Jocelyn Wildenstein, the Swiss-born socialite famous for the surgery-enhanced feline features that earned her nicknames in the American press like “Catwoman” and the “Bride of Wildenstein”, has died. Her partner Lloyd Klein told AFP she died of a pulmonary embolism in Paris. Wildenstein, who sometimes spelt her name “Jocelyne”, was a staple of New York tabloids for much of her adult life, due to her tempestuous love life, drastically changing appearance and the hefty payout she received in her divorce from an art world bigwig (though she eventually claimed she’d gone bankrupt, having depleted her billions).
Wildenstein often downplayed the extent of her cosmetic procedures, claiming the “cat eyes” she was so infamous for were a family trait, or that different hairstyles changed the way she looked. Occasionally, though, she gave a winking tidbit to journalists who, well, needled her about her procedures. Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today “If you feel good with your imperfections, with ageing, then you should do nothing,” she reportedly told photographer Zed Nelson in 2006.
“Otherwise, it’s all about choosing the right doctor.” A life defined by money, cosmetic surgery and a love of big cats Jocelyn Périsset (her maiden name) spent her early life in Lausanne, Switzerland. (Her birthday had proved hard to track down, as she gave reporters different dates.
Klein told AFP that she died at age 79, while other outlets reported that she wa.