Robert Isabell
Encyclopedia
Bruce Robert Isabell was an American
event planner
who was behind lavish and innovative events including weddings and funerals of the richest and most famous. He helped make Christmas at the White House
during the Presidency of Bill Clinton
and helped create innovative events that made Studio 54
in Manhattan
into the place to be in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Isabell was born in Duluth, Minnesota
, where he worked in a flower shop as a youth. After graduating from high school he moved to Minneapolis.
He moved to New York City
in the 1970s and was hired by Ian Schrager
at Studio 54
, after Schrager had seen the creative designs Isabell had developed while he was working for event planner Renny Reynolds who had done work at the club and was the leading planner in his day. Schrager described how Isabell "never tried to do too much, it was never design on steroids, yet there was always the razzle-dazzle".
He started on his own operating a floral shop within Bergdorf Goodman
in Midtown Manhattan
. He established "a full-service event-production house" in the city's West Village where he would oversee the creation of events around the world, in which the entire setting including flowers, lighting, sound and table decorations would be part of his craft. Anna Wintour
of Vogue
magazine described him as "the king of the event world" who was "a magician" and the first person that top hostesses would approach to create spectacular events. Isabell created roughly 30 events for writer and editor Tina Brown
. She regarded him as "sort of a genius" who had the ability to "take any space and make magic in it". For over a decade, he designed the annual Met Ball
for Vogue.
In the late 1970s, he had four tons of glitter dumped on the floor of Studio 54
for a New Year's Eve event, with club co-owner Ian Schrager describing how guests felt "like you were standing on stardust". Bracketed between the 1986 wedding of Edwin Schlossberg
to Caroline Kennedy
and the 1996 nuptials of John F. Kennedy, Jr.
and Carolyn Bessette, he worked on the 1994 funeral of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
. For the July 1995 wedding of billionaire Robert Warren Miller's daughter Marie-Chantal
to Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece
at Saint Sophia
in Bayswater
, London
, Isabell created a virtual Greek temple in a tent, including pillars topped with roses, with a budget variously estimated at $5–8 million. For the wedding of Alexandra von Fürstenberg
, Marie-Chantal's sister, to Prince Alexandre Egon von Fürstenberg, son of Diane von Fürstenberg
, Isabell transformed a tent in Battery Park
into a Chinese teahouse complete with a throne room that included hanging lanterns and bamboo trees. For Christmas 1998 at the Clinton White House, Isabell created a massive fir wreath with 1,500 lights individually colored a shade he called "Presidential blue".
His last project was an Independence Day
event he co-prepared for Lally Weymouth
in Southampton, New York
. Ian Schrager
stated that Isabell had headed home from The Hamptons on the night of July 4 and had not been heard from before his death.
A resident of Manhattan
's Greenwich Village
, Isabell was found dead on July 8, 2009, aged 57, in his townhouse on Minetta Lane, where he had suffered a fatal myocardial infarction
(heart attack). He is survived by his mother, two brothers and a sister.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
event planner
Event planning
Event planning is the process of planning a festival, ceremony, competition, party, or convention. Event planning includes budgeting, establishing dates and alternate dates, selecting and reserving the event site, acquiring permits, and coordinating transportation and parking...
who was behind lavish and innovative events including weddings and funerals of the richest and most famous. He helped make Christmas at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
during the Presidency of Bill Clinton
Presidency of Bill Clinton
The United States Presidency of Bill Clinton, also known as the Clinton Administration, was the executive branch of the federal government of the United States from January 20, 1993 to January 20, 2001. Clinton was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term...
and helped create innovative events that made Studio 54
Studio 54
Studio 54 was a highly popular discotheque from 1977 until 1991, located at 254 West 54th Street in Manhattan, New York, USA. It was originally the Gallo Opera House, opening in 1927, after which it changed names several times, eventually becoming a CBS radio and television studio. In 1977 it...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
into the place to be in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Isabell was born in Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
, where he worked in a flower shop as a youth. After graduating from high school he moved to Minneapolis.
He moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in the 1970s and was hired by Ian Schrager
Ian Schrager
Ian Schrager is an American hotelier and real estate developer. Often associated with co-creating of the Boutique Hotel genre. Originally, he gained fame as co-owner and co-founder of Studio 54.-Early years:...
at Studio 54
Studio 54
Studio 54 was a highly popular discotheque from 1977 until 1991, located at 254 West 54th Street in Manhattan, New York, USA. It was originally the Gallo Opera House, opening in 1927, after which it changed names several times, eventually becoming a CBS radio and television studio. In 1977 it...
, after Schrager had seen the creative designs Isabell had developed while he was working for event planner Renny Reynolds who had done work at the club and was the leading planner in his day. Schrager described how Isabell "never tried to do too much, it was never design on steroids, yet there was always the razzle-dazzle".
He started on his own operating a floral shop within Bergdorf Goodman
Bergdorf Goodman
Bergdorf Goodman is a luxury goods department store based on Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The company was founded in 1899 by Herman Bergdorf and was later owned and managed by Edwin Goodman, and later his son Andrew Goodman....
in Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan
Midtown Manhattan, or simply Midtown, is an area of Manhattan, New York City home to world-famous commercial zones such as Rockefeller Center, Broadway, and Times Square...
