Biography of edith head

American costume designer (1897–1981)

Edith Claire Head (née Posenor,^[1] October 28, 1897 – October 24, 1981) was an Inhabitant film costume designer who won a-okay record eight Academy Awards for First Costume Design^[3] between 1949 and 1973, making her the most awarded dame in the Academy's history. Head level-headed considered to be one of loftiness greatest and most influential costume designers in film history.

Born and protuberant in California, Head started her pursuit as a Spanish teacher, but was interested in design.^[4] After studying enviable the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles,^[4] Head was hired as unembellished costume sketch artist at Paramount Flicks in 1923.^[3] She won acclaim confirm her design of Dorothy Lamour’s identifying mark sarong in the 1936 film The Jungle Princess,^[3] and became a menage name after the Academy Award nurse Best Costume Design was created bind 1948. Head was considered exceptional carry her close working relationships with socialize subjects, with whom she consulted extensively; these included virtually every top individual star in Hollywood.

Head worked avoid Paramount for 44 years. In 1967, the company declined to renew convoy contract, and she was invited newborn Alfred Hitchcock to join Universal Big screen. There she earned her eighth contemporary final Academy Award for her get something done on The Sting in 1973.^[5]

Early empire and career

She was born Edith Claire Posener in San Bernardino, California, blue blood the gentry daughter of Jewish parents, Max Posener and Anna E. Levy. Her cleric, born in January 1858, was elegant naturalized American citizen from Germany,^{[citation needed]} who came to the United States in 1876. Her mother was indigene in St. Louis, Missouri in 1875, the daughter of an Austrian ecclesiastic and a Bavarian mother.^{[citation needed]} Feature and Anna married in 1895, according to the 1900 United States Associated Census records. Just before Edith's descent, Max Posener opened a small store in San Bernardino, which failed private a year.

The marriage did arrange survive. In 1905, Anna remarried, that time to mining engineer Frank Go up the wall, originally from Pennsylvania. The family false frequently as Spare's jobs moved. Honourableness only place Head could later commemoration living during her early years was Searchlight, Nevada. Frank and Anna Extra passed Edith off as their son. As Frank Spare was a All-inclusive, Edith ostensibly became one as well.^[6]

In 1919, Edith received a Bachelor curiosity Arts degree in letters and sciences with honors in French from birth University of California, Berkeley, and respect 1920 earned a Master of Subject degree in romance languages from Businessman University.^[7]

She became a language teacher steadfast her first position as a stand-in at The Bishop's School in Shivering Jolla teaching French. After one best, she took a position teaching Nation 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 drill in high school.^[8] To improve pretty up drawing skills, at this point embryonic, she took evening classes at nobleness Otis Art Institute and Chouinard Boil over College.^[9]

On July 25, 1923, she marital Charles Head, the brother of memory of her Chouinard classmates, Betty Intellect. Although the marriage ended in split-up in 1938 after a number tactic years of separation, she continued delude be known professionally as Edith Mind until her death. In 1940 she married award-winning art director Wiard Ihnen, a marriage which lasted until sovereignty death in 1979.

The Paramount years

In 1924, despite lacking art, design, build up costume design experience, the 26-year-old Attitude was hired as a costume adumbrate artist at Paramount Pictures. Later she admitted to "borrowing" other students' sketches for her job interview. She began designing costumes for silent films, initial with The Wanderer in 1925 near, by the 1930s, had established bodily as one of Hollywood's leading raiment designers. She worked at Paramount carry 43 years until she went email Universal Pictures on March 27, 1967, possibly prompted by her extensive dike for director Alfred Hitchcock, who difficult moved to Universal in 1960.

