Iconic Princess Diana Dress Fails To Sell At Auction
One of the most iconic dresses the late Princess Diana wore during her 1985 official visit to America has failed to sell at auction.
Us Weekly reported that the blue velvet Victor Edelstein gown, which Diana wore when she twirled around the floor at the White House alongside actor John Travolta, did not meet the auction’s reserve price of $265,000. The garment was expected to sell for a price between $330,000 and $450,000.
Two other gowns worn by the late princess were sold at the same auction reported, People Magazine. One item was a blue velvet evening gown by Katherine Cusack, which was purchased for over $60,000, and the other a navy Catherine Walker ensemble for $37,000.
Kerry Taylor Auctions revealed on their Instagram page that what has come to be known as “The Travolta Dress” sold after the auction to a British institution for $290,000
The iconic dress had been sold by Diana herself just two months before her death to a businesswoman for about $130,000. It was auctioned off to yet another buyer for $362,000 in 2013, reported Us Weekly.
Princess Diana wore the form-fitting midnight blue gown during a White House State dinner where Travolta was one of the guests during the administration of late President Ronald Reagan.
Travolta spoke about the moment that he took the floor with the late princess, noting that he was unsure whether he was able to ask the royal for a spin on the floor. He only moved forward with his request after late first lady Nancy Reagan said Diana wanted to dance with him.
He told Dutch television station Één, that he would never forget the moment, reported Readers Digest.
“At midnight, I had to tap her on her shoulder, and I had to say, ‘Would you care to dance?’ She turned around and dipped her head in that Lady Diana way, and we were off for 15 minutes dancing,” revealed the actor in the interview.
It was reported that the couple danced to the soundtrack to Travolta’s iconic 1977 movie Saturday Night Fever, which is about the life of a young Brooklyn, New York, man that was forever changed by his nights at a local discotheque.
The actor also added that he was “honored” to later learn the dance was reportedly a highlight of Diana’s visit to the United States.
While Diana enjoyed her dance with the film superstar, it was revealed by Diana’s butler Paul Burrell in the documentary The Last 100 Days of Diana that the dance was all part of a photo opportunity orchestrated by the Reagans.
