He lived a life of untrammeled 1970s fabulousness – then seemed to vanish off the face of the Earth, leaving only a tantalizing enigma behind.
But fans of Sterling St. Jacques would expect no less of the world’s first male supermodel, who is now largely forgotten.
His star blazed brightly throughout the disco era, when he bestrode Manhattan like he owned it – and dazzled the upper echelons of the A-list at New York’s iconic Studio 54 nightclub.
Breathtakingly handsome, with a statuesque 6’2 physique and astonishing blue eyes, St. Jacques lived in a ritzy Central Park South apartment, a few blocks from the famed, cocaine-fueled disco palace.
St. Jacques’ moves there, including his trademark twirl, were so smooth that they caught the eye of legendary songwriters Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers – and they were inspired to write classic Sister Sledge hit He’s the Greatest Dancer in his honor.
The model’s charming persona, chiseled cheekbones, and perfect skin dazzled the likes of Bianca Jagger, Liza Minelli, and even Jackie O – with the former first lady seen fawning over St. Jacques’ kingfisher blue eyes during a 1979 dancefloor encounter.
Friends said St. Jacques’ trademark peepers were actually the result of contact lenses, with his natural eye color a still-striking gray. And that wasn’t his only secret.
America’s first male supermodel, Sterling St. Jacques, was a man who truly had it all – and an enigma who seemingly vanished off the face of the earth in the mid-80s. Jacques in a look from Calvin Klein’s fall menswear collection during an event in New York in 1976
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis appears lost in St. Jacques’ gaze at Studio 54 circa 1979. The model lived in a ritzy Central Park South apartment and was a fixture of New York’s famously-hedonistic late 1970s nightclub scene
Known in Italy as ‘il nero dagli occhi blu’ (the blue eyed black man) St. Jacques’ piercing blue eyes, seen here in a photo from the early ’80s, were the work of contact lenses, with his eye normally a still-striking gray. Much of his life – like his origins, relationship with his adoptive dad, and whether he even died – remains shrouded in mystery. An album cover with a photo shot around 1980 is pictured
’60s star Raymond St. Jacques claimed to be the model’s adopted dad, but most believed that he and Sterling were actually lovers. A Blaxploitation star who had been the first African-American to hold a regular role in a Western, he lived with the model in LA shortly before arriving in New York in the ’70s
St. Jacques is seen here with Pat Cleveland, herself a celebrated fashion model, in 1977. The pair walked runways together and were briefly engaged – even though St. Jacques was gay
Well-aware of his dazzling looks and charisma, Sterling relished the attention, and attracted men and women alike. He was even briefly engaged to celebrated model Pat Cleveland, despite being gay.
Many of the details of his life remain a mystery, including his real name, his family’s identity and the nature of his relationship with a famous actor who claimed to be his adoptive father. Details of his death – and confirmation on whether he died at all – are also vague.
Either way, the man who once posed for the likes of Yves Saint Laurent and Givenchy has left an indelible impact – and legacy that lives on through tantalizing vintage photos of late 1970s Manhattan at its hedonistic peak.
St. Jacques is believed to have been born in Salt Lake City in 1957, but nothing is known about his childhood or family. He moved to LA for college in his late teens and became a go-go dancer while there.
In May 1972, the budding actor – then claiming to be 22 years old – made headlines when four men attempted to rob a Bel Air home he had been occupying at the time.
But the property belonged to Raymond St. Jacques, not Sterling. Raymond was a Hollywood actor who claimed to have adopted Sterling sometime after August 1969.
It has since been claimed that the two were actually lovers. And it’s widely believed they were in no way related, with Sterling likely adopting the older man’s surname. Raymond – a Blaxploitation star who had been the first African-American to hold a regular role in a Western – had been in Dallas at the time of the burglary.
St Jacques is pictured in a still from the cult classic 1978 movie The Eyes of Laura Mars, in which Faye Dunaway plays an edgy NYC fashion photographer plagued by visions of murder
The model is pictured third from left on the set of The Eyes of Laura Mars, with Faye Dunaway in the foreground
St. Jacques was allegedly alone, and fled after calling police. The four men attempting the break-in were apprehended after their car stalled in the driveway, cops said.
Sterling went on to appear in Raymond’s’ 1973 film Book of Numbers, and that year participated in France’s historic Grand Divertissement at Versailles in 1973 – an event which pitted up-and-coming American designers against their established French rivals and which heralded the rise of ready-to-wear clothing over couture.
Raymond St. Jacques, a life-long bachelor, died of lymphoma aged just 60 in 1990 – a disease often linked to AIDS – although he was never confirmed as having the virus.
By the early 1970s, his ‘son’ Sterling had already graced the cover of Playmen, the Italian version of Playboy, and had done print ads for fashion titans Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Willi Smith, and Halston.
