John Weitz

Last updated • 6 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
John Weitz
Hans Werner "John" Weitz.jpg
Weitz during a 1992 interview with Charlie Rose
Born
Hans Werner Weitz

(1923-05-25)May 25, 1923
Berlin, Germany
DiedOctober 3, 2002(2002-10-03) (aged 79)
Bridgehampton, New York, U.S.
Occupation(s)Menswear designer
Novelist and Historian
Spouses
Sally Blauner Gould
​
​
(m. 1944;div. 1953)​
Eve Orton
​
​
(m. 1953;div. 1964)​
​
(m. 1964)​
Children4, including Paul Weitz & Chris Weitz
Relatives Lupita Tovar (mother-in-law)
Paul Kohner (father-in-law)
Military Service
AllegianceFlag of the United States.svg  United States of America
Unit Office of Strategic Services Insignia.svg Office of Strategic Services
Battles/wars World War II

Hans Werner "John" Weitz (May 25, 1923 – October 3, 2002) was an American menswear designer [1] who initiated licensing products and selling affordable but stylish clothing that featured his image in the advertising. He had a second career as a writer and historian. [2] Weitz was also well known for being the husband of actress Susan Kohner and father of directors Paul Weitz and Chris Weitz. [3]

Contents

Early life

Weitz was born in Berlin, Germany, to father, Robert Salomon "Bobby" Weitz, a successful textile manufacturer, and mother, Hedwig "Hedy" Weitz (née Jacob). [4] [5] His parents were part of an active social scene during the Weimar Republic that was glamorous and filled with young artists, writers and actors such as Christopher Isherwood and Marlene Dietrich. [6] The household was Jewish in ancestry and culture, but not religious. [7] [8] [9] [10]

When he was 10 years old, Weitz was sent to boarding school in England. He attended The Hall School from 1933 to 1936 [11] and St. Paul's School from 1936 to 1939. After graduation, he was named vice-president of the Old Pauline Club of London. [6] Weitz eventually attended Oxford University for one year. [12] With the recommendation of St. Paul's classmate John Cavanagh, in 1939, Weitz worked in Paris as an apprentice to fashion designer Edward Molyneux. Weitz went to Shanghai, China, in order to wait for a visa to America; while there he played on the Shanghai Rugby Football Union team for a short time. [12]

In 1938, Weitz' parents left Nazi Germany to live in Paris, then London, eventually relocating to New York City. The Weitz family immigrated to the United States via Yokohama, Japan, and Shanghai, China, where many refugee Jews stayed while trying to get to the United States, from their last permanent residence in London. They arrived in Seattle, Washington, in April 1941. [13] [14] They were joining Hedy's brother-in-law, Hermann Gross, in New York City. [15] Weitz became a naturalized American in 1943. [11]

In the United States, Weitz worked for a short time at Voice of America before enlisting in the US Army in 1943. [16] During World War II, from 1943 to 1946, Weitz became an Office of Strategic Services ("OSS") intelligence officer, where his language skills (German, French) were important assets. [17] His training at Camp Ritchie, Maryland classifies him as one of the Ritchie Boys. A group of approximately 20,000 G-2 soldiers who used their linguistics to interrogate POW's in Europe. During this time he was part of a 1944 mission in support of the plan to assassinate Adolf Hitler formulated by German Wehrmacht officers, under the instigation of Claus von Stauffenberg. After the war, Weitz helped to liberate the Dachau concentration camp. [7]

Career

Fashion

In 1945, after three years in the Army, Weitz went to work for his father at The Weitz Corporation. He worked in the women's lingerie department. [18]

In 1947, with the help of his wife's parents, who owned Blauner's department stores, Weitz started the company John Weitz Juniors, Inc., in New York City, where he manufactured dresses and women's sportswear. The company was in business until 1953. [18] In 1954, Weitz founded John Weitz Designs Inc. [19] During this period Weitz found an early mentor in Dorothy Shaver of Lord & Taylor. [6]

