Diane Keaton Underwent ‘A Lot Of’ Surgeries — Her Signature Style Helps Her Stay Protected and ‘Hide Everything'

• Diane Keaton recommended everyone purchase a turtleneck.
• "Annie Hall" had a profound impact on how she views clothing.
• Keaton is the "master of the hats."

Diane Keaton is a highly visual person. The way she presents herself to the world is thought out meticulously and with a lot of joy. She is obsessed with Pinterest and keeps binders of images in folders.

The actress has been playing with fashion, wearing suits and turtlenecks for decades. She layers fitted blazers over skirts and makes ties look like a natural accessory for women.

In her 2014 memoir, "Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty," she devoted a chapter to her beloved turtlenecks. She believes that the style is "underrated" and dares the readers to buy one, claiming:

"Turtlenecks cushion, shield, and insulate a person from harm."

However, the star warns turtleneck converts that if, like her, they are more advanced in years, they should expect some criticism. Her romantic comedy opposite Jack Nicholson, "Something's Gotta Give," dramatized this.

Nicholson's character chides her for wearing a lightweight turtleneck in the middle of summer. "No, seriously," her character responds. "Why do you care what I wear?"

Since her Academy Award turn-in as the titular "Annie Hall," people have noticed and cared about what she wears. On social media, she has said that the film was the beginning of her "playing around" with her fashion.

And turtlenecks are what she likes. "I just think it looks better to hide everything," she explained. "Trust me, I'm right about this. You don't want the arms flailing about when you're past a certain age." She also wrote in her book, "There's a lot to hide in my case."

In a 2014 interview, she could not say exactly how many turtlenecks she owns, just that she has a lot, "obviously." She was excited about starting a line of turtlenecks but said, at that point, no one had stepped up to collaborate with her.

For an InStyle feature in July 2019, Keaton styled herself in her signature menswear-inspired threads. While she did not consider the looks empowering necessarily, she agreed that the long sleeves and large bowler hats were protective:

"It hides a multitude of sins. Flaws, anxiety — things like that. I would not feel comfortable in a short skirt or something cut off with my arms hanging out there."

Her fixation with tailored menswear was born from the street style of New York in the 1970s when women were wearing pants and neckties. She cites Ralph Lauren as one of the first designers to pair women's pantsuits with ties.

The "Book Club: The Next Chapter" star is also motivated by Hollywood icons Katharine Hepburn and Marlene Dietrich, who were partial to their suits and tuxedoes.

In creating her eclectic looks, she shops at designer stores such as Comme des Garçons, Egg in London, and Los Angeles' Noodle Stories. She finds "unusual designers doing all kinds of things at the Dover Street Market."

Shopping at brick-and-mortar shops remains a "great joy." She finds it "sad" that online shopping is replacing the experience, even if her daughter enjoys virtually adding items to a cart.

Diane Keaton's Wardrobe Staples

Asked to finish the sentence, "You're never fully dressed without a ..." the mother of two found it hard to stop herself from listing all the wardrobe staples she has become synonymous with:

"Hat, duh. And gloves, long-sleeved shirts, turtlenecks, the color black, high-heeled boots ... it's endless."

She went viral in mid-2019 when she posted a video of her walking down a flight of stairs wearing a blazer cinched at the waist with a broad belt and around eight hats stacked on her head.

Keaton got a reaction from thousands, including friends like Michelle Pfeiffer and Candice Bergen, on which one she should pick. In another clip, she wears a white turtle neck under a trapeze dress, standing behind a table of hats. As she puts one on, she says:

"A friendly hat and a friendly face makes (sic) the day."

Though she only seriously considered sun care in her 40s, her hats have granted some protection from the rays. Keaton was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma at 21.

In the mid-2010s, she had squamous cell cancer, which can be fatal if untreated. It was removed through two surgeries. During a 2019 interview, she mentioned seeing her doctor later that day. She pointed to her nose, saying:

"That's not good. I've had a lot of operations."

Keaton has a family history of skin cancer. Her Auntie Martha's skin cancer was so bad they had to remove her nose. Her father had basal skin cancer, and her younger brother was also affected.

Her beauty routine is now grounded in sun care, and she always keeps a tube of sunscreen on her. And, of course, there is her hat; she is a self-appointed "master of the hats."

Keaton's fascination with hats was sparked on the set of 1972's "The Godfather." The production designer, Dean Tavoularis, was dating a French woman who donned hats, the kind Cary Grant was seen in. The actress recalls:

"It made me think, 'Buy hats.' I thought, 'God, that would be good. I could do that.' Which is the story of my life. I could copy this. I could copy that."

Diane Keaton on Family and Aging

As uncompromising as Keaton is with her fashion, so is she in how she approaches the rest of her life. In her younger years, she dated "interesting" men like Warren Beatty and Al Pacino. But she realized early on she would not settle down with these boyfriends.

Keaton became a single mother at 50 when she adopted her daughter Dexter and her son Duke five years later. "It's an unconventional life, it's true," the self-described late bloomer contends in her book.

However, the star wrote that she could not comprehend "how fascinating and wonderful but painful, too, it would be as a parent and take that responsibility on and be somebody who has to adjust her life."

Diane Keaton confirmed in 2014 that she has never done cosmetic surgery but was not against looking into it in the future, even though she suspected it might be too late. For her, the easiest thing about aging is that "you have no choice. If you're lucky."