…………………………If I were asked who was the most famous person I have ever met…..my answer would be immediate!……..QUEEN ELIZABETH!!…….it was in the early 70s and I had been working at Anne Klein for a year or so. I was in my twenties so that was fifty years ago. The Queen was in her early forties…..still a young women………She was making a trip to the United States, and as it turns out one of the very few she would make in her lifetime…….She was going to be in NYC for a few days…..The Queen requested to see BLOOMINGDALES! The plan was that she would be taken on a tour of the store….stopping at some planned exhibits…….One of the floors she was stopping on was the Designer Sportswear floor where the boutiques were located right as they would come off the escalator. Bloomingdales selected three sportswear designer companies to be represented……..Ralph Lauren…..Calvin Klein……and Anne Klein. Donna and I would be there representing Anne Klein……The store set up the horse shoe shaped boutique area to showcase the three houses with their clothes and mannequins on display….Ralph had the first wall on the right as they entered the room….we had the center back wall and Calvin had the left wall of the horseshoe……..Donna and I were so excited to meet the Queen….Of course the next question was what were we going to wear. It was either late spring or early summer….don’t remember……I decided on my brand new navy Armani suit with a tie and white shirt. I was very thin then and the suit fit perfectly. Donna decided on a white single button blazer with a matching vest and short skirt from the new spring collection and low heel shoes. She also wore a white small fedora…..The next question was how were we going to get from 39th Street and 7th Ave to Bloomindales up on 59th street and Lex???? Donna had a bright idea…..”Let’s take the subway….this way I can stand and not get wrinkled”…..I thought that was a splendid idea even though neither of us had take the subway to Bloomingdales before. How hard could it be……thousands of people take it every day!!! So on the day we followed the directions we were given and off we went. When we arrived at the store we had to be met by store officials and escorted in. We were shown to out places, and then the wait….and wait some more, and continued to wait…..The Queen was late……Ralph, Calvin and Donna and myself started to talk until we got the word that she was on her way down the escalator………PLACES EVERYONE!…….First we saw the bright lights of the movie cameras and then photographer’s flashing bulbs……remember it was 50,years ago!……..then in she walked…She was splendid….I don’t remember what she was wearing, but I remembered everything matched….I was to learn that was her signature….First she stopped at Ralph…..shaking hands and saying a few words, then to Donna and myself….Donna curtseying and a hand shake [she had been practicing for a week!], and a hand shake for me……We were told the protocol before hand on how to address her and how to shake her hand…….NEVER GRIP THE QUEEN’S HAND!!!!! Just hold yours out and let her take it, and she will hold it as tightly or as loosely as she wishes……..I know there were words said, and she did remark at how young we were, but that’s all I remember……Then a goodbye and off to say hello to Calvin……The whole thing couldn’t have been more than 15 minutes or so……It was a whirlwind, but a moment I will remember forever…….Again, I was blessed to meet this remarkable woman……How many people can say they met, spoke and shook the hand of the Queen!!!???………..Now…..she is with Prince Phillip……………..Rest In Peace Queen Elizabeth 11…..your reign was spectacular and will be remembered through the ages.
