Irene’s Design for Claudette Colbert
Just came across a new article about my grand-aunt Irene and one of her designs for actress Claudette Colbert in the movie No Time for Love in 1943, posted by allsewnup.com. Irene is listed as the “Costume and Wardrobe Department” for this movie and I believe was working for MGM at this time. You can see this article, that includes photo snippets from the movie, here.
Hi Karlyn,
Thank you for your kind post and link.
I’ve admired your great-aunt’s work for a long time. Irene’s attention to detail and creativity is evident in every one of her designs. I’m really glad to see you posting about her. She was a great lady and deserves high recognition for her talent!
I would love to buy a copy of the book being written about her. I bought “American Fashion” a few years ago with the hope that she was in it. While all the other major players were in it, It was disturbing to see she was not mentioned.
Can you tell us where the book is sold if it is? Thank You again!
Gidget´s last blog post..Irene Lentz-Gibbons 1943 Smock
How cool! I recently found some stuff on my great great grandfather online. I remember when you first posted about your aunt on here.
Stefani´s last blog post..Sharon Bolton Scents Review
Hi Gidget: Congrats on your Irene pattern from No Time for Love, and you have indeed recreated something that probably doesn’t exist, since Irene never sold patterns, nor have any of her old ones survived, according to my research for the book. She did not even have any in the popular “Hollywood Patterns,” of apparel worn by stars and designed by famous designers.
She was always ahead of the trends, and here’s some info. about her designs for Claudette Colbert in No Time for Love:
An evening gown Irene did for Claudette Colbert is illustrated on a lobby card for the 1943 film No Time for Love. The picture was released in 1943 by Paramount, a year after Irene assumed her executive designer position at MGM. Since Irene’s contract there forbad designing outside the studio or for retail, she must have done Colbert’s No Time for Love wardrobe prior to July of 1942, before she closed her Bullock’s Wilshire salon and went to work at MGM as executive designer.
The lobby card shows Colbert pulling at a man’s shirt in a saloon brawling scene. Her red and white evening gown had a lace bodice with long lace sleeves. Apparently of a shiny material such as satin, it is cut with an irregular flounce below the hipline and the skirt becomes fuller in front.
Other fashions Irene created for Colbert in No Time for Love had contrasting light and dark colors contributing a dramatic flare to various scenes. Another interesting and innovative Irene design is a “pant suit,” called in those days “slack suit” (a version also worn by Colbert in Skylark.) A film still from No Time for Love shows Colbert with co-star Fred MacMurray at a photographic session; she wears a white chiffon blouse with full leg-o’mutton sleeves accented at the neck by a frilly jabot. Over the blouse Colbert wears a black jumper-like tunic and matching slacks, a very forward and contemporary trend, even today.
Good luck with your pattern-making of Irene fashions! Tomas
Thank You for your comments! I’ve really enjoyed reading the background information that you provided and will print it out for my Irene files!
It truly is disturbing to see that Irene was basically shunned in alot of the press about Hollywood fashion designers of the time period. She was an incredible designer with alot of forward thinking designs that certainly deserve recognition. Maybe they were just jealous. lol
I hope we haven’t hijacked the comments. Thank you for your website, Karlyn!
Gidget, comment as much as you like. I enjoy these discussions as much as you do. By the way, Thomas is the Author who is writing the book on Irene. He’s so knowledgeable about Irene’s Fashions and can share more on a particular topic than I can (like that below) because of his many years of research. It’s always a pleasure to hear from him, from you and all fans of Irene and her designs.
Thank You, Karlyn.
I cannot wait for your book, Thomas!
Hi Karlyn & Gidget: Thanks for respnding and right now I’m testing the ability to respond to Karlyn’s post cause my home computer has a dreadful overlay “permanent” popup which advertises “Crestock.com” creative stock images and below is “Ads by GOOGLE” covering part of the page. Anyway, glad we can get Irene’s message out, as her Grandniece Karlyn says, “she was overlooked by the Hollywood crowd.” Even today, they include all those who were self-promotional and not even as talented as Irene, but when I interviewed the late Stanley Marcus (of Neiman-Marcus) who was Irene’s mentor and investor in her stocks, whosaid she was low-keyed and not extroverted like Adrian or Jean-Louis, for example. And he knew them all. Even then, in his late 90s, he recalled her beautiful creations. She loved springtime and the last collection she did and which appeared the year after she died in Spring 1963 was called “Primavera,” Italian for spring. It received rave reviews by the press. I’ll post the writeup from the collection’s brochure if I’m sure this post gets through. Keep up the creative energy Gidget. Looks like you live in the middle of the country like me. Love the look of your garden being prepared by your brother and friend. Best wishes, Thomas
i recently found some info on my grandad who was in the war, havent photos changed over the years…
Hi Karlyn:
Another fact about your Great Aunt Irene: When Francois Lesage of the famous Parisian haute couture embroidery atelier was in L.A. in the late 1940s, he paid a visit to Irene at MGM and she ordered some embroideries for studio fashions. He remembered her to his family’s biographer Palmer White.
And another great French couturier (it might have been Dior), when Irene visited Paris one season, he sent to her hotel a bouquet of roses, but not an invitation to his fashion show, since it would have been considered rude for a designer to send to another designer, held in high esteem, a fashion show invitation.
So the legacy of Irene can be found in many sources; keep on the lookout!!
Tomas
Thomas, thank you so much for sharing that! I can’t wait to learn more! :)