He is even said to have been in a relationship with Givenchy founder Hubert de Givenchy and to have lived with the couture icon in his French chateau.
But the pulsating disco of 1970s Manhattan soon lured St. Jacques back to the United States.
His reputation bolstered by his work with prestige designers in Europe, St. Jacques returned as a fully-fledged fashion model and would parade down catwalks for top designers draped in fur and hand-made suits.
St. Jacques was named the face of Revillon furs and was frequently photographed walking down runways covered in eye-catching animal pelts.
He bagged a brief but memorable role as a model in cult 1978 movie The Eyes of Laura Mars, in which Faye Dunaway plays an edgy New York fashion photographer plagued by visions of her friends’ murders.
It was after dark that St. Jacques made his greatest impact though, by earning a reputation as an incredible dancer in a city crammed with nightclub talent.
Grooving to disco was his strong-suit, and the famed floor at Studio 54 was his stage of choice. The club opened in Hells’ Kitchen in 1977, with its notoriously-strict door policy admitting only the most famous and fabulous. St. Jacques was able to breeze past its bouncers whenever he visited.
Studio 54 was St. Jacques’ favorite haunt, and on its iconic, cocaine-fueled dance floor, St. Jacques became a star in his own right, with A-listers flocking to see him. Liza Minnelli and St Jacques dancing at Studio 54 circa 1978
His moves – including his trademark twirl – were so smooth that they’re said to have inspired the classic Sister Sledge hit He’s the Greatest Dancer, and captivated stars like Bianca Jagger, seen looking animated with St. Jacques at Studio 54 circa 1978
Jagger is seen engaging in some high-stepping as she dances with the actor-model Jacques during the same outing to the cocaine-fueled dancefloors of Studio 54
The model’s charming persona, chiseled cheekbones, and dexterity charmed the likes of many including Jagger, seen here taking advantage of the 6’2” Adonis’s strength for a triumphant pose toward the end of dance number
Pirouette partners included Jagger, Liza Minelli, and Onassis, and even the former first-lady’s daughter Caroline Kennedy, seen here aged 20 in St. Jacques’s arms at Studio 54 on December 21, 1977
Six-foot-one Julie Newmar – known for playing the first Catwoman in Adam West’s Batman series – also took the dancer for a spin, literally swinging from his waist as he supported her during one 1979 outing
Studio 54, pictured here in 1978, was famously decorated with a painted crescent moon snorting cocaine from a spoon. The narcotic was the drug of choice for many Studio regulars
Pirouette partners included Bianca Jagger, Liza Minelli, and Jacqueline Onassis, as well as the former first-lady’s daughter with JFK, Caroline Kennedy.
Currently the ambassador to Australia, she is seen being carried by St Jacques as a 20-year-old, in a snap taken at Studio 54 circa 1978.
In it, the future diplomat – like several others – seems to swoon over the 6’2” Adonis.
Her mother appeared similarly enthralled, as did actresses Tatum O’Neal and Candace Bergen – both of whom were also photographed being hoisted up by the model on the same iconic dance floor.
Six-foot-one Julie Newmar – known for playing the first Catwoman in Adam West’s Batman series – also took St. Jacques for a spin, literally swinging from his waist as he supported her during one 1979 outing.
He was snapped with male icons too, including Elton John, Michael Jackson and Karl Lagerfeld.
While St. Jacques would regularly cut up the floor with such socialites, his most common dance partner was Ebony Fashion Fair model Pat Cleveland.
One of the first female African-Americans in fashion to achieve prominence as a runway and print model, Cleveland also partied with the likes of Warhol, and is one of the most famous names of the late 1970s American fashion machine.
She and Sterling walked catwalks together and appeared in public as a couple – even though everyone knew St Jacques was gay.
While St Jacques would regularly cut up the floor with such socialites, his most common dance partner was Ebony Fashion Fair model Pat Cleveland, seen here on the runway with her fellow supermodel in 1976
Well-aware of his dazzling looks and charisma, Sterling – seen here on a Revillon Furs runway in 1976 – relished the attention, and attracted men and women alike
Minnelli dancing with St. Jacques circa 1979, one of his final Studio 54 outings before relocating to Europe and eventually disappearing from the public eye
Candice Bergen was another A-list addition to St. Jacques’ dance stable, seen here circa 1979 at Studio 54 in New York
Treated as royalty whenever they arrived, the pair decided to marry in 1976, but that plan soon fell apart.
In a recent memoir, Cleveland, now 73, blamed the breakup on St Jacques being gay – a reality most accepted as rumors swirled around him and his pretty boy allure.
She also told of how St. Jacques had demanded her engagement ring so he could sell it for drugs.
Cleveland went on to find happiness and contentment, marrying Dutch model-turned photographer Paul von Ravenstein in 1982.
The couple remain happily married and have two children.
