Girl and grandmother. Stylish and refined Frenchwoman and a simple Soviet woman. It is in this context that the famous photographs of 1961 are often discussed, which depict the two first ladies of two world powers. Jacqueline Kennedy is a style icon, a model of taste, a Frenchwoman who became the wife of an American president (and then a Greek billionaire). Nina Khrushcheva is the elderly wife of the cranky Soviet leader, dressed in what looks like a grandmother's flowered dressing gown. But is everything so clear?
If we compare Nina Khrushcheva with Jacqueline Kennedy, then the testimony of contemporaries about the character of both women speaks in favor of the first. According to them, Khrushchev's personality greatly outperformed Kennedy. The closed aristocratic Frenchwoman could hardly bear the burden of publicity, because in reality she was a "thing in itself."
Being the wife of an American leader, Jacqueline was forced to keep a face and exude friendliness, but at the same time she gave the impression of a cold and unapproachable person. By this fact alone, she lost to the charismatic Khrushcheva, who was distinguished by the energy and warmth of a simple Russian woman.
Comparing their outfits and looks in general is like comparing warm to soft, green to hard, and heavy to beautiful. Firstly, Khrushcheva’s outfit is far from being a “grandmother’s robe”, but a suit made of expensive and high-quality fabric. Secondly, in black-and-white photos, there is a distortion of perception, due to which the patterned fabric looks “dressing gown” compared to the plain Kennedy suit. Thirdly, the difference between the two women is not only in style and figures, but also in age.
The photographs were taken during the visit of the Soviet delegation to Vienna on June 4, 1961. Jacqueline Kennedy was born on July 28, 1929, at the time of the meeting she was 31 years old. Nina Khrushcheva was born on April 14, 1900, at the time of the meeting she was 61 years old. That is, between these two women 30 years of difference. Should we take this point into account when comparing the two first ladies? Of course it's worth it.
They say that everything is known in comparison, so the same thing can look advantageous or lose, depending on what is nearby. Compare Nina Khrushchev with another first lady, Mamie Eisenhower.
This photo was taken in 1959. Khrushcheva is 59 here, Eisenhower is almost 63. Who looks more profitable and dignified in this photo? Does Khrushcheva look like a “Soviet grandmother” compared to an American fashionista? Fashion critics will have questions more about the image of the first lady of the States than for the elegant Nina Petrovna.
This meeting, which took place two years before the Vienna one, was later described by Jacqueline Kennedy in her book. She also noted that Khrushcheva looked much better than Eisenhower, who did not part with her diamonds, shamelessly flaunting all her wealth.
Kennedy also noted that the images of the Khrushchev couple at the meeting in Vienna were just a clever disguise. It turned out that the provincial middle-aged Nina Petrovna understood English speech even without the help of an interpreter, and the suit was sewn from better fabric than Jackie herself.
Jacqueline Kennedy owes her impeccable style to Russian-born designer Oleg Cassini, whose outfits were also worn by Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly. He was appreciated for his work, which mixed the influence of Russian roots, Italian taste and French chic.
Before meeting with the Khrushchev couple, Cassini whispered to Jacqueline that one must keep one's eyes open with these Russians. She remembered this, took note, so she was not surprised at all by her appearance and the “grandmother's dressing gown”. They are greeted by clothes, distracted by clothes, but not carried away. A simple truth that proves worth at all times.
