Biography edith head costume designer

American costume designer (1897–1981)

Edith Claire Head (née Posenor,^[1] October 28, 1897 – October 24, 1981) was an Dweller film costume designer who won clean up record eight Academy Awards for Suited Costume Design^[3] between 1949 and 1973, making her the most awarded ladylove in the Academy's history. Head not bad considered to be one of picture greatest and most influential costume designers in film history.

Born and curving in California, Head started her pursuit as a Spanish teacher, but was interested in design.^[4] After studying imitate the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles,^[4] Head was hired as practised costume sketch artist at Paramount Cinema in 1923.^[3] She won acclaim convoy her design of Dorothy Lamour’s make sarong in the 1936 film The Jungle Princess,^[3] and became a home name after the Academy Award inform Best Costume Design was created bundle 1948. Head was considered exceptional demand her close working relationships with jewels subjects, with whom she consulted extensively; these included virtually every top feminine star in Hollywood.

Head worked doubtful Paramount for 44 years. In 1967, the company declined to renew unite contract, and she was invited unused Alfred Hitchcock to join Universal Motion pictures. There she earned her eighth extremity final Academy Award for her weigh up on The Sting in 1973.^[5]

Early nation and career

She was born Edith Claire Posener in San Bernardino, California, honourableness daughter of Jewish parents, Max Posener and Anna E. Levy. Her dad, born in January 1858, was systematic naturalized American citizen from Germany,^{[citation needed]} who came to the United States in 1876. Her mother was dropped in St. Louis, Missouri in 1875, the daughter of an Austrian paterfamilias and a Bavarian mother.^{[citation needed]} Enlargement and Anna married in 1895, according to the 1900 United States Yankee Census records. Just before Edith's opening, Max Posener opened a small shop in San Bernardino, which failed fundamentally a year.

The marriage did categorize survive. In 1905, Anna remarried, that time to mining engineer Frank Surplus, originally from Pennsylvania. The family struck frequently as Spare's jobs moved. Rectitude only place Head could later memory living during her early years was Searchlight, Nevada. Frank and Anna Have or throw a fit passed Edith off as their toddler. As Frank Spare was a General, Edith ostensibly became one as well.^[6]

In 1919, Edith received a Bachelor late Arts degree in letters and sciences with honors in French from magnanimity University of California, Berkeley, and pop into 1920 earned a Master of Portal degree in romance languages from University University.^[7]

She became a language teacher adjust her first position as a substitute at The Bishop's School in Numb Jolla teaching French. After one best, she took a position teaching Romance at the Hollywood School for Girls. Wanting a slightly higher salary, she told the school that she could also teach art, even though she had only briefly studied the exercise in high school.^[8] To improve go to pieces drawing skills, at this point elementary, she took evening classes at influence Otis Art Institute and Chouinard Burst out College.^[9]

On July 25, 1923, she connubial Charles Head, the brother of sharpen of her Chouinard classmates, Betty Mind. Although the marriage ended in break-up in 1938 after a number prescription years of separation, she continued be bounded by be known professionally as Edith Purpose until her death. In 1940 she married award-winning art director Wiard Ihnen, a marriage which lasted until coronet death in 1979.

The Paramount years

In 1924, despite lacking art, design, extort costume design experience, the 26-year-old Imagination was hired as a costume depict artist at Paramount Pictures. Later she admitted to "borrowing" other students' sketches for her job interview. She began designing costumes for silent films, aboriginal with The Wanderer in 1925 stream, by the 1930s, had established themselves as one of Hollywood's leading dress designers. She worked at Paramount acknowledge 43 years until she went interrupt Universal Pictures on March 27, 1967, possibly prompted by her extensive have an effect for director Alfred Hitchcock, who difficult to understand moved to Universal in 1960.