St Jacques and Pat Cleveland walk a New York City catwalk together in 1975. Cleveland ended up happily married with two children, while St. Jacques likely died a sad AIDS death after disappearing from public view
A rare color photo of St Jacques enjoying the sumptuous surroundings of Studio 54 in 1977 – with two women clearly delighted to be in his orbit. He is seen carrying French singer Régine Zylberberg, who passed in 2022, while an unidentified woman in red stood behind observes proceedings with evident glee
His relationship with Raymond – a lifelong bachelor who lived and died in LA – further fueled those rumors, after the actor actor claimed he adopted St. Jacques sometime after 1969, with a news report in 1972 later claiming the model lived with Raymond and was aged 22
As for St. Jacques – seen here at Studio 54 Shirley Bassey circa 1977 – he was said to have been 22 the year before, and appears to be well into adulthood in the Studio 54 shots
The photos were taken after St. Jacques – seen here with celebrated Latvian ballet dancer and eventual Sex and The City Star Mikhail Baryshnikov at Studio 54 in 1977 – moved from Raymond’s Bel Air home to NYC, where he is said to have died of AIDS in 1984. No evidence of his death exists today
His home while in New York was this famous apartment building on Central Park South, which also played home to Jimmy Buffet, before his passing last year
But while Cleveland settled down, St. Jacques continued to live life in the fast lane.
His romance with Raymond St. Jacques appears to have fizzled-out by the mid-1970s, although Sterling proved popular with sugar daddies who would regularly lavish him with allowances, and would whisk him away on a private jet if he so pleased.
Said to be a ‘kept man’ by these admirers, St. Jacques continued his hard-partying lifestyle into the early 80s, when he moved to Europe in an attempt to become a nightclub DJ while also advancing his modeling career.
But just months later, he complained to journalists that he was broke – and began mulling the possibility of opening up a dance studio in Manhattan, following Studio 54’s infamous closure over unpaid taxes.
Sadly, the disco era was over – and St. Jacques suddenly found himself out of fashion. He was reduced to appearing in low-brow magazines, while also providing performing Italo disco songs that made little impact outside of Italy.
He found some success there as a singer, but his dream of making a bombastic return to the Big Apple was cut short by a frightening new health condition, according to reports from the time.
They indicate that by 1984, St. Jacques had contracted the AIDS virus – which at the time was killing thousands of young gay men – and which hit New York’s creative industries particularly hard.
St. Jacques is pictured singing on an Italian TV show in 1984. Some sources claim he died of AIDS the same year, while others say he succumbed to the virus in 1992. His death remains shrouded in mystery
One Facebook commenter shared this photo of St Jacques he said was taken in 1986 – casting doubt on claims the star died of AIDS in 1984
But Sterling’s fate remains shrouded in mystery. He is believed to have succumbed to AIDS – although some memorials give his date of death as 1984, while others say he died in 1992.
The only available public record for St. Jacques dates back to 1983 and lists two Manhattan addresses, one at 54 West 55th Street, just off Fifth Avenue and a few blocks from his beloved Studio 54.
Another was at the exceptionally prestigious 100 Central Park South apartment building, a few doors down from the Plaza Hotel.
A grainy YouTube clip shows him performing on an Italian music show in 1984, with his dance moves surprisingly muted. That was his final confirmed public appearance.
Some friends indicated that he died that year due to complications from the late-stage HIV infection, with the Big Apple often being described as his place of death.
But further compounding the mystery is a snap of a healthy-looking man said to be St. Jacques relaxing on a beach in Riccione, Italy, in 1986. Its legitimacy, as of 2024, has yet to be confirmed.
And in a 1988 interview with the Chicago Tribune, Raymond St Jacques, then 58, fueled conspiracies that his supposed son remained alive, insisting he still had two living children.
During the interview – his last before his death just two years later – he specifically stated that St. Jacques was appearing on a television show in Düsseldorf, although proof of this appearance has never emerged.
Raymond St. Jacques went on to die in August 1990 from lymphoma, a type of malignant cancer that often forms in the lymphatic system of patients who have acquired AIDS.
Further intrigue and another link to Germany emerged thanks to an online memorial post for Sterling. Its commenter said they’d heard from multiple sources that St. Jacques was living in Cologne in the early 90s and trying to enroll in a Spanish course.
His IMDb profile lists 1992 as the year of his death, with some friends claiming he’d become a recluse in his final years due to the loss of his looks, career and health.
A source close to one of St. Jacques most cherished old friends told DailyMail.com that he had indeed died – but was unable to offer further detail.
So the forgotten star’s passing has never been officially confirmed, leaving his true fate – at least for now – shrouded in questions.
Whatever the conclusion to St. Jacques incredible story, online sleuths and 70s nostalgia fans continue to be fascinated by the model, whose memory lives on in photographs of a gorgeous but long-since vanished world.