Simone Micheline Bodin French model of the fifties Country: France

Biography of Simone Michelin Bodin

Simone Michelin Bodin, a French model from the 1950s, is known as the muse of popular fashion designer and couturier Hubert de Givenchy. She also dabbled in design, creating conceptual knitwear, and is recognized as a poet and composer. Simone was born in Laval, France. The name Bettina was given to her by fashion designer Pierre Balmain. The model collaborated with Balmain, Lucien Lelong, Jacques Fath, and Christian Dior for a period of time, but her most significant career period is considered to be her collaboration with Givenchy, although the model had different thoughts on the matter. Overall, the post-war fashion boom in France in the early 1950s was centered around three revolutionary designers who transformed the world of fashion – Christian Dior, Pierre Balmain, and Jacques Fath. Simone Graciani had the opportunity to work with all three. With her red hair and fresh face, Bettina was the embodiment of novelty, beauty, and comfort in fashion from Fath. Even after Jacques' death in 1954, the ideas popularized by Simone – straight silhouettes, bold lines, and unusual stylistic choices – continued to thrive in the fashion world. Bettina recalled that it was working with Fath that helped her become a true supermodel. She worked for Hubert not only as a model but also as a press secretary. Givenchy named his first collection in her honor. One of her iconic designs, the 'Bettina' blouse in a Byronian style, became one of the main symbols of the fashion industry in the early 1950s. Additionally, it was thanks to Simone that the design of the bottle for Givenchy's popular perfume, 'Amarige,' was developed. After a short-lived marriage to Gilbert 'Benno' Graciani, a French photographer and journalist, the model became the companion of American screenwriter Peter Viertel. Shortly after, Simone became known as the bride of Prince Aly Khan, a notorious playboy and Pakistan's ambassador to the United States. In 1955, Bettina left the modeling business, coinciding with her acquaintance with Aly Khan. In 1960, while pregnant with the prince's child, Simone was involved in a car accident. Aly Khan died, and the shock of the incident later led to a miscarriage. Some time after the prince's death, in 1964, the model wrote and published her memoir, 'Bettina by Bettina' ('Bettina par Bettina').