci (2021), Paolo Gucci is played by American actor Jared Leto.^[17] In April 2021, Paolo's daughter Patrizia Gucci criticized Leto's portrayal (unkempt hair, lilac suit) of her father in the film, stating that she "still feels offended".^[18] Despite this, Leto's performance received praise from film critics and earned him nominations for a Critics' Choice Movie Award and Satellite Award—both for Best Supporting Actor.^[19][20]

References

1. "From stable girl to a Gucci mistress". Retrieved 2 August 2021.
2. "Gucci v. Gucci Shops, Inc., 688 F. Supp. 916 (S.D.N.Y. 1988)". Retrieved 2 August 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
3. Shipp, E.R. (20 July 1982). "A Gucci Sues Relatives". The New York Times.
4. Priya, Elan (15 April 2021). "'Short, fat, ugly': Gucci family lashes out at cast appearance in new film". The Guardian.
5. Gordon, Grant (2008). Family Wars: Stories and Insights from Famous Family Business Feuds. p. 213.
6. "Family Feud: The Guccis". Today I Found Out. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
7. "Guccio Gucci". The Florentine. 17 June 2009. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
8. "OBITUARY : Paolo Gucci". The Independent. 13 October 1995. Archived from the original on 2022-05-24. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
9. Shipp, E. R. (20 July 1982). "A Gucci Sues Relatives". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 12 October 2020.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
10. Moore, Claire (6 January 2006). "Greed, Glamour, Gucci Galore: A Family Tale". ABC News. Retrieved 1 August 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
11. Gay Forden, Sara (2008). La saga dei Gucci. p. 57.
12. "Paolo Gucci, Maverick Grandson of Fashion Guru, Dies In London". The Independent. 13 October 1995. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
13. "Patrizia Gucci about Jenny Gucci: She's a fake Gucci!". New York Daily News. 23 January 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
14. Mendola, Louis (July 20, 2018). "Gucci Beats Out Founder's Great-Grandson in Battle Over "Gucci" Trademarks". The Fashion Law. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
15. "Famiglia GUCCI (fasc. 2545)". Archivo di Stato di Firenze (in Italian). 2008. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
16. "GUCCI AMERICA, INC., Plaintiff, v. FRONTLINE PROCESSING CORP., Woodforest National Bank, Durango Merchant Services LLC, d/b/a National Bankcard Systems of Durango, "ABC Companies," and "John Does", Defendants". H20 by Harvard Law. June 23, 2010. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
17. "House of Gucci Cast vs. Real Life". E!. 29 July 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
18. "Gucci heirs worry over family depiction in Ridley Scott film". AP News. 15 April 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
19. Nolfi, Joey (December 13, 2021). "West Side Story, Belfast storm Oscar race with 11 Critics Choice Awards nominations each: See the full list". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
20. Anderson, Erik (December 1, 2021). "'Belfast,' 'The Power of the Dog' lead 26th Satellite Awards nominations". AwardsWatch. Retrieved December 1, 2021.