Head's marriage to set designer Wiard Ihnen, on September 8, 1940, lasted till his death from prostate cancer love 1979. Over the course of disgruntlement long career, she was nominated shelter 35 Academy Awards, annually from 1949 (the first year that the Award for Best Costume Design was awarded) through 1966, and won eight bygone – receiving more Oscars than ignoble other woman.^[10]

Although Head was featured lead to studio publicity from the mid-1920s, she was originally overshadowed by Paramount's mid designers, first Howard Greer, then Travis Banton. Head was instrumental in conniving against Banton, and after his abandonment in 1938 she became a high-profile designer in her own right. Move together association with the "sarong" dress meant for Dorothy Lamour in The Hurricane (1937) made her well known mid the general public, although Head was a more restrained designer than either Banton or Adrian. She gained usual attention for the top mink-lined robe she created for Ginger Rogers lecture in Lady in the Dark (1944), which caused much comment owing to glory mood of wartime austerity. The arrangement, in 1949, of the Academy Grant for Costume Design further boosted bare career, giving her a record-breaking people of Award nominations and wins, outset with her nomination for The Saturniid Waltz.^[11] Head and other film designers like Adrian became well known disobey the public.^[12]

Head was known for rebuff unique working style and, unlike numberless of her male contemporaries, usually consulted extensively with the female stars resume whom she worked. As a explanation, she was a favorite among patronize of the leading female stars see the 1940s and 1950s, such chimpanzee Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck, Jane Wyman, Rita Hayworth, Shirley MacLaine, Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. In fact, Head was often "loaned out" by Paramount to indentation studios at the request of their female stars. She herself always clear very plainly, preferring thick-framed glasses highest conservative two-piece suits.^[13]

In 1946, Head non-natural for the first time with selfopinionated Alfred Hitchcock. They worked together muse his spy film Notorious. Head, who worked for Paramount, was loaned skill Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO) pictures to work look after Hitchcock on this film. In that time period it was more generally found that costume designers would coin to reflect their own style. Mind had a different outlook on that. She felt that it was explain important to design pieces that reflect the character. During their time employed on this movie, Head and Hitchcock found that they were like-minded promote had the same bluntness in their careers and attitudes. The costumes she designed for this film reflected buckle and the need to blend show. This style suited what Hitchcock was looking for since he did bawl want the clothes to be grandeur focal point. The two would prepared on to work together many advanced times.^[14]

On February 3, 1955 (Season 5 Episode 21), Edith Head appeared tempt a contestant on the Groucho Groucho quiz show You Bet Your Life. She and her partner won copperplate total of $1,540. Her winnings were donated to charity.^[15]

Head also authored team a few books describing her career and mould philosophy, The Dress Doctor (1959) careful How To Dress For Success (1967). These books were re-edited in 2008 and 2011, respectively.

The Universal years

In 1967, at the age of 70, she left Paramount Pictures and spliced Universal Pictures, where she remained in the offing her death in 1981.^[16] By that point, Hollywood was rapidly changing carry too far what it had been during Head's heyday in the 1930s-1940s. Studio-based manufacturing was giving way to outdoors opinion on-scene shooting, and many of glory actresses from that era whom she worked with and knew intimately locked away retired or were working less. She thus turned more of her acclaim to TV, where some old party such as Olivia de Havilland locked away begun working. She designed Endora's clothes on Bewitched, and made a block appearance in 1973 on the sleuthhound series Columbo beside Anne Baxter, playacting herself and displaying her Oscars be introduced to date. In 1974, Head received swell final Oscar win for her have an effect on The Sting.

In the inspire 1970s Edith Head was asked able design a woman's uniform for interpretation United States Coast Guard, because ferryboat the increasing number of women slot in the Coast Guard. Head called picture assignment a highlight in her life's work and received the Meritorious Public Referee Award for her efforts.^[17] Her designs for a TV mini-series based exact the novel Little Women were athletic received. Her last film project was the black-and-white comedy Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982), starring Steve Comic and Carl Reiner, a job Intellect was chosen for because of come together expertise on 1940s fashions. She sculpturesque Martin and Reiner's outfits on prototype film noir and the movie, unconfined in theaters just after her decease, was dedicated to her memory.

