Ultrasuede. Studio 54, need I say more? I had to binge the new limited series, Halston on Netflix. His name built an empire. His style defined an era. American fashion designer Halston skyrockets to fame before his life starts to spin out of control. And there’s a surprising, little known Halston connection to Nashville not mentioned in the series.

Born Roy Halston Frowick in Des Moines. After attending the School of the Art Institute of Chicago he began his career in fashion as a milliner. He opened a business on Chicago’s upscale Michigan Avenue and designed hats for a well-known clientele. He relocated to New York and after becoming co-designer at Lilly Dache he went on to be the head milliner at the ultimate luxury department store, Bergdorf Goodman. His fame grew when he designed the pillbox hat that Jacqueline Kennedy wore to her husband, President John Kennedy’s inauguration.

When hats fell out of fashion and with the help of Estelle Marsh, Halston started designing ready-to-wear. He opened a boutique on Madison Avenue. His designs may have been described as simple and minimal but they were always glamorous, sophisticated as well as comfortable. He was known for the use of luxurious fabrics such as silk, chiffon, cashmere and eventually ultrasuede. He told Vogue that he got ride of “. . . all of the extra details that didn’t work – bows that didn’t tie, buttons that didn’t button, zippers that didn’t zip, wrap dresses that didn’t wrap. I’ve always hated things that don’t work.”

Many French designers have what’s called a cabine, a group of models that work for the house. Halston had an entourage of models that did his shows, advertisements and appeared in editorials. Way ahead of his time it reflected ethnic diversity. Andre Leon Talley dubbed these models, the Halstonettes – Pat Cleveland, Karen Bjornson, Alva Chinn, Nancy North, Heidi Goldberg and Elsa Peretti, before she became the fabulous and famous jewelry designer she was a model and muse.

Halston participated in the Battle at Versailles, a fundraiser which pitted 5 French designers against 5 American designers. When the Americans unexpectedly won it put American fashion on the map, specifically ready-to-wear. His influence extended beyond the runway. He designed uniforms for Braniff International Airways which were a huge hit. Not just with the fashion press but also with the employees. As a results he was asked by the U.S. Olympic Committee to design uniforms for the Pan American Games and U.S. Olympic Team’s uniforms. He designed uniforms the Girls Scouts, the New York Police Department and Avis Rent-A-Car.

Halston was a fixture at the legendary Studio 54. Mixing and mingling with celebrity friends Liza Minelli, Elizabeth Taylor, Mick and Bianca Jagger and Andy Warhol. The series chronicles the rise and the fall of the iconic designer. It does take some creative license and is a fictionalized account of his life. Halston infamously lost control over his namesake company. It was eventually acquired by Revlon. After his death Revlon stopped producing a clothing collection and the company was purchased by Borghese Cosmetics which was run by Georgette Mosbacher at the time. Her mother lived in Nashville at the time and Mosbacher donated the Halston archives to Lipscomb University.

Halton in collaboration with Netflix have announced a limited capsule collection. Inspired by the series, Halston x Netflix features 10 evening looks. Halston chief creative officer, Robert Rodriguez worked closed with series costume designer Jeriana San Juan to design the looks. They are inspired by signature archival designs and will be available for pre-order on Halston.com starting June 7th. Two weeks later on June 21st it will be available for pre-order from Neiman Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. It will be available in stores in August and ranges from $995 to $1595.

“Roy Halston Frowick single-handedly created luxury American fashion. Halston has always had a tremendous influence on my career, in an industry where his imprint remains decades later,” said Rodriguez in a release. “I’m thrilled to now carry forward his legacy through this Netflix capsule collection in collaboration with Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. It was exciting to recreate the iconic Halston archive dresses that appear in the Netflix series and reinterpret them for modern-day. I am grateful to be part of this homage to Halston, who has inspired designers throughout the world.”