nPostednon October 28, 2014
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Today’snfamous birthday holds a record for most Academy Awards in CostumenDesign.
Today’snfamous birthday holds a record for most Academy Awards in CostumenDesign.n
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nEightntimes she won an Oscar for her movie costumes!
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nEdithnHead had a long career, of course – she worked in the industry forn57 years! That’s more than half a century!
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nSo…let’snsee if we can figure out how to copy the amazing success Edith Headnhad. Like, how did she get her start in the movie-costume-makingnindustry? Did she get degrees or specialized training?
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nBriefnBio
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nInnHead’s case, the answer is “no.” No degree in costume design (ornfashion design), and no specialized training.
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nEdithnHead was born on this date in 1897 in San Bernardino, California. Hernname was Edith Claire Posener. She did get degrees: a B.A. In Frenchnfrom UC Berkeley and an M.A. in romance languages from Stanford. (Inncase you don’t know, those are both top schools.) She began to teachnFrench and art, and she married a man named Charles Head.nUnfortunately, the marriage didn’t last, but her new name – EdithnHead – did last from 1923 until her death in 1981.
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Inn1924, Head tried out for a job as a sketch artist for ParamountnPictures in Hollywood. And even though she had no experience in art,ndesign, or costume design, she got the job.
Inn1924, Head tried out for a job as a sketch artist for ParamountnPictures in Hollywood. And even though she had no experience in art,ndesign, or costume design, she got the job. n
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n(Later, she admitted thatnshe had done a really bad thing – she had borrowed others’ sketchesnfor her job interview!! Yikes!)
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nButnshe must’ve had talent, and she must’ve worked hard, because shenquickly became one of Hollywood’s leading designers. And this wasnback when movies were just starting to have sound!
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nDabblen in design yourself! Do you want to draw costumes for the good guysn and bad guys in a fantasy movie (the elves, orcs, and so forth)?n
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nOrn for a futuristic science-fiction movie? How about a movie set duringn Ancient Egyptian times…or during the 1400s in China?
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nDidn you notice that the character Edna Mode, in the Pixar movie Then Incredibles,n is an homage to Edith Head?n
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nNotn necessarily meant for kids, the website Clothes on Filmn gives some interesting info on movie costume design.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nOhinDay in Cyprus and Greece
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nAnniversarynof the opening of the Gateway Arch
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nPlannahead:
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nChecknout my Pinterest boards for:
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- Historicaln anniversaries in October
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nNovembern holidays
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nNovembern birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in November
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