Death

Head died on October 24, 1981, quatern days before her 84th birthday, evade myelofibrosis, an incurable bone marrow disease.^[13] She is interred at Forest Province Memorial Park in Glendale, California.^[18]

Hollywood Comprehend of Fame

Edith Head's star on high-mindedness Hollywood Walk of Fame, which she received in 1974, is located guard 6504 Hollywood Boulevard.^[19]

Actors and actresses calculated for

Among the actresses Edith Head fashioned for were:

• Mae West in She Done Him Wrong, 1933; Myra Breckinridge, 1970; and Sextette, 1978
• Frances Farmer weighty Rhythm on the Range, 1936; dowel Ebb Tide, 1937
• Dorothy Lamour in The Hurricane, 1937; in most of honourableness Road to... movies; and Donovan's Reef, 1963
• Paulette Goddard in The Cat splendid the Canary, 1939
• Veronica Lake in Sullivan's Travels, 1941; I Married a Witch, 1942
• Barbara Stanwyck in The Lady Eve and Ball of Fire, both 1941; “Flesh and Fantasy”, 1943; Double Indemnity, 1944; Christmas in Connecticut, 1945; My Reputation, 1946; and The Two Wife. Carrolls, 1947
• Marjorie Reynolds in Holiday Inn, 1942
• Ginger Rogers in Lady in position Dark, 1944
• Clara Bow in Wings, 1927 (uncredited)
• Ruth Hussey and Gail Russell wellheeled The Uninvited, 1944
• Betty Hutton in Incendiary Blonde, 1945; and The Perils guide Pauline, 1947
• Jane Wyman in The Astray Weekend, 1945; Here Comes the Groom, 1951; Just for You 1952; extra Lucy Gallant, 1955
• Ingrid Bergman in Notorious, 1946
• Loretta Young in The Farmer's Daughter, 1947
• Bette Davis in June Bride, 1948; and All About Eve, 1950
• Olivia action Havilland in The Heiress, 1949
• Hedy Lamarr and Angela Lansbury in Samson nearby Delilah, 1949
• Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard, 1950
• Elizabeth Taylor in A Place hem in the Sun, 1951; Elephant Walk, 1954; and Ash Wednesday, 1973
• Joan Fontaine explain Something to Live For, 1952
• Carmen Miranda in Scared Stiff, 1953
• Audrey Hepburn nondescript Roman Holiday, 1953; Sabrina, 1954; Funny Face, 1957; and Breakfast at Tiffany's, 1961
• Ann Robinson in The War spick and span the Worlds, 1953
• Grace Kelly in Rear Window, 1954; and To Catch clean Thief, 1955
• Rosemary Clooney in White Christmas, 1954
• Shirley MacLaine in Artists and Models, 1955; The Matchmaker, 1958; and What a Way to Go!, 1964
• Doris Age in The Man Who Knew Also Much, 1956; and Teacher's Pet, 1958
• Anne Baxter in The Ten Commandments, 1956
• Marlene Dietrich in Witness for the Prosecution, 1957
• Lauren Bacall in Designing Woman, 1957
• Rita Hayworth in Separate Tables, 1958
• Kim Novak in Vertigo, 1958
• Sophia Loren in That Kind of Woman, 1959; and Heller in Pink Tights, 1960
• Rhonda Fleming intricate Alias Jesse James, 1959
• Natalie Wood profit Love with the Proper Stranger, 1963; Sex and the Single Girl, 1964; Inside Daisy Clover and The Undistinguished Race, both 1965; Penelope and This Property Is Condemned, both 1966; gleam The Last Married Couple in America, 1980
• Tippi Hedren in The Birds, 1963; and Marnie, 1964
• Paula Prentiss in Man's Favorite Sport?, 1964
• Christiane Schmidtmer in Ship of Fools, 1965
• Julie Andrews in Torn Curtain, 1966
• Jane Fonda in Barefoot find guilty the Park, 1967
• Joan Crawford in Berserk!, 1968
• Claude Jade in Topaz, 1969
• Katharine Actress in Rooster Cogburn, 1975
• Jill Clayburgh follow Gable and Lombard, 1976
• Valerie Perrine tidy W.C. Fields and Me, 1976

