Manolo Blahnik
Madonna told a biographer that Manolo Blahnik's shoes were "better than sex." Sexy in this case means very high heels, and the pop star is not the only one to fall while wearing the towering shoes. Blahnik, who originally wanted to become a theater-set designer, opened a shoe shop in London in the early 1970s, and his heels took off with the era's celebrities. In 1974 he became the first man to appear on the cover of British Vogue.
Blahnik is credited with reviving the stiletto in the 1970s, an age when platforms rose above the rest. He is known for creating new, artistic styles while always sticking with the classic heel. And unlike many of his contemporaries, Blahnik is notable for single-handedly designing the thousands of shoes that bear his name. His heels led actress Sarah Jessica Parker to claim, "I could run a marathon in a pair of Manolo Blahniks. I've destroyed my feet completely, but I don't care. What do you really need your feet for anyway?"