Featured in Box Set Celebrating Columbia's Centennial and HIS GIRL FRIDAY

 

Happy New Year! 2024 is the 100th anniversary of Columbia Pictures and I'm excited to announce I have my own featurette included in a 4K boxed set that will be released February 13 to celebrate the studio's centennial. I spoke about His Girl Friday (1940) and its costume designer Robert Kalloch. It's a fascinating story with many layers (in more ways than one).

Of course Kalloch's contributions to Columbia don't end there. As the studio's head costume designer from 1932 to 1940, his work also included the equally iconic wardrobe in It Happened One Night (1934) along with Twentieth Century (1934), The Awful Truth (1937), and Holiday (1938).

As you know, I always love showing the ongoing influence of classic film and its costume design. If you watched The Morning Show this past season, Jennifer Aniston wore a pinstripe suit from Dolce & Gabbana for her character's final power move. Of course its origins are courtesy of Kalloch and Rosalind Russell in His Girl Friday.

The limited-edition box set features other Columbia Classics through the decades, such as Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), and Sleepless in Seattle (1993). Click here to see the full list of films and all the extras that are included in this new collection. Because of the new release, I appeared on The Extras podcast with Steven Smith to discuss everything from the early days of Columbia Pictures to exploring even more of what makes His Girl Friday so great.

With director Steven Smith - in navy pinstripe dress, of course - on location for filming featurette

Kalloch's style story for Rosalind Russell in His Girl Friday 

starts with this striped coat and coordinated hat

His Girl Friday's iconic pinstripe suit has inspired countless others in film and fashion,

including the Dolce & Gabbana suit Jennifer Aniston wears in the climax of The Morning Show

Kalloch designed many celebrated wardrobes in film for Columbia including (clockwise from top left)

The Awful Truth (1937), Holiday (1938), It Happened One Night (1934), and Twentieth Century (1934)

Expert in TCM's FOLLOW THE THREAD Mini-Documentaries

 

Last summer Turner Classic Movies celebrated film costume design with its Follow the Thread series. Inspired by the Met Exhibition, fashion designers, costume designers, and historians spoke to the complexity and impact of costume design in film. The films in the three-month event were accompanied by mini-documentaries on various aspects of fashion in film. I am one of the Special Guests featured in these programs, including Dressed to Kill: Films, Crime, and Fashion and The Stars and Their Designers.

Originally those programs could only be seen on TCM and on HBO Max, but now they are also available on YouTube as well. You can watch them on my YouTube channel and I also share them with you below. 

Speaking about influential costume design with the TCM production team at the historic Roosevelt Hotel

Guest on THE JAN PRICE SHOW Podcast

 

On July 2, I was a guest on the podcast The Jan Price Show. It's all about the movies and she's interviewed people we know and love, including Turner Classic Movies hosts Ben Mankiewicz and Eddie Muller. Jan and I covered a lot in our conversation - from the origins of my interest in costume design to my book Film Noir Style to TCM's great Follow the Thread series. We also discussed many of the reasons Marilyn Monroe's gown should never have been worn at the Met Gala. You can watch on the YouTube player or just listen below. I hope you enjoy our conversation!

Special Guest on TCM's FOLLOW THE THREAD Series

As I continue my History of Fashion in Film series online - the 1920s can be viewed on demand and the 1930s are July 17 - Turner Classic Movies (TCM) has launched their own series celebrating costume design called Follow the Thread. Inspired by the Met Exhibition and hosted by Alicia Malone, fashion designers and costume designers speak to the complexity and impact of costume design in film. It airs every Saturday night in June and July. 

TCM has made this an even bigger event with more programming on HBO Max. The 72 films featured there will be accompanied by mini-documentaries on various aspects of fashion in film. I am one of the Special Guests featured in these programs, which can also be seen in interstitials in between movies on air. You will find me included in The Stars and Their Designers and Dressed to Kill: Films, Crime, and Fashion. 

I shot my segments during the TCM Classic Film Festival in April with producer Courtney O'Brien (pictured above) and director Anne McGill Wilson. Their invitation actually came as a complete surprise. The TCM Talent team reached out to me while I was hiking atop the Santa Monica mountains, and they sent a car to whisk me across town to the Roosevelt Hotel for the shoot. I have known many of TCM's production team for years, so it was a wonderful afternoon.

Speaking about the influential costume design on air

Have fun with Follow the Thread 

and I'll see you in July for the History of Fashion in Film 1930s!

FILM NOIR STYLE Author Conversation at the Larry Edmunds Bookshop

On February 27, I joined Larry Edmunds Bookshop owner Jeff Mantor for a conversation about my book Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s. It was the first virtual event the store has ever had and I was honored to be their guest. Jeff and I spoke for an hour about just about everything - the origins of my love for classic cinema, how I chose the cover and 20 movies for the book, my writing process, costume design vs. fashion design, and all things film noir. Our enthusiastic audience was filled with many of our film family, so we also enjoyed an extended Q&A afterward. 