In 1964, Weitz shifted from womenswear to menswear, where he focused on classic styles and the practical use and durability of clothing. [20]

As a popular menswear designer, Weitz was an early adopter in the late 1960s of licensing his name brand; he also used his own image in advertising his brand. [21] [22] His company was called John Weitz Designs, Inc. [12] He carried a wide, diverse line of goods and was often featured in advertising that portrayed a glamorous lifestyle. One of Weitz' successful and well-known menswear items that were popular was socks. [6] John Fairchild, editor of Women's Wear Daily , said that Weitz became a household name by successfully licensing and advertising his name on products, . [21]

Writer

From 1970 to the 1990s, Weitz wrote both fiction and historical non-fiction, much centered on Nazi-era Germany. He also wrote frequent magazine articles on a variety of subjects, including his hobby as a race car driver. [23] Weitz raced at Sebring International Raceway from 1955 to 1957, [12] as well as the Bahamas Grand Prix Circuit. [6]

While spending time on Long Island, Weitz was encouraged by the writer John Steinbeck to write. His early novels were bestsellers. [24] While his early novels were semi-autobiographical, including focuses on style, the fashion business, and his experiences in Germany, his latter non-fiction books were serious biographies of Joachim von Ribbentrop, [25] Foreign Minister of Third Reich, and Hjalmar Schacht, [26] President of the Reichsbank and Minister of Economics. [24]

Personal life

Weitz was married three times. His first marriage, from 1944 to 1953, was to Sally Blauner Gould. [27] He had married Blauner when he was 20 years old. Blauner was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and her family owned the Blauner's department store chain. [18] He had a daughter and son with Gould, Karen Weitz Curtis and Robert Weitz. In 1964, Weitz separated from his second wife, Eve Orton, who was a fashion editor. [28]

In 1964, Weitz met actress Susan Kohner in Palm Beach, Florida. Kohner's father was a well known talent agent named Paul Kohner; her mother was actress Lupita Tovar. [7] Weitz married Kohner in 1964. [29] They had two sons, directors Paul Weitz and Chris Weitz. [3]

In addition to his race car driving hobby, Weitz enjoyed boating, and was a member of yacht clubs in Palm Beach, East Hampton, Sag Harbor, as well as part of the US Naval Academy Sailing Squadron. [21]

Awards

Works and publications

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Ford</span> American fashion designer and filmmaker

Thomas Carlyle Ford is an American fashion designer and filmmaker. He launched his eponymous brand in 2005, having previously been the creative director at Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. Ford wrote and directed the films A Single Man (2009) and Nocturnal Animals (2016). From 2019 to 2022 he was chairman of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tommy Hilfiger</span> American fashion designer

Thomas Jacob Hilfiger is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger Corporation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Weitz</span> American filmmaker (born 1969)

Christopher John Weitz is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and actor. He is best known for his work with his brother Paul on the comedy films American Pie and About a Boy; the latter earned the Weitz brothers a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Among his other main works, Weitz directed the film adaptation of the novel The Golden Compass and the film adaptation of New Moon from the series of Twilight books, wrote the screenplay for Disney's 2015 live-action adaptation of Cinderella, and co-wrote Rogue One with Tony Gilroy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Varvatos</span> American fashion designer

John Varvatos is an American menswear designer. He has worked for Polo Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein, and started his own label in 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Weitz (filmmaker)</span> American film director and screenwriter (born 1965)

Paul John Weitz is an American screenwriter, director and producer. He is the older brother of filmmaker Chris Weitz. Together they worked on the comedy films American Pie and About a Boy; for the latter, they were both nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Weitz is also a writer, executive producer, and director of the Amazon Prime Video dramedy series Mozart in the Jungle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Susan Kohner</span> American actress

Susanna "Susan" Kohner is an American actress who worked in film and television. She played Sarah Jane, a young African-American woman, in Imitation of Life (1959), for which she was nominated for an Oscar as Best Supporting Actress. She won two Golden Globe awards for her performance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lupita Tovar</span> Mexican-American actress (1910–2016)

Guadalupe Natalia Tovar Sullivan, known professionally as Lupita Tovar, was a Mexican-American actress best known for her starring role in the 1931 Spanish-language version of Drácula. It was filmed in Los Angeles by Universal Pictures at night using the same sets as the Bela Lugosi version, but with a different cast and director.

