Documenting the work of costume designers on film & TV across the decades
It was only two days ago that I found out that costume designer, and nemesis to classic film fans and costume design enthusiasts everywhere, Jean-Pierre Dorleac, died last month. He was 83 years old, and had no funeral or memorial service. His @spclsmthin Twitter account was deleted days before his death was made public. I will be upfront; Dorleac was one reason I stopped updating this blog as…
Note: Yes I am still going through and fixing up older articles, and splitting them apart into 'new' articles. After Doctor Who (which I really want to be done with!), we'll see if I do new ones... 'The Dominators' Costume Design by Martin Baugh Two main types of costumes were designed for the peaceful 'Dulcians'; the women wore a type of miniskirt dress with the skirt segment made of chiffon, and…
Note: Yes I am still going through and fixing up older articles, and splitting them apart into 'new' articles. After Doctor Who (which I really want to be done with!), we'll see if I do new ones... 'Tomb of the Cybermen' Costume Design by Alexandra Tynan aka Sandra Reid I feel the v-collar shirts worn by Shirley Cooklin as Kaftan and Roy Stewart as Toberman were custom-made for the serial, as they…
Note: Yes I am still going through and fixing up older articles, and splitting them apart into 'new' articles. After Doctor Who (which I really want to be done with!), we'll see if I do new ones... 'The Tenth Planet' Costume Design by Alexandra Tynan aka Sandra Reid This serial marked one of the first notable serials to no longer have Daphne Dare as costume designer. While the serial's guest cast…
Note: Yes I am still going through and fixing up older articles, and splitting them apart into 'new' articles. After Doctor Who (which I really want to be done with!), we'll see if I do new ones... 'Galaxy 4' Costume Design by Daphne Dare A set of futuristic uniforms were designed for the actresses playing the 'Drahvin' aliens. The design evokes matron uniforms, with vinyl panelling over shoulders…
Note: Yes I am still going through and fixing up older articles, and splitting them apart into 'new' articles. After Doctor Who (which I really want to be done with!), we'll see if I do new ones... 'The Rescue' Costume Design by Daphne Dare A futuristic dress was designed for Maureen O'Brien to wear as the new companion Vicki, a resident of the far future. The miniskirt dress had short sleeves and…
Note: Yes I am still going through and fixing up older articles, and splitting them apart into 'new' articles. After Doctor Who (which I really want to be done with!), we'll see if I do new ones... The original Doctor Who was a daunting task for any costume designer assigned to it, both for the ambitious demands of the scripts, and the reality of the show's low budget. Another difficult was that…
'Warriors of the Deep' Costume Design by Judy Pepperdine Several futuristic uniforms were designed and made for the serial's guest cast. Judy Pepperdine came up with a wide-shouldered, double-breasted jacket and trousers, with pockets sewn in around the elbows and ankles. Each uniform had strips of fabric around the shoulders, with a panel of white fabric embroidered on the back. Partly to help…
'The Happiness Patrol' Costume Design by Richard Croft Croft designed a double-breasted jacket and skirt made of crushed red velvet for Sheila Hancock as the dictator Helen A, the outfit complimented by the gaudy wig and makeup. The double-breasted jacket gave an authoritarian nature, befitting the character's role. Croft also designed a set of wide-sleeved, loosely cut jackets, with lighter…
'Attack of the Cybermen' Costume Design by Anushia Nieradzik Anushia Nieradzik's costuming duties mostly went to the Cryons, a race of crystalline aliens. All the Cryon performers were women, and so Nieradzike made a set of bodysuits coated in panels of pearlescent material. The bodysuits were adorned with plastic cuffs and collars to complement the prosthetic makeups. A mesh cape coated in panels…
'Terror of the Autons' Costume Design by Ken Trew One of Ken Trew's main tasks was to revamp Pertwee's costume; Trew's new look consisted of a maroon velvet smoking jacket with black cord piping, and worn with a black Inverness cape lined with purple silk. From this point on, Pertwee's various jackets and capes would be tailored for his role in the series. Ken Trew also designed a nehru-style suit…
'Day of the Daleks' Costume Design by Mary Husband The Daleks' ape-like Ogron soldiers wear a uniform consisting of a vinyl vest with tubing around the shoulders and collar. Over the vest are two brown sashes, and worn underneath is a custom-made garment consisting of two sleeves made of a netted material, with cuffs made of the same fabric as the sashes. Worn with the vest are brown trousers,…
