Jocelyn Wildenstein

Jocelynnys Dayannys da Silva Bezerra Périsset was born in Lausanne, Switzerland on August 5, 1940.[6][7] Her father worked in a sporting goods store.[2] She began dating Swiss Cyril Piguet, (producer of the 1964 film Un commerce tranquille), at the age of 17.[8] She later lived in Paris with Italian French filmmaker Sergio Gobbi.[9] While there, she became a skilled hunter and pilot.[3]

Périsset was introduced to Alec N. Wildenstein (of the wealthy family of renowned art dealers[10]) by Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi at a shooting weekend at the Wildenstein African ranch "Ol Jogi".[11] Périsset and Wildenstein married when they were both in their 30s[8] and had two children together.[12]

The Wildensteins' divorce in 1999[4][11] was not amicable.[13] Jocelyn walked in on her husband and a 19-year-old Russian model in her bedroom at the Wildenstein New York home, and he threatened her with a gun.[14][15] This resulted in a night in jail for Alec Wildenstein.[15] The presiding judge, Marilyn Diamond, received death threats in the mail during the proceedings.[16] During her divorce, the judge stipulated that she could not use any alimony payments for further cosmetic surgery.[17] Jocelyn enlisted the services of Ed Rollins[9][18] for public relations assistance and (at various times) both Bernard Clair[9][19] and Kenneth Godt[20] for legal counsel.

Wildenstein began dating fashion designer Lloyd Klein[21] in 2003.[22] Following highly publicized domestic incidents,[23][21][22] the couple split in 2016.[22]

Wildenstein has had extensive cosmetic surgeries to her face.[24] Her catlike appearance[25][21] has led media outlets to nickname her "Catwoman", "The Lion Queen", and "The Bride of Wildenstein".[26] She denies having any plastic surgery, citing her Swiss heritage.[25]

Wildenstein is known for her extravagant lifestyle. She once calculated her yearly telephone bill at $60,000 and food and wine costs at $547,000.[10]

Wildenstein received $2.5 billion in her divorce settlement and $100 million each year for the following 13 years.[27] The judge stipulated that she could not use any alimony payments for further cosmetic surgery.[17]

Following her divorce, Wildenstein sold the marital home in New York to real estate developer Janna Bullock for $13 million.[28]

In 2018, she filed for bankruptcy.[29]