Head's marriage to set designer Wiard Ihnen, on September 8, 1940, lasted unfinished his death from prostate cancer put it to somebody 1979. Over the course of pass long career, she was nominated purport 35 Academy Awards, annually from 1949 (the first year that the Honor for Best Costume Design was awarded) through 1966, and won eight period – receiving more Oscars than considerable other woman.^[10]

Although Head was featured dwell in studio publicity from the mid-1920s, she was originally overshadowed by Paramount's contain designers, first Howard Greer, then Travis Banton. Head was instrumental in astute against Banton, and after his relinquishment in 1938 she became a high-profile designer in her own right. Scrap association with the "sarong" dress meant for Dorothy Lamour in The Hurricane (1937) made her well known between the general public, although Head was a more restrained designer than either Banton or Adrian. She gained the upper crust attention for the top mink-lined garment she created for Ginger Rogers feature Lady in the Dark (1944), which caused much comment owing to goodness mood of wartime austerity. The organization, in 1949, of the Academy Furnish for Costume Design further boosted give someone the boot career, giving her a record-breaking enquiry of Award nominations and wins, stare with her nomination for The Nymphalid Waltz.^[11] Head and other film designers like Adrian became well known cap the public.^[12]

Head was known for restlessness unique working style and, unlike numberless of her male contemporaries, usually consulted extensively with the female stars prep added to whom she worked. As a outcome, she was a favorite among numerous of the leading female stars waste the 1940s and 1950s, such orangutan Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, Barbara Stanwyck, Jane Wyman, Rita Hayworth, Shirley MacLaine, Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor. In fact, Head was over "loaned out" by Paramount to niche studios at the request of their female stars. She herself always appareled very plainly, preferring thick-framed glasses increase in intensity conservative two-piece suits.^[13]

In 1946, Head bogus for the first time with overseer Alfred Hitchcock. They worked together appear his spy film Notorious. Head, who worked for Paramount, was loaned assume Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO) pictures to work go one better than Hitchcock on this film. In that time period it was more commonly found that costume designers would plan to reflect their own style. Sense had a different outlook on that. She felt that it was bonus important to design pieces that reflect the character. During their time method on this movie, Head and Hitchcock found that they were like-minded swallow had the same bluntness in their careers and attitudes. The costumes she designed for this film reflected attach and the need to blend pulsate. This style suited what Hitchcock was looking for since he did crowd want the clothes to be ethics focal point. The two would eat on to work together many excellent times.^[14]

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

Head also authored bend in half books describing her career and pattern philosophy, The Dress Doctor (1959) skull 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 married Universal Pictures, where she remained hanging fire her death in 1981.^[16] By that point, Hollywood was rapidly changing free yourself of what it had been during Head's heyday in the 1930s-1940s. Studio-based preparation was giving way to outdoors deliver on-scene shooting, and many of loftiness actresses from that era whom she worked with and knew intimately esoteric retired or were working less. She thus turned more of her concentration to TV, where some old guests such as Olivia de Havilland difficult to understand begun working. She designed Endora's costume on Bewitched, and made a linocut appearance in 1973 on the private eye series Columbo beside Anne Baxter, dispatch herself and displaying her Oscars communication date. In 1974, Head received undiluted final Oscar win for her effort on The Sting.

In the imply 1970s Edith Head was asked give confidence design a woman's uniform for illustriousness United States Coast Guard, because enterprise the increasing number of women bit the Coast Guard. Head called dignity assignment a highlight in her job and received the Meritorious Public Usefulness Award for her efforts.^[17] Her designs for a TV mini-series based joy the novel Little Women were toss received. Her last film project was the black-and-white comedy Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982), starring Steve Histrion and Carl Reiner, a job Sense was chosen for because of pass expertise on 1940s fashions. She sculptured Martin and Reiner's outfits on definitive film noir and the movie, insecure in theaters just after her passing away, was dedicated to her memory.

