Lights!
Camera!
Fashion!
Forget Hollywood. The new glamour center is right in
our own hometown Seventh Avenue. Not only are fashion shows
as tough to get into as movie openings, but the industry
inself has become the inspiration for a spate of films.
Paparazzi push, flashes pop and Hollywood stars elbow into
front-row seats. No, it's not a glitzy premiere party it's
the Todd Oldham show. Throngs of celebrity admirers are coming
east these days, paying homage to hot Seventh Avenue designers
and their supermodels. Isaac and Donna, Barbra and Madonna,
Cindy and Naomi-it's a love-fest of first-name fame.
Designer worship has hit a fever pitch as Hollywood trains
its cameras on the fashion world. Now upon us; "Unzipped", a
documentary about Isaac Mizrahi, and most hyped of all, Pret a Porter.
Director Robert Altman and company-Julia Roberts, Kim Basinger,
Sophia Loren-shooting at the shows over the past year set off a
deafening buzz in the business. A satirical look at the fashion world,
It premiered around Christmas and though it was not a blockbuster
hit it did ruffle a few designers' feathers!
Why all the breathless interest? It could have something to
do with a shortage of glamour in Hollywood these days. Movie stars
like Goldie Hawn and Julia Roberts are photographed looking downright
grungy, while supermodels dazzle day and night. And they're with the
most dashing actors-Linda Evangelista and Kyle McLaughlin, Claudia
Schiffer and David Copperfield.
"All the glamour is on Seventh Avenue now, not in Hollywood,"
says Paper magazine's Lauren Ezersky, also a contributor to The
Look On Line."Ava Gardner, Lana Turner, those women were done from
head to toe.Today's stars are a mess. The models are the stars,
they're the ones that always seem to look good." Designer Isaac
Mizrahi agrees, "Fashion does glamour on a regular, consistent
basis. Models have become the glamorous role models. In the past,
the glamour queens came out of a star system in Hollywood and
little girls emulated Rita Hayworth and Marilyn Monroe. Today,
little girls want to grow up to be Cindy Crawford."
In the heyday of cinema glamour, the studio designers dressed
the stars for films and for all the galas they graced. Edith Head
and William Travilla gave Paramount and MCM stars their signature
looks; Adrian launched a trend when he created Joan Crawford's
broad-shouldered silhouette. The big stars were full-time screen
sirens who wouldn't be caught dead in sweats, and dressed to thrill
at myriad glittering gatherings. "In those days there were constant
elegant parties-all the stars had glamour gowns galore in their
closets. Those days are gone," sighs Gene London, a film fashion
historian and collector.
Movie stars used to have everything made to order, now they
shop like the rest of us. Certain names, like Armani and Calvin Klein,
are almost "house" designers for the Oscars and individual actors,
in the spirit of Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn's artist/muse relationship.
To be fair, some actresses manage to pull together a bit of
dazzle. "Geena Davis and Sharon Stone are two stars working hard to
achieve old-style satin glamour, says London, "Hollywood chic should be
unspoken. You walk from your limousine to your seat and everyone gasps."
Truly elegant occasions are rare these days a fashion show is one
venue where style still counts. Some Hollywood people conspicuously
watch their wives or girlfriends. Celebrities like Mickey Rourke,
(estranged from model wife Carre Otis) hardly a fashion maven, now
pester designers like Todd Oldham for front-row seats. Insiders
complain about stars who drool over the girls and obstruct their view
of the runway. Whatever the motivation, and however sloppy the star,
they turn up regularly for a dose of the beat, the flash, the lights
a seasonal spectacle that's just another collection for jaded fashion
habitues.
But let's not forget-the love affair is mutual. Adds Mizrahi,
"All the designers see the movies and all the movie people see the
fashion shows. It's like a dialogue." For the truth is, designers
have always turned to Hollywood for inspiration. Now, the Forties
screen-siren satin bias cut, is back. And superstars in attendance
certainly doesn't hurt business. Designers may complain about celebrity
jostling, but they don't hesitate to put a famous face in the front row.
Right this way, Barbra, Richard, Madonna.
by Kate Bonn
E-Mail your comments to the editor
