Maurizio Gucci

Maurizio Gucci (26 September 1948 – 27 March 1995) was an Italian businessman and the one-time head of the Gucci fashion house.

He was the son of actor Rodolfo Gucci, and grandson of the company's founder Guccio Gucci.

Maurizio Gucci was born on 26 September 1948 in Florence as the only child of actors Rodolfo Gucci and Sandra Ravel.

McLaughlin Loud was 26 (b. 1958) at the time of their first meeting; and Gucci, 35 years old.

In 1972, Gucci moved to New York City to work for the Gucci company with his uncle Aldo Gucci.

In 1972, Gucci married Patrizia Reggiani, with whom he had two daughters, Alessandra and Allegra.

Alessandra Gucci was born on 28 June 1976, and Allegra Gucci was born on 27 January 1981.

Maurizio's father, Rodolfo Gucci, originally did not approve of their marriage, calling Patrizia "a social climber who has nothing in mind but money."

In the early 1980s, he lived in a luxury penthouse in the Olympic Tower, gifted to him by his father.

In 1982, he moved back to Milan, and in 1983, launched a legal battle against Aldo for control over Gucci after becoming the majority shareholder following his father's death.

From 1984 to 1990, Gucci dated Sheree McLaughlin Loud, an American model from Orange, Connecticut.

On 21 March 1985, Maurizio told his wife he was going on a short business trip to Florence.

The following day - 22 March - he sent a friend to tell his wife he would not be returning, and that the marriage was over.

The two were considered separated.

McLaughlin Loud claims that Gucci left his wife in 1985 due to having an affair with her; Gucci had pursued McLaughlin Loud relentlessly under the guise of wanting to offer McLaughlin Loud employment, tracking her and her husband to Clearwater, Florida, and calling her every day.

In 1986, Gucci fled to Switzerland to avoid prosecution after Aldo, seeking revenge, had accused him of forging his father's signature to avoid paying inheritance taxes.

He was originally found guilty, but was later acquitted.

The two met in the Sardinian town of Porto Cervo during the 12-Metre Class World Championship for the upcoming 1987 America's Cup after McLaughlin Loud had joined Maurizio's sailing crew for the event, coaching and teaching Gucci's other crew members.

Both Gucci and McLaughlin Loud were married to other people at the time, and McLaughlin Loud reported seeing Gucci with Patrizia Reggiani from time to time.

In 1988, 47.8% of Gucci was sold to the Bahrain-based investment fund Investcorp.

McLaughlin Loud divorced her husband in 1988, and Gucci rented her an apartment in New York City.

Gucci also paid for McLaughlin Loud to fly on regular Concorde trips between the United States and London or Paris to visit him, where Gucci would then drive her to St. Moritz, Switzerland, in his black Ferrari sports car.

Loud got a job at Sotheby’s in 1988, and moved to London, which made it easier for her and Gucci to see each other.

Gucci doted on her, but Loud claimed that he did not want her to move to Milan, where he thought the strict social codes — and the Milanese socialites — "would make them both miserable".

The same year, Gucci forced out his remaining family members from the fashion company.

McLaughlin Loud would continue to meet Gucci in European port cities — Bremen, Monte Carlo, and Palma de Mallorca — to help restore Gucci's prized historic sailing yacht, The Creole.

Maurizio Gucci was made chairman of the Gucci group in 1989.

However, the drama between Gucci and his soon-to-be-ex-wife, Patrizia Reggiani, and the constant travel between the U.S. and Europe started to weigh on McLaughlin Loud in 1989.

She told Gucci that she wanted to end their relationship, even though she said she would always be in love with him.

McLaughlin Loud also wanted to settle down, start a family, and "live a normal life".

She and Gucci ultimately ended their relationship due to this, as Gucci stated that he wanted to focus more on the company and reconciling with his two daughters from his previous marriage, Alessandra and Allegra.

In 1990, Gucci began dating Paola Franchi, a childhood friend who had attended his wedding to Patrizia, after the two encountered each other at a private club in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

Both were reeling from unhappy marriages; and, with Franchi and her husband, Giorgio Colombo, on the outs, Franchi became Gucci's partner.

From 1991 to 1993, Gucci's finances were in the red.

Maurizio Gucci was blamed for spending extravagantly on the company's headquarters in Florence and Milan.

Franchi divorced Colombo in 1991.

He went on to sell his remaining company stock in 1993 for $170 million to Investcorp, ending the Gucci family's association with the company.

Maurizio Gucci's divorce from Reggiani was finalized in 1994.

On 27 March 1995 he was assassinated by a hitman hired by his former wife Patrizia Reggiani.

McLaughlin Loud would later go on to work for Vogue as a merchandizing editor, where she learned of Gucci's murder via a phone call with Gucci's lawyer, Allan Tuttle, in 1995.