Kim Niklas Jones is an English fashion designer.

<i>Womens Wear Daily</i> Fashion-industry trade journal

Women's Wear Daily is a fashion-industry trade journal often referred to as the "Bible of fashion". It provides information and intelligence on changing trends and breaking news in the men's and women's fashion, beauty, and retail industries. Its readership is made up largely of retailers, designers, manufacturers, marketers, financiers, media executives, advertising agencies, socialites, and trend makers.

Christopher Paul Bailey CBE is a British fashion designer who was president and chief creative officer of Burberry. In May 2014, he took up the role of chief creative officer and president, following the departure of former CEO Angela Ahrendts. In February 2018, he was succeeded as chief creative officer by Riccardo Tisci.

Paul Kohner was an Austrian-American talent agent and producer who managed the careers of many stars and others—like Ingrid Bergman, Maurice Chevalier, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, John Huston, Liv Ullmann and Billy Wilder—of the golden age of Hollywood, especially those who came from Europe before World War II. He was married to the Mexican-American actress, Lupita Tovar. His brother was Frederick Kohner, a novelist and screenwriter, his daughter was the actress Susan Kohner. His grandsons are the filmmakers Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Owens</span> American fashion designer

Richard Saturnino Owens is an American fashion designer from Porterville, California. In addition to his main line, Owens has a furniture line and a number of diffusion lines.

Robert Geller is a German-born American fashion designer.

Billy Reid is an American fashion designer based in Florence, Alabama. His line includes menswear, womenswear, accessories and eyewear. His clothing, self-described as "lived-in luxury" and "broken-in luxury", is known for its unusual accents and Southern influence. Reid summarizes his brand's concept as "American luxury built to last". Billy Reid, Marc Jacobs, Tom Ford, and Michael Kors are the only fashion designers who have won 3 or more CFDA Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boris Bidjan Saberi</span> German menswear designer

Boris Bidjan Saberi is a German menswear designer based in Barcelona. His work is noted for its wide range of references, including skate culture, streetstyle, hip-hop, and clothing from the Middle East.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Fezza</span> American fashion designer

Andrew Fezza is an Italian American menswear designer, sometimes described as the "Giorgio Armani of America".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Todd Snyder (fashion designer)</span> American fashion designer

Todd Snyder is an American fashion designer based in New York City. He founded his eponymous fashion label in 2011, and has been called "the most influential menswear designer of his generation" by GQ. The brand was acquired by American Eagle Outfitters in 2015, and reports over $100 million in annual sales revenue. Todd Snyder is also the Creative Director of American heritage brand Woolrich's Black Label Collection.

Alessandro Michele is an Italian fashion designer and creative director of Valentino. He grew to international recognition as the creative director of Gucci, the Italian fashion luxury house where he worked from 2002 to 2022. Known for his maximalist designs, Alessandro Michele revived Gucci's popularity, most notably with a Geek-Chic aesthetic. He had been responsible for all of Gucci's collections and global brand image from January 2015 until he stepped down from the role in November 2022.

JW Anderson is a UK fashion label, founded by Jonathan Anderson. Anderson originally from Magherafelt in Northern Ireland established JW Anderson in 2008 and subsequently launched his fashion house in London. The brand initially focused on menswear, before moving into womenswear in 2010. From 2012 onwards, the brand and its designer have collaborated with a number of retail fashion brands, most notably Topshop, Versace, and Uniqlo, with LVMH acquiring a minority stake in the brand in 2013.

