Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s and other Photographs

Truman Capote had envisioned Marily Monroe for the screen adaptation of his novel Breakfast at Tiffany’s, but the actress allegedly considered the part too racy and turned it down. For director Blake Edwards, no one but Audrey Hepburn would do for the role of New York gadabout Holly Golightly. Her performance was so remarkable that Breakfast at Tiffany’s rose to cult film status, and its leading lady became a style icon of the 1960s. Audrey Hepburn gazing at jewels in the window display at Tiffany’s is a scene that wrote movie history. What she wore – a little black dress, long formal gloves, and a string of fake pearls – is still considered stylish today. Howell Conant (1917 – 1999) took publicity shots on the set during the filming of Breakfast at Tiffany’s in New York City in 1960, as well as at locations such as Tiffany’s on Fifth Avenue and in his Manhattan studio. The seasoned photographer was himself a celebrity, having made his name as the long-time official court photographer of Grace Kelly, also known as Princess Grace of Monaco. Audrey Hepburn reprised all the fascinating personality traits of the capricious social butterfly Holly Golightly for Conant’s camera: endearingly disreputable with her indispensable cigarette holder, glamorous in a Givenchy gown amidst a swarm of chic partygoers, dreamy and melancholic while crooning the Oscar-winning ballad ‘Moon River’ from her fire escape at night… More photo shoots followed, including fashion photographs taken in the Swiss Alps for magazines such as Life, Look and Paris Match, a portrait series featuring fantastical hats – Hepburn loved unusual millinery creations – and public relations shots for the film Wait Until Dark (1967). These photographs recreate the magic that made Audrey Hepburn the darling of moviegoers around the world and a timeless favorite with film fans of today.