. He established "a full-service event-production house" in the city's West Village where he would oversee the creation of events around the world, in which the entire setting including flowers, lighting, sound and table decorations would be part of his craft. Anna Wintour
Anna Wintour
Anna Wintour, OBE is the British-born editor-in-chief of American Vogue, a position she has held since 1988. With her trademark pageboy bob haircut and sunglasses, Wintour has become an institution throughout the fashion world, widely praised for her eye for fashion trends and her support for...
of Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
magazine described him as "the king of the event world" who was "a magician" and the first person that top hostesses would approach to create spectacular events. Isabell created roughly 30 events for writer and editor Tina Brown
Tina Brown
Tina Brown, Lady Evans, CBE , is a journalist, magazine editor, columnist, talk-show host and author of The Diana Chronicles, a biography of Diana, Princess of Wales. Born a British citizen, she took United States citizenship in 2005 after emigrating in 1984 to edit Vanity Fair...
. She regarded him as "sort of a genius" who had the ability to "take any space and make magic in it". For over a decade, he designed the annual Met Ball
Met Ball
The Costume Institute Gala , known as the Met Ball and nicknamed the "Oscars of the East Coast", is an annual ball that celebrates the annual opening of the Metropolitan Museum's fashion exhibit at the Costume Institute...
for Vogue.
In the late 1970s, he had four tons of glitter dumped on the floor of Studio 54
Studio 54
Studio 54 was a highly popular discotheque from 1977 until 1991, located at 254 West 54th Street in Manhattan, New York, USA. It was originally the Gallo Opera House, opening in 1927, after which it changed names several times, eventually becoming a CBS radio and television studio. In 1977 it...
for a New Year's Eve event, with club co-owner Ian Schrager describing how guests felt "like you were standing on stardust". Bracketed between the 1986 wedding of Edwin Schlossberg
Edwin Schlossberg
Edwin Arthur Schlossberg , founder and principal of ESI Design, is an American designer, author and artist. Schlossberg specializes in designing interactive, participatory experiences, beginning in 1977 with the first hands-on learning environment in the U.S. for the Brooklyn Children's Museum...
to Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Bouvier Kennedy is an American author and attorney. She is a member of the influential Kennedy family and the only surviving child of U.S. President John F...
and the 1996 nuptials of John F. Kennedy, Jr.
John F. Kennedy, Jr.
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Jr. , often referred to as John F. Kennedy, Jr., JFK Jr., John Jr. or John-John, was an American socialite, magazine publisher, lawyer, and pilot. The elder son of U.S. President John F...
and Carolyn Bessette, he worked on the 1994 funeral of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier "Jackie" Kennedy Onassis was the wife of the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, and served as First Lady of the United States during his presidency from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. Five years later she married Greek shipping magnate Aristotle...
. For the July 1995 wedding of billionaire Robert Warren Miller's daughter Marie-Chantal
Marie-Chantal, Crown Princess of Greece
Marie-Chantal Claire, Crown Princess of Greece, Princess of Denmark , is a member of the Greek Royal Family through her marriage to Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece...
to Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece
Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece
Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece, is the eldest son and heir apparent of Constantine II, who was King of Greece from 1964 to 1973....
at Saint Sophia
Saint Sophia (London)
Saint Sophia Cathedral is a Greek Orthodox church on Moscow Road in the Bayswater area of London.It was consecrated as the Church of St Sophia on 5 February 1882 by Antonios, Archbishop of Corfu, as a focus for the prosperous Greek community that had settled in London, particularly around...
in Bayswater
Bayswater
Bayswater is an area of west London in the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to the west . It is a built-up district located 3 miles west-north-west of Charing Cross, bordering the north of Hyde Park over Kensington Gardens and having a population density of...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Isabell created a virtual Greek temple in a tent, including pillars topped with roses, with a budget variously estimated at $5–8 million. For the wedding of Alexandra von Fürstenberg
Alexandra von Fürstenberg
Alexandra von Fürstenberg is the image director for DvF, the clothing label which was founded by her former mother in law, Diane von Furstenberg, and helped revive the company’s famous 1970s wrap dress.She is the youngest daughter of the American-born Duty Free shops businessman Robert...
, Marie-Chantal's sister, to Prince Alexandre Egon von Fürstenberg, son of Diane von Fürstenberg
Diane von Fürstenberg
Diane von Fürstenberg, formerly Princess Diane of Fürstenberg , is a Belgian-American fashion designer best known for her iconic wrap dress. She initially rose to prominence when she married into the German princely House of Fürstenberg, as the wife of Prince Egon of Fürstenberg...
, Isabell transformed a tent in Battery Park
Battery Park
Battery Park is a 25-acre public park located at the Battery, the southern tip of Manhattan Island in New York City, facing New York Harbor. The Battery is named for artillery batteries that were positioned there in the city's early years in order to protect the settlement behind them...
into a Chinese teahouse complete with a throne room that included hanging lanterns and bamboo trees. For Christmas 1998 at the Clinton White House, Isabell created a massive fir wreath with 1,500 lights individually colored a shade he called "Presidential blue".
His last project was an Independence Day
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
event he co-prepared for Lally Weymouth
Lally Weymouth
Elizabeth Morris "Lally" Graham Weymouth is an American journalist who serves as Senior Associate Editor of the Washington Post...
in Southampton, New York
Southampton (town), New York
The Town of Southampton is located in southeastern Suffolk County, New York, U.S., partly on the South Fork of Long Island. As of the United States 2000 Census, the town had a total population of 54,712...
. Ian Schrager
Ian Schrager
Ian Schrager is an American hotelier and real estate developer. Often associated with co-creating of the Boutique Hotel genre. Originally, he gained fame as co-owner and co-founder of Studio 54.-Early years:...
stated that Isabell had headed home from The Hamptons on the night of July 4 and had not been heard from before his death.
A resident of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
's Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
, Isabell was found dead on July 8, 2009, aged 57, in his townhouse on Minetta Lane, where he had suffered a fatal myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
(heart attack). He is survived by his mother, two brothers and a sister.