Paul Surridge is a British fashion designer and art director.

References

  1. ↑ Morris, Bernadine (26 November 1980). "Weitz's Casual Men's Fashions" (PDF). The New York Times . Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  2. ↑ Kelley, Tina (4 October 2002). "John Weitz, 79, Fashion Designer Turned Historian, Dies". The New York Times . Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  3. 1 2 Horyn, Cathy (20 February 2000). "Legacy; Growing up Weitz". The New York Times . Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  4. ↑ "Salomon Weitz - United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  5. ↑ "Salomon Weitz - United States World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 - 004126364 Image 4598". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Knoth, Ronald (25 January 2010). "A Primer on John Weitz (Part One of Three)". The Bespoken: For Gentlemen. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 Pfefferman, Naomi (13 March 2003). "About Two Boys: Late fashion designer John Weitz inspires his Academy Award-nominated sons, Paul and Chris". Jewish Journal . Archived from the original on 5 January 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  8. ↑ Chin, Paula (October 26, 1992). "John Weitz". People Magazine. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  9. ↑ Pfefferman, Naomi (March 5, 2012). "Paul Weitz on dads, De Niro and "Being Flynn"". Jewish Journal. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  10. ↑ Pfefferman, Naomi (June 1, 2011). "An Immigrant Struggles for a 'Better Life' for His Son". Jewish Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  11. 1 2 Pauley, Gay (4 January 1983). "Many facets of John Weitz". United Press International . Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  12. 1 2 3 4 "John Weitz Tries Designing the Man Inside His Clothes". People . 27 January 1975. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  13. ↑ "Salomon Weitz - Washington, Seattle, Passenger Lists". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  14. ↑ "Heian Maru Manifest: Washington, Seattle, Passenger Lists, 1890-1957, Image 211". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  15. ↑ "Heian Maru Manifest: Washington, Seattle, Passenger Lists, 1890-1957, Image 210". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  16. ↑ "John H W Weitz United States World War II Army Enlistment Records". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  17. ↑ Carlson, Peter (7 June 1982). "Secret Agents". People . Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  18. 1 2 3 "Irving Blauner and Frances Blauner v. Commissioner". United States Tax Court . 31 July 1967. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  19. 1 2 Sloane, Leonard (2 November 1965). "Designer Decries Men's Styles" (PDF). The New York Times . Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  20. ↑ "Weitz, John. American fashion and industrial designer". Fashion Encyclopedia. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  21. 1 2 3 Knoth, Ronald (27 January 2010). "A Primer on John Weitz (Part Two of Three)". The Bespoken: For Gentlemen. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  22. ↑ Wohlfert, Lee (3 September 1979). "It Takes a Strong Woman to Tell John Weitz He's All Wet, and Her Name Is Susan Kohner". People . Vol. 12, no. 10. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  23. ↑ "John Weitz papers, 1945-1998". New School Libraries & Archives . 1998. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  24. 1 2 Knoth, Ronald (29 January 2010). "A Primer on John Weitz (Part Three of Three)". The Bespoken: For Gentlemen. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  25. ↑ Brozan, Nadine (21 July 1992). "Chronicle". The New York Times . Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  26. ↑ Murray, David (25 January 1998). "Books in Brief: Nonfiction - Hitler's Banker". The New York Times . Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  27. ↑ "Paid Notice: Deaths - Gould, Sally Blauner". The New York Times . 13 August 2006. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  28. ↑ "Eve Orton, Editor, 72". The New York Times . 10 June 1988. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  29. ↑ "John H Weitz mentioned in the record of John H Weitz and Susan Kohner". FamilySearch . Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  30. ↑ Zill, Jo Ahern (20 April 1959). "Announcing this year's fashion winners". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved 25 August 2015.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.