(Note: James Acheson's duties for 'Terror of the Zygons' mostly went to designing the Zygon costumes and outsourcing their construction. I assume the alterations to Tom Baker's costume - namely the addition of a waistcoat - consisted of either stock or bought costumes). 'Planet of Evil' Costume Design by Andrew Rose Set on another planet in a plot ripping off Forbidden Planet , the military…
'The Time Warrior' Costume Design by James Acheson This serial was set in the Middle Ages; no doubt all the extras and bit-parts were all in reused wardrobe stock. While there are design drawings by Acheson for David Daker and John J. Carney's roles as the warlords Irongron and Bloodaxe, these could have been done after doing a wardrobe test from stock garments, to 'finalize' the look of the…
(Note: As I am still going through older articles and fixing them up with newer images, once again expect to see several 'new' articles that are just redressed old ones in the next few weeks, especially for Doctor Who . There may be some entirely new articles on other productions in the next few months though, so watch this space.) 'Four to Doomsday' Costume Design by Colin Lavers Alhough this was…
Costume Design by Morton Haack Note: Originally, the sequel's costumes were included in my article on the original film , but I have recently redone that article and decided the sequel should be in its own article! Some 'new' articles coming up very soon will just be older articles being split apart as this blog's being slowly refurbished! Morton Haack's returned as costume designer the first…
Costume Design by Francine Jamison-Tanchuck A campy 90s tech thriller, Virtuosity is for the most part plainclothes. While there is little available information on the film's costuming, it can be assumed the bulk of it was all bought contemporary clothing. Some of the film's few bespoke-made costumes are the suits worn by Russell Crowe as the homicidal android Sid 6.7. Crowe's suits were…
Costume Design by Danilo Donati Costume designer Danilo Donati had previously worked with Benigni on 1994's The Monster and would work with him again on 2002's Pinocchio ; Donati's experience on Fascist-era period productions like Fellini's Amarcord and Pasolini's Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom - both of which are far superior films to Benigni's tasteless exercise in cutesying up the Holocaust -…
Costume Design by Danilo Donati The design sense of Salo , Pier Paolo Pasolini's infamously bleak and grotesque final film, is in stark contrast to his previous works, with perhaps the clearest difference seen in the costumes. Donati's costumes for Pasolini's 'Trilogy of Life' utilized bright colours, while the costumes for Salo are in various muted hues of grey, black, white and brown; the…
Costume Design by Piero Tosi One wonders how much director Liliana Cavani was inspired by Luchino Visconti's The Damned when making The Night Porter (aka Il portiere di notte ). Not only do both films star Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling, but both share Piero Tosi as costume designer. And just like in The Damned , Tosi had the costumes fabricated at the Tirelli Costumi costume house. The 1950s…
Costume Design by Piero Tosi Luchino Visconti's The Damned (aka La caduta degli dei in its native Italy) centred on a family of perverted industrialists who manipulate one another as they curry favour with Hitler's new regime. Costume designer Piero Tosi had to recreate 1930s German upper class fashion, but not copy the glitz and glamour associated with American movie stars of the era.In an…
Now, this may seem like a bit of an odd choice to talk about here; after all, it's not actually costumes, real tangible objects that exist and remain after filming is done. But really, I feel makeup in movies is adjacent to costume design as it is also about establishing a look for a character, and often the costume designer has a hand in designing the look of the facial makeup; this happens with…
Costume Design by Theodor Pistek A gloomy thriller focusing on an evil automobile corporation; said corporation's minions play with the film's vampirism themes by wearing blood red and black clothing. The corporation's owner, Madame Ferat (Zdenka Procházková), is introduced wearing a ruffled black top with large cuffs, and a black and blood red scarf. I feel Ferat's other costumes in the film were…
Costume Design by William Ware Theiss A pilot film for a prospective Gene Rodenberry series that never came to fruition; Gene Rodenberry would rework the concept into Planet Earth a year later. Set in the far future, where protagonist Dylan Hunt (Alex Cord) is awakened by members of PAX, whose members wear futuristic jumpsuits with baggy sleeves and buttons on the shoulders and come in a variety…
Hey anyone who's been checking out this blog still; life's been a little hectic these last few months, so I've not been updating this as much; combined with social media turning out to be even more of a crock thanks to Boer billionaires, even Blogger's starting to feel uncertain as a platform. Though I'd hope that Google isn't run by quite as insane people, the net already feels like in such a bad…