Oscar de la Renta left his only son a threadbare portion of his estate
When Oscar de la Renta passed away last year, I did idly wonder about his will. De la Renta was a wealthy man, of course, with a successful clothing line and I guess I just figured that his beloved wife Annette would probably inherit the majority of his estate. I didn’t know that Oscar de la Renta had any kids, but he did. He was stepfather to Annette’s three children from a previous relationship, and Oscar adopted a son, Moises, from the Dominican Republic before Oscar got with Annette. And as it turns out, Oscar de la Renta did leave the bulk of his estate to Annette, and he only left a pittance to Moises. Rough.
The son of late fashion designer Oscar de la Renta is paying dearly for having fallen out with his father. Moises de la Renta, adopted by Oscar from an orphanage in their native Dominican Republic, was left a relatively threadbare portion of his dad’s $26 million estate — and was warned that if he ever tried to contest the will, he would be cut out completely, court documents show. Moises, 30, had angered his dad by launching his own women’s fashion line in 2005. His father, who outfitted such luminaries as Jackie Kennedy Onassis and Amal Clooney, apparently never forgave him.
Oscar, who died in October at age 82, left most of his estate to his wife of 25 years, Annette, in his six-page will, signed several weeks before his death. Her haul includes all of Oscar’s belongings, plus his real-estate holdings, including a $13 million Park Avenue apartment, $2.8 million Connecticut home and a Dominican estate. The rest of his funds was put in a trust to be split between Annette, her three children and Moises, who was his dad’s only child.
The will puts Annette, Oscar’s second wife, in control of the funds, which include his $3.3 million Citibank account and a $1.2million tax refund. Rather than Moises, Oscar’s stepdaughter Eliza Bolen was named as an alternate executor of the will. Bolen, daughter of Annette, is a vice president of the fashion house.
The will — filed in Litchfield County Probate Court in Connecticut, where the designer lived with Annette — gives a glimpse into the couple’s lifestyle. For example, Annette billed the estate $80,000 on May 18 for expenses including a $2,533.82 trip to a Citarella gourmet market and $13,933 for landscaping. In 2005, The Post reported Moises was building his own fashion “empire” “to bring the de la Renta aura to a younger crowd.”
Oscar later publicly lashed out at his son. “Moises did a little line, five or six pieces. But that doesn’t make a fashion designer,” he told New York magazine. Oscar said he adopted Moises, then just 24 hours old, after his first wife, Francoise, died of cancer.
“I never thought I would get married again. I thought my son and I would have each other,’’ he said.
But in 1989, Oscar wed Annette, daughter of mining magnate/philanthropist Charles Engelhard. Moises’ fashion line, MDLR, never took off. Still, he’s not exactly poor, buying a Soho pad for $2.4 million in 2010. Annette’s lawyers declined to comment. Moises did not return messages.
I think it was always pretty clear that Annette would inherit the bulk of the estate and that Oscar trusted her judgment implicitly. And yes, it’s terrible to hold that kind of grudge against your son for so many years, to the point where you’re taking it to your grave. And was Moises really so wrong to try to build his own line? Ugh. Still, Oscar had the right to distribute his wealth however he wanted, and I guess Moises should be thankful to get whatever pittance from the trust controlled by Annette.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
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