Icon Of The Week: Edith Head
Chances are, you might not have heard the name Edith Head. But I can almost guarantee that you'd be familiar with most of the work from her 54-year career in fashion. Because let me tell you, Head is celebrated in the industry more than Coco Chanel in terms of styling, and Patricia Fields as stylist. This is her story - it's quite extraordinary.
Head was born Edith Claire Posener in Nevada, daughter to a mining engineer, though she moved to California at an early age. At the start of her career, she worked as a language teacher, though a year after, the high school became understaffed, and she was asked to teach art as well. It was during this time that she discovered her innate aptitude for shapes, figures and outfits. So when the Famous Players-Lasky Studios announced that they were hiring sketch artists in 1924, she applied for the job using a portfolio with borrowed drawings from her art students. They undeservedly hired her on the spot without any prior experience.
Head, however, earned her credentials with her golden touch. Her first project as an assistant on Wings, won the first ever Oscar for Best Picture in 1928. Head continued in this position for ten years. In the mean time, Famous Players-Lasky stationed itself to evolve into Paramount Pictures, the perfect springboard for Head. In 1933, Head was promoted to designer, starting with She Done Him Wrong, starring Mae West. And five years later, she became the studio's top designer, the first woman to ever hold that title in Hollywood.
Head stayed with Paramount for another 29 years after that, though they often loaned her expertise to other studios at the request of their stars. She took the time to win eight Oscars and get nominated for 35 Academy Awards for her work. She also took the opportunity to create some of the most iconic Hollywood fashion images of her time. This includes:
Angela Lansbury and Hedy Lamarr in Samson and Delilah (1949)
Bette Davis in All About Eve (1950)
Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday (1953)
Ann Robinson in War of the Worlds (1953)
Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief (1955)
Marlene Dietrich in Witness For The Prosecution (1957)
Tippi Hedren in The Birds (1963)
What made Head different during her time, was her low-key working style and her attention to detail. Her work was always trendsetting, but appropriately fitted to her stars' body shapes. And unlike most of her competition, she worked closely and extensively with her female stars, making her a favourite to many including Ginger Rogers, Shirley MacLaine, Barbara Stanwyck, Elizabeth Taylor, and Audrey Hepburn.
Working with Hepburn however, usually ensued complications. In 1954, Hepburn was sent to Hubert de Givenchy to decide on her wardrobe for Sabrina. Shortly after, they developed a long lasting friendship, and she became his muse. The fruition from their relationship culminated in her wearing his designs in most of her films. This sprouted complications in terms of credibility, right from the start.
Head won the Oscar for Sabrina, despite most of Hepburn's outfits being self-picked and created by Givenchy. But because Head refused to be shown alongside the designer in the movie credits, she garnered all the acclamation for the awards. It didn't help that Head didn't refuse the Oscar. The incident built a life-long tabloid feud between Givenchy and Head, and garnered the latter a notorious reputation for stealing due credit. Her own work, however, was undeniably remarkable.
In 1967, Head left Paramount Pictures to join Universal Studios, where she remained until her death in 1981. However, because studio-based film production began to decline, and most of the then Hollywood icons were retiring, her work wasn't as renowned. She was however, recognised for styling Katherine Hepburn in Rooster Cogburn (1975).
The one person Head regretfully never had the privilege of styling was Marilyn Monroe. Apparently, Monroe was extremely careful about her sex appeal, and always entrusted herself to designers with the formal training that Head lacked.
Nevertheless, Head launched the fashion iconicisms of almost everyone in Hollywood during her time. In fact, her personal style became distinctly renowned as well. Head was known to wear a Dutch boy cut hairstyle, paired with dark round sunglasses. Originally, she wore blue lenses to see how clothing would appear in black and white. Later on, she changed them to darker shades of gray.
Her look even inspired The Incredibles' Edna Mode in 2004!
So what do you think of Edith Head?
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