Kim Kardashian Owns An Item That Once Belonged To Jackie Kennedy

When Kim Kardashian wore one of Marilyn Monroe's dresses to the Met Gala in 2022, she angered and annoyed a lot of people, including the iconic designer who sketched the sparkling, champagne-colored gown. "When I heard that she was going to wear it, I thought, 'Oh, nobody should be wearing that dress," Bob Mackie told Town & Country. "It should be in a museum."

Kardashian's controversial sartorial choice also sparked a renewed discussion about Monroe's famous 1962 performance of "Happy Birthday, Mr. President." The "Gentleman Prefer Blondes" icon sang her breathy rendition of the birthday song for a man who's suspected of having an affair with her, late president John F. Kennedy. In his book, "These Few Precious Days: The Final Year of Jack with Jackie" (via CBS News), author Christopher Andersen claims that JFK's wife, Jackie Kennedy, was aware of the purported affair and even spoke to Monroe on the phone about it. When Monroe informed Jackie that she planned to marry John, the late first lady is said to have responded, "That's great ... You'll assume the responsibilities of first lady, and I'll move out and you'll have all the problems."

Kardashian seems to believe that she possesses qualities of both women. "Honey, I'm the Marilyn and the Jackie," she proclaimed on "The Kardashians." However, Monroe's dress did not remain in Kardashian's possession after she was done with it, and she had to pay big bucks to get her hands on one of Jackie's accessories.

At a 2017 Christie's auction, Kim Kardashian anonymously bid $379,500 on one of Camelot's crown jewels: a watch once worn by Jackie Kennedy. According to TMZ, the sleek, sophisticated timepiece was a Cartier Tank, gifted to Kennedy by Prince Stanislaw "Stas" Radziwill, the husband of her sister, Lee Radziwill.

Eric Wind, Christie's VP, Senior Specialist at the time of the sale, told Watchonista that Kennedy helped popularize the elegant Tank style, which features a small, rectangular dial. "This is arguably the most iconic women's watch in the world," he said. "I believe that it is quite possible Cartier has sold over $1 billion of watches as a result of her famously wearing this Tank throughout her life." Princess Diana was also a fan of the style, with the Daily Mail reporting that Meghan Markle inherited one of her Tank timepieces. (FYI, Kardashian's collection of items once worn by dead celebrities also includes a dazzling jewel that hung from Diana's neck. Per CNN, Kardashian purchased the amethyst Attallah Cross for around $200,000.)

Like Meghan, Kardashian decided to actually wear her piece of history. She slipped Kennedy's watch on before meeting with then-president Donald Trump to (successfully) plead for the release of prisoner Alice Marie Johnson in 2018. "I wore it when I went to the White House. It gave me some power: Let's get in there and get this done!" Kardashian told Vogue.

In a 2012 "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" episode, Kris Jenner compared her family to Camelot. "[Kardashian] is like a brand. It's like the Kennedys!" she proclaimed, per the Los Angeles Times. Jenner would go on to play dress up as the Jackie Kennedy to Kim Kardashian's Marilyn Monroe at the 2022 Met Gala, per People, but Kardashian channeled the iconic first lady first.

For her 2017 Interview magazine cover, Kardashian wore an outfit that was much more demure than the curve-hugging ensembles her fans are used to seeing her in: a stiff, ivory shift dress with a high neckline and matching elbow-length gloves. Her sculpted bouffant hairstyle completed her transformation into American royalty. Kardashian's daughter with Kanye "Ye" West, North, posed with her.

The Twitterati had a lot to say about Kardashian's cover shoot. "This is an insult to Jackie Kennedy Onassis and y'all should be ashamed," one person wrote. Others observed that Kardashian's skin appeared darker than usual — so much so that it matched the tone of her biracial daughter's complexion. "This is blasphemy! Kim K vs Jackie O?! There's no comparison. And why is she so 'tanned?!' You know she likes to color coordinate," read another tweet. The backlash was so harsh that Kardashian's interviewer, Janet Mock, took to Twitter to inform her followers that she had nothing to do with the Kennedy photo shoot or the controversial headline chosen for her piece: "America's New First Lady."