Gilbert Adrian

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Gilbert Adrian (born March 3, 1903 in Naugatuck , Connecticut ; † September 13, 1959 in Hollywood , Los Angeles , California ; actually Adrian Adolph Greenberg ) was one of the most famous and influential costume designers in Hollywood under the name Adrian .

Life

Adrian designed the red shoes that Judy Garland wore in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz .

After training at the New York School for Applied and Fine Arts (today's Parsons Design School ) and doing some work for the revue George White's Scandals , he went to Hollywood, where he initially worked for Rudolph Valentino . His breakthrough came when he designed Mae Murray's costumes for The Merry Widow at MGM in 1925 . He stayed with MGM for nearly 20 years and quickly rose to become one of Hollywood's most influential designers. Adrian had the largest budget of any designer in Hollywood and by far the largest workforce. His sometimes very lush designs soon became trademarks of MGM films. He worked with each of the top female stars and developed individual solutions as required: at Norma Shearer the problem was her wide hips and short legs, which had to be concealed. Adrian designed some of his most elaborate costumes for the 1938 Shearer film Marie Antoinette .

Greta Garbo was famous for her flawless face, so the clothes couldn't be too distracting. This is probably one of the reasons why the actress often wore unusual hats, such as the cloche in Mistress of Love from 1928, a beret in the style of Empress Eugénie in the film Romance , a Jarmulke in Mata Hari from the following year and a somewhat bizarre creation called Pillbox in Der colorful veil from 1934, in which Garbo expressly does not wear the veil that gives the title. The best known, however, are the designs for Garbo's historical films, such as the collar from Queen Christine , which made its way into everyday fashion in a simplified form, especially in Europe. Barry Paris reports in his Garbo biography that the costumes that Garbo wore in How You Want Me in 1932, including a spectacular black trouser suit, were a deliberate caricature of the wardrobe that Marlene Dietrich would show in her films.

However, he designed his most famous creations for Joan Crawford . The actress had pronounced broad shoulders and strong hips. So far, attempts have usually been made to cover up the blemish, but in the film Letty Lynton , Adrian deliberately took the opposite path. He took up an idea from Elsa Shiaparelli from Paris and emphasized the shoulders with cushions. These shoulder pads became a Crawford trademark for the rest of their careers. Adrian once joked that his career was built on the shoulders of Joan Crawford. When Adrian received the commission in 1941 to dress Greta Garbo for her film The Woman with Two Faces as a typical American woman , he ended the collaboration with MGM with the words: "When the glamor goes for Garbo, it goes for me as well."

He became a very successful independent designer. At the personal request of Joan Crawford, however, he designed her costumes for the films Humoresque from 1946 and Unrestrained Love from the following year.

Adrian's grave in Hollywood Forever Cemetery

Adrian's favorite designs included a skin-tight creation that Kay Johnson wore in the 1930 film Madame Satan and a gold lamé trouser suit that Greta Garbo presented in Mata Hari . However, one of his most influential designs was a white organdy dress with puff sleeves that Joan Crawford presented at Letty Lynton in 1932. The model was sold as a simplified copy at Macy’s and was worn by millions of American women during the season. He has never been nominated for an Oscar.

Adrian was married to actress Janet Gaynor since 1939 .

Filmography (selection)

Adrian was head of the costume department at MGM and was thus responsible for most of the films up to 1941. In this respect, only a selection of important films can be made. Among other things, he designed the costumes for the most important films by Greta Garbo, Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford and Marion Davies .

literature

  • Howard Gutner: Gowns by Adrian. The MGM Years, 1928-1941. Harry N. Abrams, New York NY 2001, ISBN 0-8109-0898-0 .

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Adrian, Gilbert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Greenberg, Adrian Adolph
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American costume designer
DATE OF BIRTH March 3, 1903
PLACE OF BIRTH Naugatuck , Connecticut
DATE OF DEATH September 13, 1959
Place of death Los Angeles , California