How Rare Celebrity Pics from The April In Paris Ball helped bring a Lilac Girls scene to Life.

Mrs. Rosemary Warburton Gaynor, chair of the ball, greets Senator Kennedy while Jacqueline Kennedy and C.Z. Guest look on.

When I learned Caroline Ferriday helped plan and attended The April in Paris Ball of 1957, I couldn’t start writing the scene for Lilac Girls fast enough. Especially since she asked Wallis Simpson for money to help the Ravensbruck Rabbits and Wallis turned her down flat. It was a star-studded event at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel that not only raised money for French charities, but was the place to be seen in society at the time. Photos like the ones shown here helped me understand the societal inner workings of the night and describe the scene in the book–the body language alone in the photo above is fascinating.

Marilyn Monroe and former U.S. ambassador to Britain Winthrop Aldrich at The April in Paris Ball

Society gossipmonger Elsa Maxwell reportedly staged her grand entrance with Marilyn Monroe (above) in order to shift media attention away from the Duchess of Windsor, (below) and it worked in spades, leaving the Duchess out of the spotlight and irate.

Mrs. Gaynor with the Duke and Duchess of Windsor

It took a lot of work to make the ball run smoothly and it’s fun to think that Caroline Ferriday was there, heading up a committee. For those who’ve read Lilac Girls I hope this is a fun visit back to that scene in the book and for those who’ve yet to read it, a glimpse of things to come.

Mrs. Gaynor oversees ball rehearsal with French actor Gerard Philipe

French film stars Jean Marais and Francoise Arnoul ride into the ball in replica of the Marquis de Lafayette’s coach