Marilyn Miglin ( Klecka; October 18, 1938 – March 14, 2022) was an American entrepreneur, inventor, and longtime host on the

Home Shopping Network HSN, Inc. an initialism of its former name Home Shopping Network, is an American free-to-air television network owned by the QVC Group (formerly Qurate Retail Group), which also owns Catalog merchant, catalog company Cornerstone Brands. It is ...

. She has been referred to as the "Queen of Makeovers". Miglin garnered significant media attention as the widow of Lee Miglin, a business tycoon and philanthropist who was murdered in 1997 by the spree killer

Andrew Cunanan Andrew Phillip Cunanan (August 31, 1969 – July 23, 1997) was an American serial killer who murdered five people over three months from April 27 to July 15, 1997. His victims include Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace and Chicago real est ...

Biography

Born Marilyn Janice Klecka in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

to Frank & Helen Klecka, she was a model and dancer in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. Miglin started her beauty company and boutique in June 1963 on Oak Street, which grew to become a cosmetics empire. She created more than 36 fragrances and perfumes through Marilyn Miglin Cosmetics. She appeared on the Home Shopping Network for over 25 years, and her business's worth is estimated at over 50 million dollars. Miglin served on Chicago Mayor

Richard M. Daley Richard Michael Daley (born April 24, 1942) is an American politician who served as the 54th mayor of Chicago, Illinois, from 1989 to 2011. Daley was elected mayor in 1989 and was reelected five times until declining to run for a seventh ter ...

's special committee on tourism, as an officer of the Chicago Convention, the State of Illinois Board of Economic Development, and on the board of directors of the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, commonly known as the Kennedy Center, is the national cultural center of the United States, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. Opened on September 8, ...

. Miglin was an advocate for individuals who are facially disfigured and burn survivors. She was a founding member of the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

' advisory board for the

craniofacial Craniofacial surgery is a surgical subspecialty that deals with congenital and acquired deformities of the head, skull, face, neck, jaws and associated structures. Although craniofacial treatment often involves manipulation of bone, craniofacial ...

center.

Personal life

In 1959, she married Lee Miglin. He was murdered on May 4, 1997, by the spree killer

. At the time of Miglin's murder, the couple had been married for 38 years. They had two children: Marlena (born 1968) and actor Duke Miglin (born 1971). Miglin remarried two years after Lee's death, in 1999. Her second husband died only months after the wedding.

Honors

The City of Chicago designated "Marilyn Miglin Way" as the honorary name of Oak Street's shopping district. Miglin was a recipient of the

Raoul Wallenberg Award The Raoul Wallenberg Award is bestowed by The Raoul Wallenberg Committee of the United States on "individuals, organizations, and communities whose courage, selflessness and success against great odds personified those of Raoul Wallenberg himsel ...

and the Best Face Forward Award. In 1998, the City of Chicago proclaimed April 15 as "Marilyn Miglin Day".

In popular culture

Miglin was portrayed by

Judith Light Judith Ellen Light (born February 9, 1949) is an American actress. She made her professional stage debut in 1970, before making her Broadway debut in the 1975 revival of ''A Doll's House''. Her breakthrough role was in the ABC daytime soap oper ...

in the 2018 miniseries '' The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story''. Light garnered critical acclaim and a nomination for the

Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie is an award presented annually by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS). It is given in honor of an actress who has delivered an outs ...

for her performance.

Death

Marilyn Miglin died on March 14, 2022, at her home in Chicago surrounded by her family at the age of 83 from complications of a stroke.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miglin, Marilyn 1938 births 2022 deaths People from Plzeň Czech emigrants to the United States Businesspeople from Chicago 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American businesswomen American cosmetics businesspeople American people of Czech descent People associated with direct selling 21st-century American women