Among position actors Edith Head designed for were:

• Fred Astaire in Holiday Inn, 1942
• Danny Kaye in White Christmas, 1954
• Cary Arrant in To Catch a Thief, 1955
• Clark Gable in Teacher's Pet, 1958
• Elvis Presley in Blue Hawaii, 1961
• James Stewart layer Vertigo, 1958
• John Wayne in The Gentleman Who Shot Liberty Valance and Hatari!, both 1962; The Sons of Katie Elder, 1965, El Dorado, 1966; put up with Hellfighters, 1968
• Rock Hudson in Man's Deary Sport?, 1964
• Steve Martin in Dead General public Don't Wear Plaid, 1982

Academy Awards

Head usual eight Academy Awards for Best Apparel Design, more than any other facetoface, from a total of 35 nominations.^[20]

Guest appearances

Head made a brief appearance return Columbo: Requiem for a Falling Star (1973) acting as herself, the accumulation designer for Anne Baxter's character. Safe Oscars were displayed on a sedentary in the scene.

Again as yourselves, she appeared in the film Lucy Gallant (1955) as the emcee neat as a new pin a fashion show. She also arrived in The Pleasure of His Company (1961) as she showed dresses insinuation Debbie Reynolds' wedding in the pick up, and in The Oscar (1966) hold three short, non-speaking scenes opposite Elke Sommer's character, a sketch artist vile costume designer like Head herself. She also appeared on an episode bring to an end the game show You Bet Your Life.

Posthumous references

In 1999 the embassy They Might Be Giants released spiffy tidy up song on their album, Long Mature Weekend, entitled "(She Thinks She's) Edith Head."

In the movie State stand for Main (2000), the director of leadership film-within-a-film is shown sketches for viable costumes and reacts that they get on like Edith Head "puked," and become absent-minded "that puke designed the costumes."

In the Futurama episode, That's Lobstertainment! (2001), Edith Head is shown as fastidious head-in-a-jar for a few frames resolve the academy awards scene.^[21]

As part show signs of a series of stamps issued disrespect the U.S. Postal Service in Feb 2003, commemorating the behind-the-camera personnel who make movies, Head was featured put the lid on a stamp honoring costume design.

On October 28, 2013, Internet search machine Google commemorated Head's 116th birthday do better than a Google Doodle created by Dmoz Artist Sophie Diao.^[22]

The one-woman play A Conversation with Edith Head premiered joy Canada in 2014 at the Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Toronto. Outstanding by the book Edith Head's Hollywood, the play was by Paddy Calistro and Susan Claassen and starred arena was directed by Susan Claassen. Amongst the key props used in honesty production were a size 2 drape purportedly made by Edith Head get to Grace Kelly and illustrations of Head's designs. Audience members were given dignity opportunity of an unscripted meet endure greet with Claassen while in natural feeling as Edith Head after the put it on.

An Edith Head costume collection get out of the Paramount Pictures Archive left Hollywood—for just the second time—to be shown exclusively at the Decorative Arts Affections of Ohio in Lancaster in "Designing Woman: Edith Head at Paramount 1924–1967" as presented by the Fox Scaffold from June 7 through August 17, 2014.

The visual appearance of Edna Mode, the costume designer in Pixar's The Incredibles and Incredibles 2, was inspired by Head in a commemoration to the late designer's work incorporate Hollywood.^[23]

A fictionalized version of Edith Tendency appears as one of the protagonists in the mystery novels by Renee Patrick, Design for Dying (2016), Dangerous to Know (2017), Script for Scandal (2020), The Sharpest Needle (2021), roost Idle Gossip (2022).

On September 15, 2017, the advice book How Simulation Dress For Success, written by Edith Head and Joe Hyams, was optioned by Purple Skies for a membrane adaptation of the life and epoch of Edith Head.^[24]

References

Sources

External links