Vera West
Vera West (born June 28, 1900 in New York City , † June 29, 1947 in Los Angeles ) was an American fashion and costume designer for films. From 1928 to 1947 she was the chief designer of Universal Pictures .
Life
Vera West attended the Philadelphia Institute of Design, where she learned tailoring from Lucile , a fashion designer with a wealthy clientele in London , Paris and New York. After graduating, West designed dresses for a fashion salon on Fifth Avenue in New York, whose customers were high society . In the mid-1920s she was forced to leave New York for personal, unknown reasons. She eventually went to Hollywood, where she found employment at Universal Pictures as a replacement for the over 60-year-old costume designer Lucia Coulter, and in 1928 rose to the position of chief designer at the film studio. The first production for which she made costumes based on her own designs was the Victor Hugo film The Man Who Laughs (1928) by German director Paul Leni . From then on, West was used as a costume designer for countless horror films by the studio. She was primarily responsible for the costumes for the female cast. For scenes that took place during the day, she preferred to dress the female characters in suits made of tweed or wool. Her evening dresses, which were similar to the style of Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel, were mostly white. West also appeared as a costume designer for numerous films in Universal's Sherlock Holmes series with Basil Rathbone in the lead role and for productions with the young Deanna Durbin . Stars such as Irene Dunne ( Magnificent Obsession , 1935), Marlene Dietrich ( The Great Bluff , 1939; The Buccaneer , 1942), and María Montez ( Arabian Nights , 1942; Ali Baba and the Forty Robbers , 1944; The Pirates , 1944) also dressed them for the canvas. In early 1947 West left Universal and devoted himself again to haute couture with a fashion collection for a salon in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel .
Vera West was married to the businessman Jack C. West. On June 29, 1947, she was found dead in the pool of her Los Angeles home. Based on two notes she left that indicated she had been blackmailed for years, the police suspected she was suicide by drowning. However, the exact circumstances of death could never be fully clarified. West found her final resting place in the Great Mausoleum in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale .
Filmography (selection)
- 1928: The Man Who Laughs
- 1932: The Mummy ( The Mummy )
- 1935: Diamond Jim ( Diamond Jim )
- 1935: what happened yesterday? ( Remember Last Night? )
- 1935: Magnificent Obsession
- 1936: Next Time We Love
- 1936: Magnificent Brute
- 1938: Mad About Music
- 1938: Whirlwind from Paris ( The Rage of Paris )
- 1938: That Certain Age
- 1939: Frankenstein's son ( Son of Frankenstein )
- 1939: Honesty is the best ( You Can not Cheat an Honest Man )
- 1939: First Love
- 1939: The Executioner of London ( Tower of London )
- 1939: The Great Bluff ( Destry Rides Again )
- 1940: The Invisible Man Returns ( The Invisible Man Returns )
- 1940: My Little Chickadee ( My Little Chickadee )
- 1940: Black Friday ( Black Friday )
- 1940: The gang of five ( When the Daltons Rode )
- 1940: Spring Parade
- 1940: The Bank Dick ( The Bank Dick )
- 1940: The Invisible Woman ( The Invisible Woman )
- 1940: The House of the Seven Gables
- 1941: This Woman Is Mine
- 1941: Beware of ghosts! ( Hold That Ghost )
- 1941: It Started with Eve ( It Started with Eve )
- 1941: Give no sucker a chance ( Never Give a Sucker to even break )
- 1941: consultation for Love ( Appointment for Love )
- 1941: The Wolf Man ( The Wolf Man )
- 1941: The devil breaks loose in hell! ( Hellzapoppin ' )
- 1942: Frankenstein returns ( The Ghost of Frankenstein )
- 1942: The Spoilers ( The Spoilers )
- 1942: Invisible Agent ( Invisible Agent )
- 1942: Abbott and Costello among cannibals ( Pardon My Sarong )
- 1942: The Voice of Terror ( Sherlock Holmes and the Voice of Terror )
- 1942: The Secret Weapon ( Sherlock Holmes and The Secret Weapon )
- 1942 Arabian Nights ( Arabian Nights )
- 1943: Shadow of a Doubt ( Shadow of a Doubt )
- 1943: The Amazing Mrs. Holliday
- 1943: Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man ( Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man )
- 1943: Fateful Journey ( Sherlock Holmes in Washington )
- 1943: Hers to Hold
- 1943: Phantom of the Opera ( Phantom of the Opera )
- 1943: Ghosts in the Castle ( Sherlock Holmes Faces Death )
- 1943: The Second Face ( Flesh and Fantasy )
- 1943: Dracula's son ( Son of Dracula )
- 1943: The Stubenfee ( His Butler's Sister )
- 1943: The Spider's Nest ( Sherlock Holmes and The Spider Woman )
- 1944: Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves ( Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves )
- 1944: Witness wanted ( Phantom Lady )
- 1944: Follow the Boys
- 1944: The Serpent ( Cobra Woman )
- 1944: Christmas holidays ( Christmas Holiday )
- 1944: The Pearl of the Borgia ( The Pearl of Death )
- 1944: The Merry Monahans
- 1944: House of Frankenstein ( House of Frankenstein )
- 1944: Under Suspicion ( The Suspect )
- 1945: The Woman in Green ( The Woman in Green )
- 1945: Dangerous Mission ( Pursuit to Algiers )
- 1945: The love of our lives ( This Love of Ours )
- 1946: Jewel theft ( Terror by Night )
- 1946: The werewolf of London ( She-Wolf of London )
- 1946: Hunting for music boxes ( Dressed to Kill )
- 1946: Forgotten Hour ( Black Angel )
- 1946: The wonderful doll ( Magnificent Doll )
- 1947: The Pirates of Monterey ( Pirates of Monterey )
literature
- West, Vera . In: Elizabeth Leese: Costume Design in the Movies: An Illustrated Guide to the Work of 157 Great Designers . Dover Publications, 1991, ISBN 0-486-26548-X , p. 124.
Web links
- Vera West in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Vera West in the database of Find a Grave (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ West, Vera . In: Allan R. Ellenberger: Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries: A Directory . McFarland & Company Incorporated Pub, 2001, p. 76.
- ↑ a b c Derek McCormack: Vera West . thefanzine.com, July 21, 2005.
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | West, Vera |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American fashion and costume designer |
DATE OF BIRTH | June 28, 1900 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | New York City |
DATE OF DEATH | June 29, 1947 |
Place of death | los Angeles |