Carolyn Bessette and Gwyneth Paltrow were both icons of beauty and style in the 1990s, sharing the traits of blonde hair, a height of 5ft 9in, and a penchant for minimalist fashion.

However, the Calvin Klein publicist and future wife of John F. Kennedy Jr. was reportedly not fond of Paltrow, the now 53-year-old daughter of actress Blythe Danner, who was a favored client of the renowned fashion brand long before her Oscar win for “Shakespeare in Love” in 1999.

Calvin Klein, now 83, frequently honored Paltrow by hosting parties for her, providing his helicopter for her use, and seating her prominently in the front row at his global fashion shows.

This was corroborated on February 18 by Kara Mendelsohn, a former staff member at Calvin Klein, who disclosed that Klein had Paltrow flown in by helicopter for one of his spectacular runway shows in 1998.

According to author Amy Odell in her book “Gwyneth: The Biography,” published last July and recently brought back into the spotlight by fans following the TV show “Love Story,” Carolyn Bessette was one of the publicists assisting Paltrow during her time with Calvin Klein.

Odell wrote that someone who knew Bessette said she found Paltrow irritating. Bessette reportedly made snide comments about Paltrow, whom she perceived as “little miss perfect,” whenever photos of the actress appeared in the press.

Carolyn Bessette and Gwyneth Paltrow were both beautiful, blonde, 5ft 9in tall, cool characters representing the epitome of nineties minimalism style

But the Calvin Klein publicist was reportedly not a fan of the 53-year-old nepo-goddaughter of Steven Spielberg, who was a VIP client of the fashion house long before she won an Oscar (pictured in 1995 wearing Calvin Klein)

Unlike Paltrow, Bessette graduated college, Boston University, and she didn’t have famous family connections to help her career.

The Connecticut-born beauty worked her way up from a Calvin Klein salesgirl at the Chestnut Hill Mall in Newton, MA in 1988 to the director of publicity at the company’s flagship store in Manhattan to earning six figures as director of show productions.

Bessette quit the brand in the spring of 1996 due to intense paparazzi harassment, and a few months later she wed George editor-in-chief John F. Kennedy Jr. but the marriage ended in 1999 with their tragic deaths in an avoidable plane crash.

And while Paltrow’s second husband Brad Falchuk is a longtime producing partner of Ryan Murphy, he was not involved in his hit miniseries, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette, which became FX’s most-watched limited series ever on Hulu/Disney+.

Creator Connor Hines’ fictionalized nine-episode drama, based on Elizabeth Beller’s 2024 book Once Upon a Time, earned a ‘certified fresh’ 81 percent critic approval rating (out of 47 reviews) on Rotten Tomatoes.

Love Story starred Sarah Pidgeon, Paul Anthony Kelly, Grace Gummer, Naomi Watts, Alessandro Nivola, Dree Hemingway, Tonatiuh, Constance Zimmer, Sydney Lemmon, Donal Logue, Jessica Harper, Michael Nathanson and Leila George.

Meanwhile, Paltrow has passed down her substantial collection of vintage Calvin Klein skirts, tube skirts and slip dresses to her lookalike daughter Apple Martin.

The 21-year-old Vanderbilt University student donned the same plunging backless Calvin Klein LBD her famous mother wore to the Emma premiere in 1996, to the Marty Supreme premiere on December 16.

Bessette quit Calvin Klein in the spring of 1996 due to intense paparazzi harassment, and a few months later she wed George editor-in-chief John F. Kennedy Jr. (L, pictured in 1998) but the marriage ended in 1999 with their tragic deaths in an avoidable plane crash

The 83-year-old designer (L, pictured in 1996) would throw parties in Paltrow’s honor, lent her his helicopter and she would hold court front row at his fashion shows all over the world

This was confirmed on February 18 by former Calvin Klein staffer Kara Mendelsohn, who revealed Klein literally ‘had her helicoptered in’ to attend one of his runway extravaganzas in 1998

‘One of the publicists on the brand’s small team who helped Gwyneth was Carolyn Bessette,’ author Amy Odell wrote in Gwyneth: The Biography last July (pictured in 1994)

‘According to one person familiar with her thinking, Gwyneth irked her. When there were pictures of Gwyneth in the papers, Bessette, who viewed her as “little miss perfect,” would make cutting remarks about her’ (pictured in 1992 with Calvin Klein)

Love Story – starring Paul Anthony Kelly (L) and Sarah Pidgeon (R) as the late JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessette  – became FX’s most-watched limited series ever on Hulu/Disney+

‘My absolute favorite stuff is her old Calvin Klein from the nineties,’ Martin told Interview last year.

‘Going into her archive closet is just heaven on earth.’

Last month, the Goop CEO-founder signed on to executive produce and star in producer Stacey Sher and playwright Heidi Schreck’s adaptation of Belle Burden’s new bestseller Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage, which will stream on Netflix. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to Paltrow’s representatives for comment and has yet to hear back.