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John Galliano fired by Dior in wake of ‘I love Hitler’ video

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Designer John Galliano went from suspended to fired at fashion house Dior after a 2010 video in which he said ‘I love Hitler’ went public Monday, and Oscar winner Natalie Portman later declared herself ‘shocked and disgusted’ by his words.

‘In light of this video, and as an individual who is proud to be Jewish,’ Portman said in a statement Tuesday, ‘I will not be associated with Mr. Galliano in any way.’ The ‘Black Swan’ star is the face of the Miss Dior Cherie fragrance.

‘People like you would be dead,’ the designer slurred to patrons at a neighboring table in the video, posted on the Sun website. ‘Your mothers, your forefathers, would all be ... gassed and ... dead.’ He also told those who made the video -- who were French and Italian, not Jewish, the Sun said -- that he had a problem with them because they were ugly.

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The Tuesday firing comes only days ahead of Friday’s Dior show during Paris Fashion Week.

‘In light of the deeply offensive statements and conduct by John Galliano [in that video], Christian Dior has commenced termination procedures against him,’ the company said in a statement, also quoting Chief Executive Sidney Toledano: ‘We unequivocally condemn the statements made by John Galliano which are in total contradiction to the longstanding core values of Christian Dior.’

The British designer had been suspended by the company after he was questioned and released by police Thursday for allegedly making anti-Semitic and anti-Asian statements to a woman and man in Paris’ La Perle restaurant and threatening to kill the man. Prosecutors and police said Friday that Galliano’s blood alcohol levels were high.

He fought back over the weekend, denying the allegations and filing a defamation suit against the couple involved in the Thursday incident. The video that surfaced Monday was also shot at La Perle, reportedly last year. Galliano has been with Dior for 15 years.

Portman chose a Rodarte gown for Sunday’s Oscars, according to Grazia Daily, though Sharon Stone and Nicole Kidman did go with house of Dior. Portman’s fiance, Benjamin Millepied, and actor Jude Law were among those wearing Dior Homme, which is not designed by Galliano.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Top photo: British designer John Galliano, center, arrives with his attorney, left, in a crush of media at a Paris police station on Feb. 24. Galliano was fired Tuesday by fashion house Dior. Credit: Ian Langsdon / EPA

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