First things first: No, Tom Ford did not call First Lady Melania Trump a “glorified escort” who “has bad taste in men.”
The luxury fashion designer became a trending Twitter topic on Tuesday morning after a now-deleted tweet falsely attributing the incendiary words to Ford went viral. The post, from user @fras99, featured a split image of the designer-cum-Hollywood director and the first lady with the text: “I have no interest in dressing a glorified escort who steals speeches and has bad taste in men.”
A spokeswoman for the brand tells InStyle, “This is an absolutely fabricated and completely fake quote attributed to Mr. Ford that has somehow gone viral. Mr. Ford did not make this statement; it is completely false.”
After deleting the tweet, the same user later posted a Washington Postthis link opens in a new tab article which featured a two-year-old quote that the designer gave during an appearance on The View while promoting his film Nocturnal Animals.
“I was asked to dress [Melania Trump] quite a few years ago and I declined. She’s not necessarily my image,” he said. “Even had Hillary won she shouldn’t be wearing my clothes, they’re too expensive. I don’t mean that in a bad way; they’re not artificially expensive, it’s how much it costs to make these things. I think the first lady has to relate to everybody.” (Donald Trump, being Donald Trump, respondedthis link opens in a new tab to Ford’s quotes at the time by saying that the designer “was never asked” to dress FLOTUS, adding “I never liked him or his designs. He’s never had something to dress like that [pointing to his wife, who was in the room at the time].”)
Instyle
