Julia Roberts in Vintage Valentino, 2001

Julia Roberts backstage at the 73rd Academy Awards in March 2001, holding the Best Actress Oscar she won for Erin Brockovich. The black velvet column with white satin piping and a sheer tulle train came from Valentino's 1992 couture archive, only nine years old at the time. Picking an archive piece over a fresh commission was unusual then, and the dress is still the reference point whenever a star wears vintage on Oscar night.