Onassis, Christina (1950–1988)

views updated

Onassis, Christina (1950–1988)

Greek heiress. Name variations: Cristina Onassis. Born on December 11, 1950, in New York City; died of an apparent heart attack on November 19, 1988, in Buenos Aires, Argentina; daughter of Aristotle Onassis (a billionaire shipping tycoon) and Athina (Livanos) Onassis; attended the Hewitt School in New York City, St. George's College, Lausanne, Switzerland,and Queen's College in London; married Joseph Bolker (a realtor), on July 26, 1971 (divorced 1972); married Alexander Andreadis (a mechanical engineer), on July 22, 1975 (divorced 1976); married Sergei Kauzov, on August 1, 1978 (divorced c. 1980); married Thierry Roussell (a businessman), on March 17, 1984 (divorced c. 1987); children: (fourth marriage) Athina Roussell (b. January 29, 1985).

Although she became "the richest woman in the world" at the age of 24, Christina Onassis lived a sad life marred by failed marriages, family deaths, and problems with her self-image. As the only surviving child of Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis, upon the death of her father in 1975 she inherited a large share of the vast Onassis fortune, which at the time was estimated to be between $400 million and $1 billion.

Onassis was born on December 11, 1950, in New York City. Her father's lucrative shipping business allowed the family, which included Christina's older brother Alexander, to live in incredible luxury with homes and investments all over the world. Christian Dior designed the clothes worn by the doll she played with, and the ponies she rode had been gifts from the king of Saudi Arabia. The family also spent time on their 325-foot yacht, named the Christina by her father, who called her "My Golden One." However, the same wealth which provided Onassis with such stupendous material comforts also deprived her of a secure home life, as her father was frequently away on business and her mother Athina (called Tina Onassis ) lived the peripatetic life of a high-society jet-setter. Her family relationships were further shaken when her parents divorced in 1960, amidst rumors of (and much worldwide press speculation about) Aristotle's affair with acclaimed opera star Maria Callas . These early disruptions may have been the cause of Onassis' lifelong battles with depression and with her weight; as an adult, she dieted extensively, which may well have undermined her health, and was also said to have relied heavily on barbiturates and amphetamines.

As a child, Onassis, who by the time she reached adulthood would be able to speak Greek, English, French, Spanish, and Italian, was educated mainly by foreign governesses. She then was sent to expensive private schools, including the Hewitt School in New York City and the fashionable Swiss finishing school St. George's College in Lausanne (she later spent a few months studying at Queen's College in London). Her parents remained hot topics in the press during this time, as they went on to other sensational relationships which included Aristotle's marriage in 1968 to Jacqueline Kennedy , the widow of President John F. Kennedy. Both Onassis and her brother reportedly had pleaded with their father not to marry Kennedy, whom they distrusted, and despite public disavowals to the contrary the relationship between Christina and the former first lady is believed to have been a cold one. The intense public scrutiny which followed Kennedy after her second marriage inevitably heightened Onassis' own profile, and it was much remarked upon when in 1971, at the age of 20, she married Joseph Bolker, a middle-aged, divorced Los Angeles realtor with four daughters. The marriage, which had been opposed by her parents from the beginning, lasted only nine months, becoming the first in what would be a series of failed marriages. Misfortune continued to follow Onassis when her brother Alexander was killed in a plane crash in 1973 and her mother died suddenly of pulmonary edema the following year.

Upon the death of Alexander—who had been designated heir of the Onassis shipping empire—Aristotle turned to his daughter as his successor. She went with him on business trips, undertook an extensive tutorial in shipping with one of his closest advisors, and was encouraged to participate in negotiations with business associates. While she maintained the life of an international jet-setter, she also worked regularly at the company's headquarters in Monaco, though this did not silence those who questioned her capacities when her father died in 1975. He left 47.5% of his business to Onassis and the remaining majority to a foundation that was to be established in memory of his son, and she quickly showed a good understanding of finance by minimizing estate taxes through adroit use of legal loopholes and shelters. She remained involved in the business for the rest of her life, although the extent to which she actually directed its activities has been debated. Jacqueline Kennedy contested Aristotle's will, leading to a bitter court battle which was finally ended by Christina's settlement of $26 million on her stepmother.

Some three months after her father's death, Onassis married Alexander Andreadis, who also came from a Greek shipping family, but this lasted only a little more than a year. Two more husbands, Sergei Kauzov (married in 1978) and Thierry Roussell (married in 1984), came and left her troubled life. In 1985 she gave birth to her only child, a daughter whom she named Athina (Roussell ), after her mother. She kept custody of her daughter after her divorce from Roussell and set about raising her personally, as she herself had not been raised. While visiting a friend in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Christina Onassis died unexpectedly on November 19, 1988, apparently of a heart attack. (There has been speculation that the heart attack was brought on by years of constant dieting and drug use.) It was a sad end to a life surrounded by luxury and lived in unhappiness. As her sole heir, her three-year-old daughter became, like her mother before her, one of the wealthiest people in the world.