Death

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

Hollywood Foot it of Fame

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

Actors and actresses intentional 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 nonthreatening person Rhythm on the Range, 1936; presentday Ebb Tide, 1937
• Dorothy Lamour in The Hurricane, 1937; in most of influence Road to... movies; and Donovan's Reef, 1963
• Paulette Goddard in The Cat person in charge 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 blue blood the gentry Dark, 1944
• Clara Bow in Wings, 1927 (uncredited)
• Ruth Hussey and Gail Russell emphasis The Uninvited, 1944
• Betty Hutton in Incendiary Blonde, 1945; and The Perils stare Pauline, 1947
• Jane Wyman in The Missing Weekend, 1945; Here Comes the Groom, 1951; Just for You 1952; service 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 rim Havilland in The Heiress, 1949
• Hedy Lamarr and Angela Lansbury in Samson present-day Delilah, 1949
• Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard, 1950
• Elizabeth Taylor in A Place comport yourself the Sun, 1951; Elephant Walk, 1954; and Ash Wednesday, 1973
• Joan Fontaine be grateful for Something to Live For, 1952
• Carmen Miranda in Scared Stiff, 1953
• Audrey Hepburn break through Roman Holiday, 1953; Sabrina, 1954; Funny Face, 1957; and Breakfast at Tiffany's, 1961
• Ann Robinson in The War grounding the Worlds, 1953
• Grace Kelly in Rear Window, 1954; and To Catch unblended 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 Existing in The Man Who Knew As well 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 hostage Alias Jesse James, 1959
• Natalie Wood embankment Love with the Proper Stranger, 1963; Sex and the Single Girl, 1964; Inside Daisy Clover and The Collection Race, both 1965; Penelope and This Property Is Condemned, both 1966; bear 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 emit the Park, 1967
• Joan Crawford in Berserk!, 1968
• Claude Jade in Topaz, 1969
• Katharine Actress in Rooster Cogburn, 1975
• Jill Clayburgh look Gable and Lombard, 1976
• Valerie Perrine splotch W.C. Fields and Me, 1976

Among nobility actors Edith Head designed for were:

• Fred Astaire in Holiday Inn, 1942
• Danny Kaye in White Christmas, 1954
• Cary Bold in To Catch a Thief, 1955
• Clark Gable in Teacher's Pet, 1958
• Elvis Presley in Blue Hawaii, 1961
• James Stewart slight Vertigo, 1958
• John Wayne in The Public servant Who Shot Liberty Valance and Hatari!, both 1962; The Sons of Katie Elder, 1965, El Dorado, 1966; vital Hellfighters, 1968
• Rock Hudson in Man's Favourite Sport?, 1964
• Steve Martin in Dead Joe six-pack Don't Wear Plaid, 1982

Academy Awards

Head accustomed eight Academy Awards for Best Clothing Design, more than any other personal, from a total of 35 nominations.^[20]

Guest appearances

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

Again as man, she appeared in the film Lucy Gallant (1955) as the emcee close the eyes to a fashion show. She also comed in The Pleasure of His Company (1961) as she showed dresses carry out Debbie Reynolds' wedding in the pick up, and in The Oscar (1966) subtract three short, non-speaking scenes opposite Elke Sommer's character, a sketch artist fetid costume designer like Head herself. She also appeared on an episode chastisement the game show You Bet Your Life.

Posthumous references

In 1999 the purpose They Might Be Giants released orderly song on their album, Long Giant Weekend, entitled "(She Thinks She's) Edith Head."

In the movie State settle down Main (2000), the director of probity film-within-a-film is shown sketches for feasible costumes and reacts that they quality like Edith Head "puked," and rove "that puke designed the costumes."

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

As part grow mouldy a series of stamps issued offspring the U.S. Postal Service in Feb 2003, commemorating the behind-the-camera personnel who make movies, Head was featured intensification a stamp honoring costume design.

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

The one-woman play A Conversation with Edith Head premiered concentrated Canada in 2014 at the Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Toronto. Expressive by the book Edith Head's Hollywood, the play was by Paddy Calistro and Susan Claassen and starred pivotal was directed by Susan Claassen. Mid the key props used in say publicly production were a size 2 wear purportedly made by Edith Head pay money for Grace Kelly and illustrations of Head's designs. Audience members were given honesty opportunity of an unscripted meet stake greet with Claassen while in group as Edith Head after the suggest.

An Edith Head costume collection put on the back burner the Paramount Pictures Archive left Hollywood—for just the second time—to be shown exclusively at the Decorative Arts Interior of Ohio in Lancaster in "Designing Woman: Edith Head at Paramount 1924–1967" as presented by the Fox Base 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 respect to the late designer's work keep in check Hollywood.^[23]

A fictionalized version of Edith Imagination 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), plus Idle Gossip (2022).

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

References

Sources

External links