Erno Laszlo: Rediscovering a Hollywood Classic

I love a good Hollywood story, and since the Academy Awards are tonight, I thought it would be a good time to talk about Erno Laszlo.  You may know his products from Saks, but you may not know the story behind it.

Erno Laszlo was a Hungarian-born medical doctor who, more or less, fell into dermatology after the notoriety he gained for improving the complexion of  Princess Stéphanie of Belgium, who suffered severe emotional distress and even humiliation due to the state of her skin.  Thus, Dr. Laszlo was a "celebrity doctor" long before they were a dime-a-dozen.  His clientele was a Who's Who of royalty, society and Hollywood lore: the Duchess of Windsor, Gloria Vanderbilt, Doris Duke, Greta Garbo (below left), Lillian Gish, Paulette Goddard, Audrey Hepburn, Jacqueline Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe, whose Laszlo beauty products were on the bedside table next to her death bed.

In the late 1940s, the Erno Laszlo Institute had over 3,000 clients, not one of whom bought their way in because Laszlo products were not for sale to non-members.  In order to be a member you had to be recommended - by at least two people - and each consultation was $75.00.  To give you an idea of how expensive that was for the time, the price of a television in 1950 was around $200.00. 

Dr. Laszlo was not enamored of his storied clientele.  He asked about their personal lives and refused to continue treating them if they stopped follow his advice.  He told Jacqueline Kennedy not to put any more oil or cream on her face and famously told Ava Gardner (above right) that she was lying about following his instructions. "Your skin tells me," he told her.  As the story goes, she refused to leave his office and they had a bit of a standoff before she finally agreed to go back to the routine.

Today, you don't have to be a member of a club to use Erno Laszlo products.  In fact, I'm not sure how Dr. Laszlo would feel about it (he died in 1973) you can simply use the Laszlo-matic to see which products are right for your skin type.  The iconic Sea-Mud Soap pictured above (often referred to simply as "the black soap") is one of several products developed by Dr. Laszlo that are still available today. 

Comments

[Jill]

I love Erno Laszlo. You should also try their rose body cream. It's pretty amazing.

[Nichelle]

I love body creams so I will definitely check that out!

[yu_el]

ive been an erno laszlo fan for a few months now. and i love it so far! the sea mud soap is amazing. the ritual can be a pain in the beginning but once you get used to it. and it becomes part of your routine in the morning and night. its refreshing. their products do wonders to my skin! i would definitely recommend people to try laszlo products :)

[Jenny]

My skin has never looked better than it does today! I used to buy all of the expensive creams, and decided to go back to basics...Laszlo Soap and Water...amazing results...everyone is saying I look fantastic...almost 60 yrs old, and my skin looks at least 10 years younger. Who could guess that washing my face with Sea Mud Soap with the Active Phelityl Oil, would change my skin? My main man is LASZLO!

[Cheetah]

I've been using Erno Laszlo since 1982! And, I'm a guy too! In the earlier days, you were "clocked" rather than using the Laszlo-matic. I was in the 2-O'Clock ritual which is now simply called "Oily". My favourite products are the Sea Mud Soap, and also Conditioning Prep. I do not use any other brand of skin care on my face at all. I Bought a book about Erno Laszlo and he was indeed a very brilliant man!

[Cheetah]

Does anyone else here use Erno Laszlo's TranspHuse Topical or Night Serum? This stuff is dynamite! I started it about 2 months ago and although it is very expensive, I can see a real difference in my skin! After 27 years of Laszlo, I am still completely amazed at just how good this stuff really is! I wish everyone would try it..... you'll never go back to Ivory soap ever again!

[Nichelle]

Cheetah,

I'm not a big fan of the night serum, but I do like the evening moisturizer and the famous Sea Mud aka the "black soap." I alternate products but Laszlo is a longtime favorite of mine as well.