A picture tells a thousand words, but surely a perfectly-preserved photograph from the archives is worth its weight in gold? Digging around in Forbes’ fantastic media library, I found a beautiful selection of historical photos from the yachting world. Here’s the story behind some of the most famous and iconic images afloat.
1. Liz Taylor and Richard Burton on board their yacht ‘Kalizma’ in between filming scenes for their new movie
In around 1967, Hollywood actor Richard Burton was in search of the perfect gift for his wife, fellow A-lister Elizabeth Taylor, and found it in a 150-foot superyacht. The couple named her Kalizma, a blend of the names of their three daughters: Kate, Liza, and Maria. On board, the artwork included pieces by Monet, Picasso, and Degas; but this was no floating art gallery. Burton dreamed of building a life on the yacht with Taylor and “never living on land again.” It was also on Kalizma that Burton famously presented Taylor with the 69.42-carat Taylor-Burton Diamond (the Cartier diamond) while the yacht was docked in Monaco.
The photo above was taken while they were cruising around Sardinia in August 1967, between takes of the 1968 British drama Boom!. Kalizma still carries the same name today (you can enjoy an interview with her current owner), and she remains a world-cruising superyacht that has been well maintained over the years, with her history and heritage serving her well in the charter fleet.
2. Donald and Ivana Trump on board ‘Trump Princess’ shortly after buying it from a Saudi jetsetter
Donald Trump once said, “I’m not into them [yachts]… I’ve been on friends’ boats before and couldn’t get off fast enough.” It is not clear whether this was before or after he bought Trump Princess from Saudi billionaire businessman and international arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi in 1987. She had been named Nabila under Khashoggi’s ownership after his daughter, and most people assumed Trump would naturally discard the name. But when he purchased the megayacht, part of the deal was that the price would be reduced by about US$1 million on the condition that the name be changed.
Before Trump bought the yacht, he said that a friend of his, who owned a very large yacht in the Mediterranean, once saw the then-named Nabila roar past and told him it gave him an “inferiority complex.” Trump admitted that this was partly why he bought her.
The yacht is now called Kingdom 5KR, and is based in the Mediterranean.
3. Maria Callas on Aristotle Onassis’s yacht ‘Christina O’ with the transforming pool
Under the ownership of Aristotle Onassis, the superyacht Christina O hosted many of the most glamorous and powerful people of the era, including Maria Callas, Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, Greta Garbo, Grace Kelly, Winston Churchill, and John F. Kennedy with his later wife, Jackie Kennedy. The yacht was famous not only for its long guest list but also for its remarkable features, such as the mosaic-tiled Minotaur pool that could be drained and turned into a dance floor, seen in the background of this image. The bar famously included stools made from whale foreskin, a detail Onassis loved pointing out to unsuspecting guests relaxing with a drink.
Christina O has appeared as a real-life setting in the Netflix drama The Crown and the satirical black comedy Triangle of Sadness. The yacht was extremely well loved and revered as a piece of maritime history. In a Boat International article, a crew member was once quoted as saying, “You could smash a $20,000 speedboat to pieces … but spit on the Christina’s deck, and you were out of a job.”
Christina O remains a highly popular charter yacht, and arguably one of the best-looking and best-maintained classic yachts on the water. She cruises extensively to this day.
4. Princess Diana, Princes Charles and King Constantine II of Greece avoiding the paparazzi at sea
Long before the iconic photo of Lady Diana sitting on the passerelle of the al-Fayed family yacht (then named Sokar, now Isabell Princess of the Sea), the Royal Family was already familiar with the superyacht lifestyle. Around 1990, Diana and Charles were seen spending time on a smaller sports yacht, reportedly belonging to King Constantine II of Greece, an avid yachtsman. William and Harry, then eight and six, did not join them on their Mediterranean vacation, but it is known that around the time this photo was taken, some newspapers and tabloids had already begun reporting on “visible unhappiness” between the couple. Their formal separation would not come until 1992.
5. John F. Kennedy on the yacht named after his beloved grandfather
Honey Fitz, named after John F. Kennedy’s beloved grandfather John Francis “Honey Fitz” Fitzgerald, became the unofficial presidential yacht during JFK’s time in the White House. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy designed the interiors, a skill she would later apply to Christina O, the yacht mentioned above. The classic American-built vessel also featured a specially designed chair intended to help alleviate Kennedy’s chronic back problems.
In this historical image, President Kennedy, followed by Pakistan’s President Mohammed Ayub Khan, is seen leaving the yacht upon arrival at Mount Vernon. The President and First Lady were scheduled to host a state dinner for the Pakistani leader at a gala lawn party beside the home of George Washington.
