By JENNIFER FERMINO, Reuters
May 19, 2008
The devil wears Prada, but the "Queen of Mean" preferred Chanel.
Leona Helmsley's collection of designer duds went on auction in Chicago yesterday - with the pink wool and denim skirt suit she wore to prison in 1992 pulling in $850.
The Chanel suit was one of hundreds of items of clothing and accessories sold at the auction, which raised $118,845 for the late real-estate billionaire's charitable trust.
The top-selling item was a brown broad-tail coat that fetched $12,000.
A brown sable coat went for $6,000.
The collection included a red beaded evening gown designed by Bob Mackie, which brought in $3,200, and 16 pairs of Ferragamo shoes, which netted $1,000.
Many of the items were made by Helmsley's full-time dressmaker, who worked out of her Greenwich, Conn., mansion.
Helmsley was jailed for a year and a half on a tax-evasion conviction.
Copyright Reuters.
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