Carolyne Roehm

In 1985, after ten years working for Oscar de la Renta, Roehm became a fashion designer at the age of 34 when she launched her own fashion house. Roehm’s high-end clothing was designed for women with money, active lifestyles and calendars filled with social engagements and work outside the house. Although it received accolades, she shut down the line in 1991. While she formally discontinued her clothing line, she still employed a small staff to run a mail-order business and produce an exclusive line for Saks.

Roehm's first marriage was to German chemical heir, Axel Roehm. Their marriage lasted about a year. She later married Henry Kravis in 1985, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1993. The home decorated for the couple by Robert Denning and Vincent Fourcade was parodied in the 1990 movie The Bonfire of the Vanities.

In the 1980s, Roehm and Kravis were symbols of the "Nouevelle Society" in Manhattan. The two were known for hosting lavish parties, including one that was held in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They owned four properties worth millions each (such as their $5.5 million Park Avenue apartment), antiques from King Louis XV, and artwork from artists such as Renoir and Sargent.

Roehm was born in Missouri to a middle-class high school principal and a schoolteacher. She graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1973. Following her graduation, she moved to New York City.

Carolyne Roehm (born Carolyne Jane Smith on May 7, 1951) is an American author, businesswoman, socialite, and former fashion designer.