In case you missed it live, you can now watch the conversation on Larry Edmunds' new YouTube channel or through the player below. Enjoy!

I chose a vintage (real) leopard coat to discuss all things Film Noir Style

FILM NOIR STYLE Featured on Vancouver's OUR CITY TONIGHT

It's been such a busy last few weeks, so I'm playing a little bit of catch up here on GlamAmor. On February 21, hosts Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins interviewed me about my book Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s for Vancouver's Our City Tonight! We had great fun discussing a lot of the elements of film noir - from the impact of rationing on the design to the role of the costume designer in assisting the femmes fatales to the strong women who are ever-present in the genre. Watch the interview on the Our City Tonight site or through the player below. Enjoy!

In honor of all the blouses and pencil skirts in noir,I wore a vintage silk blouse with a black pencil skirt for this conversation

Jim and Leeta LOVE the book!

FILM NOIR STYLE Featured on Seattle's New Day Northwest

 

This past week, host Amity Addrisi interviewed me about my book Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s for Seattle's New Day Northwest! It was something of a homecoming since I grew up in Central Washington, and many friends and family live in the Seattle area. We had fun discussing many of the films and actresses we all love from the genre - from Veronica Lake to Rita Hayworth - as well as the influence of film noir on 2021 fashion.  Watch the interview on the New Day Northwest site or through the player below. Enjoy!

There was a chill in the air in LA when I did the interview,

so I wore a red vintage sweater dress

Interviewed by Film Critic Nell Minow for the Motion Picture Association

One of the people who reached out to me about my book Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s was the incomparable Nell Minow. Nell is a renowned film critic whose own list of credits is long - writing for countless newspapers from the Chicago Sun-Times to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal as well as reviewing movies each week on radio stations across the United States and Canada. She is also a member of the Online Film Critics Society, the Broadcast Film Critics Association, and the Association of Women Film Journalists. To say that it was honor to speak with Nell about film is an understatement.

Adding to the excitement was that the Motion Picture Association wanted to publish the interview on their website The Credits. They loved our conversation so much that they published it in two parts rather than edit anything down. It was such fun and particularly special because Nell's daughter is a costume designer (who has been to my events at the Egyptian Theatre and online!). Thanks to both the MPA as well as the brilliant Nell Minow. It's definitely the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Read Part I of the interview

Read Part II of the interview

FILM NOIR STYLE Featured on Chicago's WGN Morning News

After being featured in The Hollywood Reporter, the excitement surrounding the launch of Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s continued with this week's appearance on the WGN Morning News! It was such fun to discuss the book with the hosts of Chicago's #1 morning show. Many of you watched it on Thursday, but the interview is now available online in case you missed it live.

For a discussion of Film Noir Style,

I chose a purple vintage shirtdress with a wing collar,

which was beloved by Orry-Kelly in his 1940s designs

FILM NOIR STYLE Featured in THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

 

It's been a wonderful whirlwind since the launch of Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s on January 12. That started with the almost immediate - and surprise - coverage of my book in The Hollywood Reporter! THR is an iconic magazine that has been part of the industry since 1930, so it's an incredible honor to find my work in its pages. And classic film fans will appreciate the fact that I'm featured right next to the talented Cicely Tyson and a book about her life in the print magazine (images of that below). The piece is also available online, so you can read about Film Noir Style on the The Hollywood Reporter website. Thanks to writer Laurie Brookins for a real "pinch me" moment.

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Reviews - and Loves - FILM NOIR STYLE

Update 9/21/20: Due to COVID's impact on the publishing industry, the launch of Film Noir Style has been delayed until January 2021.

It is now about a month away from the September 29 launch of my book Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s! The first review is in and it's a big one. Publishers Weekly is the "bible of the book industry" and informs librarians, book sellers, consumer media, agents, and other industry stakeholders around the world what books are new and notable. A good review from them, particularly with non-fiction work, is really an achievement and I'm thrilled to announce they loved Film Noir Style. You can read their review on the Publishers Weekly site or below.

And as if that wasn't good enough, the reviewer actually sought me out and emailed to expand upon the official review, starting with "I wanted to share with you how truly impressed I was with the book! It is a fine example of how culturally relevant film has been - and continues to be - and why it is important to study all aspects of film, not just the stars and directors."

Of course Film Noir Style focuses on the contributions of the costume designers, but also celebrates the cinematographers, screenwriters, and other artists who were involved in the production of the 20 influential films featured in the book. Considering that it's the goal of any film historian to inspire people to watch these movies and understand their importance, I could not be more pleased or proud by the review.

The official launch date of Film Noir Style may be September 29, but you can pre-order the book on Amazon now!