Oscar de la Renta (July 22, 1932-October 20, 2014) was born in the Dominican Republic and worked in Europe during the 1950s, first as staff designer for Balenciaga, then as assistant designer to Antonio Castillo at Lanvin-Castillo, Paris from 1961-1963. In 1963 he came to the U.S. where he was chief in-house designer at Elizabeth Arden through 1965. He then went to Jane Derby, where he was head designer before buying the company in 1969, changing it to his own label.