It Girl Party Archives: Bianca Jagger’s 30th Birthday at Studio 54
By Alexus Mosley
Photo Credit: Getty Images
By the time Bianca Jagger climbed onto a white horse at Studio 54, her 30th birthday had already become the kind of party people would talk about for decades.
On May 2, 1977, Jagger celebrated the milestone at the newly opened Manhattan nightclub, which was quickly becoming the place to see and be seen. But nearly 50 years later, one image from the night still defines the party: Bianca, dressed in red, sitting atop a white horse in the middle of Studio 54.
By then, Bianca Jagger was already a bona fide It Girl. The Nicaraguan-born beauty had married Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger in 1971 and quickly became one of the decade’s most photographed women. With her razor-sharp tailoring, glamorous nightlife appearances and effortless ability to move between the worlds of rock ’n’ roll, fashion and high society, Bianca embodied the kind of cool that couldn’t simply be bought.
Photo Credit: Robin Platzer/Getty Images
So naturally, an ordinary 30th birthday party wasn’t going to do. The celebration took place at Studio 54, which had opened less than a week earlier. Club owners Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager were already establishing the venue as New York’s newest playground for the beautiful and famous.
Then came the horse. As part of the birthday festivities, a white horse was brought onto the Studio 54 dance floor. Bianca climbed onto its back and photographer Rose Hartman captured the moment.
Wearing a red dress designed by Halston, a close friend and frequent collaborator of hers, Bianca with her dark hair swept back looked perfectly at home sitting atop a white horse in the middle of a nightclub. The photograph became legendary.
Nearly five decades later, the image still feels larger than life. Bianca Jagger didn’t just have a memorable birthday at Studio 54. She gave the club one of its most iconic moments and cemented her place in It Girl history.