Jocelyn Wildenstein‘s longtime fiancé is paying tribute to her and their enduring relationship following her death on New Year’s Eve.
Lloyd Klein described the famous socialite as the ‘love of [his] life’ while remarking on how much he misses her during a conversation with Page Six on Sunday.
Klein, 57, had romantically linked to Wildenstein going back to 2003, though the two had a bumpy relationship that included a 2016 incident in which Wildenstein was arrested for slashing Klein’s face with scissors.
‘She was fabulous. She was the love of my life,’ the fashion designer gushed about Wildenstein, who was dubbed the ‘Catwoman’ due to the leonine features she developed after numerous cosmetic surgeries over the years.
‘I miss her every half second and I still think I’m in a nightmare right now,’ Klein continued somberly.
‘All my happiness is gone,’ he said elsewhere in the interview, ‘but she did not suffer, and she died in full glamour.’
Jocelyn Wildenstein’s longtime fiancé Lloyd Klein (L) is paying tribute to her and their enduring relationship following her death on New Year’s Eve; seen in 2017 in NYC
‘She was fabulous. She was the love of my life,’ the fashion designer, 57, gushed about Wildenstein, who was dubbed the ‘Catwoman’ due to the leonine features she developed after numerous cosmetic surgeries over the years; seen in May 2023 in LA
Klein — who revealed a contributing factor to his fiancée’s death — tried to clarify her true age at the time of her death, claiming that Wildenstein was 79 when she died, and not 84, as was widely reported.
An obituary in the Times of London reported that the art dealer had been born in 1940, and was therefore 84, but the New York Times was among the publications that reported she had been born in 1945, which would have made her only 79.
Klein was clearly defensive about his late fiancée and the reputation she had developed with the public due to her shifting appearance and money woes.
‘She doesn’t deserve to be ridiculed,’ he told Page Six.
Klein claimed that, contrary to statements made by her ex-husband, his former fiancée had never tried to give herself a more feline appearance.
‘Alec said Jocelyn wanted to look like a cat. She never wanted to look like a cat, she already had that look,’ he claimed. ‘she had beautiful cheekbones and almond-shaped cat eyes.’
He went further, claiming that Wildenstein led a trend of celebrities getting significant amounts of plastic surgery.
‘Maybe she was the first one doing what she did,’ he mused.
Klein also claimed that Wildenstein was ‘certainly not broke’ at the time of her death.
‘That’s not the case,’ he said.
Wildenstein became one of the wealthiest people on the planet after her 1999 divorce from the French-born American art collector and businessman Alec N. Wildenstein, which left her with a reported $2.5 billion.
The settlement also instructed Alec to pay Jocelyn an additional $100 million per year.
Despite achieving such immense wealth, she reportedly managed to lose it all after years of tinkering with her face and spending on countless luxuries.
Klein also claimed that Wildenstein was ‘certainly not broke’ at the time of her death; seen in 2022 in NYC
He attributed her financial woes to a forged painting that was part of her divorce settlement form her ex-husband Alec N. Wildenstein’s family; seen in 2019 in Miami
She filed for bankruptcy in 2018, and three luxury apartments she owned in Trump Tower were reportedly repossessed.
In a 2023 interview with the Times of London, Wildenstein said that she had ‘zero’ dollars of income over the past eight years, though she apparently still had assets valued in the millions.
‘I have a huge problem with my settlement,’ she told the publication. ‘Since eight years, [Alex’s family] have completely cut me off.’
Alec died in 2008, though the payments continued for several more years, until his family cut them off in 2015.
In 2018, Wildenstein claimed to Page Six that the vast majority of her wealth disappeared because one of the paintings that was part of the trust set up for her in the divorce settlement, attributed to Diego Velázquez, turned out to be a forgery.
On top of that, a Cézanne that was expected to sell for around $35 million on auction only sold for $4.7 million.
Klein attributed much of her financial misfortune to the forged painting that was part of her divorce settlement from her ex-husband’s family.
‘She had a very lavish lifestyle. There were bills to pay, and when they stopped paying her it was terrible,’ he said. ‘She would not have one problem if they had not given her a fake painting.’
She married Wildenstein in 1978, and the two divorced in 1999. She received $2.5B in the settlement, plus $100M per year; pictured in 2000 in Paris
But Wildenstein’s ex died in 2008, and his family reportedly cut off the payments in 2015. She told the Times of London in 2003 that she had ‘zero’ income over the past eight years, though she still had millions in assets; seen in 2022 in NYC
Wildenstein, who had been spending time in Paris around her death late last year, had previously been based in Miami.
DailyMail.com reported earlier this month that her money issues had escalated to the point that a judge had threatened her with arrest after she failed to attend a hearing over an unpaid debt of $344,000.
Klein said that Wildenstein’s remaining assets are now being sorted out by her estates attorneys, and whatever remains after her debts are paid will go to her children, Diane and Alec Jr.
According to the fashion designer, he’s not looking for anything from her estate, and instead only wants ‘dignity’ for her after her death.
‘I was not with her for the money. I am a top couturier,’ he explained, adding that he has a ‘beautiful list of clients’ including Jane Fonda, Joan Collins, Faye Dunaway and Kim Kardashian.
Klein claimed that he was ‘taking care’ of Wildenstein as much as possible in her final years to maintain her lavish lifestyle.
‘I gave her everything I could to please her. We kept life beautiful, happy,’ he said. ‘If this is not love, I don’t know what you can call it.’
Klein noted that he hasn’t spoken with Wildenstein’s children — who were allegedly estranged from her — in the days since her death.
Klein claimed that Wildenstein was an influence on a generation of women who have had significant cosmetic procedures; pictured in 1997 in Manhattan
‘Jocelyn did everything possible for her kids,’ he said. ‘She took them all over the world … She did spoil them — she was the best mother one would want to have.’
In the interview, Klein revealed that he and Wildenstein had attended a nighttime mass at a church in Paris days before her death, where she had been blessed by a priest.
‘I am happy she had that blessing,’ he said.
Klein, who battled lymphoma in 2014, joked that he and Wildenstein wanted to one day share a tomb like ancient Egyptians, and the two would allegedly compare themselves to Marc Antony and Cleopatra.
Although Wildenstein’s daughter Diane is reportedly handling her funeral arrangements, Klein said he hoped her final outfit would be a prized black Chanel dress that was featured in a Vanity Fair photoshoot.
Klein, who said he plans to put together a celebration of Wildenstein’s life for their friends, added that he hoped to be able to scatter her ashes at her ranch in Kenya, alongside her parents.