These days, Honey Fitz is used as a floating venue for high-end dining and entertaining functions.
6. Malcolm Forbes hosts Prince Charles and First Lady Nancy Reagan on his yacht ‘The Highlander’
There’s much to be said about Malcolm Forbes’ yacht, The Highlander – I even wrote an entire article about it and I still feel like there’s more to say. Everyone from Prince Charles, Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, Margaret Thatcher, Elizabeth Taylor, Andy Warhol, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush graced the decks of the Feadship superyacht, and on board there was a toy garage where Maclolm Forbes kept Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
The yacht (which was painted green, supposedly to maintain the same color as dollar bills) is pictured above, likely just before one of Forbes’ famed parties. Highlander (now dropping the ‘the’ part of her name) recently underwent a major refit and rejoined the yacht charter fleet.
7. Guests attending a lavish party on “The Highlander” in Manhattan Island
Malcolm Forbes was famed for his party favors – he had a tradition of giving perfume bottles to guests, often custom or luxury fragrances. He also routinely chartered jets or helicopters to fly guests direcly to his yachts. This is another photo from one of his legendary superyacht soirees in New York.
8. Elvis Presley hands over the yacht he rescued from the scrap heap
The USS Potomac once served as Franklin D. Roosevelt’s presidential yacht, but after FDR’s death in 1945, the vessel’s prestige declined. In 1964, Elvis Presley bought the Potomac for US $55,000 in an effort to save her from being destroyed for scrap. He initially planned to donate her to the March of Dimes, a nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies, as a memorial to FDR, but the organization declined because of the high maintenance costs. Instead, he donated the yacht to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, founded by Danny Thomas; the image above shows the handover ceremony.
After a troubled period in which the yacht was seized during a drug-smuggling bust, she sank at her berth in San Francisco Bay but was raised shortly afterward. Later, the Port of Oakland bought her at auction for US $15,000 and undertook a $5 million restoration effort with the help of volunteers, labor groups, and support from FDR’s family. She remains a National Historic Landmark and still sails occasionally on historic cruises.
9. The ‘Floating White House’, where several historic political moments took place
Of all the presidential yachts, Sequoia was likely the one that saw the most extensive use. She became known as the “floating White House,” with Herbert Hoover using her to visit his mother in Florida and Franklin D. Roosevelt installing an elevator so he could use the yacht as an operational base during World War II. It was aboard Sequoia that Richard Nixon decided to resign as president, that John F. Kennedy was rumored to have conducted extramarital affairs, and where Jackie Kennedy spent time in the wake of her husband’s death. Hours-long Cabinet meetings were common, and it is believed that the yacht’s dining saloon was used by Winston Churchill to help plan the D-Day invasion.
Jimmy Carter eventually sold Sequoia at auction as part of cost-saving initiatives and later admitted he deeply regretted the decision. The yacht later fell into disrepair, even becoming home to raccoons, according to a judge. It is believed she may now be preparing for a major refit. If you’re interested, I wrote more about this yacht on my Instagram.
10. Yasmin Aga Khan and her half-brother, Prince Karim Aga Khan IV
Prince Karim Aga Khan IV was one of the world’s most famous and revered yachtsmen. One of his most ambitious projects was Destriero, the yacht that set a transatlantic speed record in 1992, crossing the Atlantic in just 58 hours, 34 minutes, and 50 seconds without refueling. He later owned a more traditional superyacht named Alamshar, the largest yacht in his fleet. He possessed several other yachts as well, many of which survive to this day, and he often named them after racehorses.
Perhaps The Aga Khan is best remembered for his role in putting Sardinia on the map. When he first visited the jewel-colored waters of what is now called the Costa Smeralda (Emerald Coast), the area was wild and largely uncharted. He transformed it into a premier yachting destination, co-founding the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS) in Sardinia, which became a major center of international yachting.
11. Grace Kelly, her new husband and her poodle preparing for their honeymoon
When the original it-couple Princess Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier III of Monaco were married, they sailed into Monte Carlo harbor on Deo Juvante II to cheers of applause. Almost everyone in the Principality of Monaco had come out onto the docks to celebrate their new monarchs and wish them well on their seven-week honeymoon, where they sailed the yacht across the Mediterranean’s most lush beauty spots.
The yacht had been owned by Aristotle Onassis (see above) and after being restored to her glory, she was gifted to the couple circa 1956 as a wedding gift (she would later be renamed Grace in honor of Grace Kelly).This photo above was likely taken on another boat, the SS Constitution, which they made the Atlantic passage on. Grace Kelly famously brought 50 pieces of luggage and her beloved poodle, Oliver.