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Showing posts with label Edith Head. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Edith Head. Show all posts

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Blockbuster exhibition Displays Costumes


Audrey Hepburn Givenchy Breakfast at TiffanysKate Winslett costume from Titanic
©ourtesy dailymail.co.uk By Sadie Whitelocks
Women still hanker after the simple black dress worn by Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s. And, millions of other ensembles seen on the big screen continue to influence fashion. Now recognizing the power of the Hollywood costume, a major exhibition will showcase more than a hundred of the most memorable wares for the first time. Items such as Dorothy’s blue and white gingham pinafore dress from The Wizard of Oz, and Scarlett O’Hara’s green ‘curtain’ gown worn in Gone with the Wind will be displayed alongside items from more recent releases including Consolata Boyle’s costumes for Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady. The exhibition, launching at the V&A this October, has taken more than five years to pull together. Clothing was sourced from across the world and has been borrowed  from costume houses, museums, film studios and private collectors. A Footnote: Hollywood studios focus on the designers interpretation of the natural history of scripts. Los Angeles County has long been a haven for film production in California. Studios like Warner Bros have long featured the work of the Costume Designer in many film production movies and previews. Edith Head always stands out as a pioneer in breaking down the costume plot with emphasis on historical costumes for the hollywood film. It was pure genius what she accomplished. Fashion design schools more and more are introducing Costume Design as a major. The American Film Industry by far is a part of a staple of good film making, Internationally. The costume designer jobs have been celebrated by the Academy Awards since its inception. Even Independent film makers relish the Costume Designer in the movie business as well as Major Film Studios. Oscar nominations doesn’t necessarily mean an Award but it’s close. Sandy Powell a seasoned Costume Designer has brought the art of Costume Design to a level of greatness. This years oscar nominees for films like War Horse Steven Spielberg’s epic, The Descendants with George Clooney, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Hugo directed by Martin Scorsesse, are all a shoe for the Academy Awards. Hollywood’s Kodak Theatre has been playing host for the presentations in the past few years where winners like SOCIAL NETWORK, THE KING’S SPEECH and THE SOCIAL NETWORK were all costume design contenders. Just think, back when it all started the Hollywood Roosevelt was host. Now it’s a great part of Oscar History. Don’t forget the many other categories: Art Direction, Best Supporting Actress, Best Actress Oscar and so on. Film Schools in LA are now very prevalent and talent from all over the globe go there waiting for their day in the sun. French actors, British actors and of course our American actors all await being an Oscar Winner whether they admit or not. Period costumes for The Silent Film “The Artist” inspired great artistry and performance by a great assortment of Talent from various parts of the World. Wow…good Old Hollywood! – - Read more

Thursday, January 12, 2012

The Work of Edith Head: Legend Costumer

Film: “What a Way to go“, stars Shirley McLaine
©ourtesy of Alex Donald's Multiverse

Shirley MacLaine, Gene Kelly, Dean Martin, Robert Mitchum and Paul Newman star in 'What A Way To Go' made in 1964. The movie tells the faintly ridiculous but utterly enjoyable story of Louisa May Foster (MacLaine) who marries for love but each time she does so she ends up a rich widow. Convinced that she is under a supernatural curse, Louisa relates her story to a psychiatrist and we see her life in flashbacks. Read more - -

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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Designer Edith Head on stage

 ’A Conversation With Edith Head,’ a one-woman show starring Susan Claassen, about the famous Hollywood costume designer. Opens in LA at The Odyssey Theatre starting Oct. 28.
Susan Claussen as Edith HeadEdith Head had grand designs on Hollywood for six decades, earning 35 Oscar nominations for her influential costume designs and winning eight Academy Awards for such films as 1949′s “The Heiress,” 1951′s “A Place in the Sun,” 1954′s “Sabrina” and 1960′s “The Facts of Life.” She was a favorite of Billy Wilder, designing the costumes for his classic 1944 film noir “Double Indemnity” and his 1950 masterpiece “Sunset Boulevard,” as well as of Alfred Hitchcock, creating iconic looks in such romantic thrillers as 1946′s “Notorious,” 1954′s “Rear Window,” 1958′s “Vertigo” and 1963′s “The Birds.” Besides designing costumes for films, Head also created personal wardrobes for the likes of Olivia de Havilland and Joan Crawford. She designed the uniforms for Pan Am airline stewardesses and she was not afraid to offer frank makeover tips to housewives as a regular on Art Linkletter‘s “House Party” CBS daytime series. – - more about this LAtimes.com

Monday, February 28, 2011

Costume Designer Edith Head won Most Oscars



Produced by:

Sara Fishko

    Read More:

Fishko files profiles 
 
 Who has the most Academy Award nominations and Statues of any woman in history? It’s Edith Head, once Costume Designer to the stars. WNYC’s Sara Fishko has more, in this edition of Fishko Files
 Read More from the speakers featured in this week's Fishko Files...
Fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie has designed for icons such as Diana Ross, Cher and Liza Minnelli. The "sultan of sequins," as Mackie's sometimes called, has received nine Emmy Awards and three Academy Award nominations.
Costume Designer and costume design historian Deborah Nadoolman Landis created Michael Jackson's red Thriller jacket (1983) and Harrison Ford's iconic fedora and jacket for Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), among other famous costumes. She is the David C. Copley Chair, and Director of the Copley Center for Costume Design at the UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television. Her most recent book is Dressed: A Century of Hollywood Costume Design.

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