Today is the Day!

"Pay No Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain."

-- The Wizard of Oz, 1939

I am proud to announce that my book debuts today! Designs on Film: A Century of Hollywood Art Direction (!t Books/Harper Collins, 2010) covers the evolving story of art direction from the silents to present day. Hundreds of images and renderings of every film style and genre -- many seen here for the first time -- are featured along with dozens of interviews with some of the cinema's top production designers, art directors and set decorators and written with the cooperation of the venerable Art Directors Guild.

My personal favorite sections are the behind the scenes stories along with Manhattan on Film, Italy on Film and the films from the forties and sixties. And of course Gone With the Wind, period sagas, fantasy films and the Big White Sets of the thirties. And the films of Nancy Meyers, my favorite designing director. It's all here from Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times and Ben Hur to Sunset Boulevard, North By Northwest and Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House to Citizen Kane, The Graduate, Chinatown and  The Age of Innocence to Titanic, Pride and Prejudice, Somethings Gotta Give and Avatar. You get the picture.

You can see more of the book at my website or get a sneak peak at the Art Directors Guild site. The book is available at a bookstore near you (if there are still standing!), Amazon, Borders, Barnes and Noble, etc. or if you would like to personalize a copy, you can email and purchase directly through me.

It's been a long and winding journey down the yellow brick road and I hope you enjoy it!

Photo Credits: Gosford Park/USA Films, MGM/Photofest/!t Books/Harper Collins

Shelf Life: The Season's Top Design Tomes

Many thanks to editor Wendy Goodman of New York Magazine for naming Designs on Film as one of the seasons "Top Design Tomes." I am proud to be in such wonderful company and you can read more about this and her selections here.

She cites the designs of Cleopatra (1963) as one of her favorites. I agree as these sets were some of the richest and most opulent in film history.

Elizabeth Taylor as the pampered Queen of the Nile

The film was one of the most expensive films ever made at that time

Filming was shot in England to look like Alexandria, Egypt and then moved to Italy, hence the inflated budget

I am a big fan of Wendy's work and be sure to catch her new book The World of Gloria Vanderbilt (Abrams, 2010) which debuted earlier in the month. The images and insider's view of the history of this renaissance woman are as stunning as the cover.

Photo Credits: Twentieth Century Fox, Abrams Books

All Things Royal

Word came across the pond this week of the engagement of Prince William and Kate (and was anyone really surprised?) and I have to wonder if this will be as celebrated, covered and commented on as the wedding of  Princess Diana and Charles. My guess is in this 24/7, celeb crazy news cycle we live in, the answer is yes. It will be the ultimate wedding reality show.

And speaking of the royals, word also came out recently that Keira Knightly will play the role of the ill-fated Princess and Helen Mirren as her mother, Frances Shand Kidd. Both Knightly and Mirren are no strangers to playing royals as The Dutchess and The Queen respectively were incredible performances.
The film is scheduled to debut around the time of what would have been Diana's 50th birthday. Lets hope the powers that be at Buckingham Palace keep that in mind when they set the upcoming wedding date.

Keira Knightly

One of the later shots of Diana

Shand-Kidd and Mirren

And for those of you who can't wait for the real thing, might I suggest renting the MGM musical Royal Wedding (1951). Fred Astaire and Jane Powell play a brother and sister dance team who find romance when they tour to London for the wedding of Elizabeth II. The film is noted for the complicated dance scene ("You're All the World To Me") where Astaire hoofs with a clothes tree and on the walls and ceiling of his hotel room while Powell is romanced by Lord John Brindale (played by Peter Lawford). The story is loosely based on Astaire and his real-life sister Adele. 

Astaire and Powell

Astaire and the "wallwalk" 

Powell with Peter Lawford and with great curtains as a backdrop

Photo Credits: Turner Classic Movies/MGM

The Way We Were Revisited

It's been thirty seven years since Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand made movie magic in the love story The Way We Were (1973) and this Tuesday, Oprah scores a coup with a reunion show.

For those of you who are a) straight and male and/or hate love stories, b) too young and never got around to seeing, or c) living in a cave, The Way We Were is the story of star crossed lovers who meet in college and fall in love years later and their differences drive them apart. Redford plays Hubbell Gardner, a Waspy jock and Streisand as Katie Morosky, a Jewish political activist and the couple eventually prove that love can't conquer all. New York, Hollywood and Malibu in the forties never looked better and that goes for Streisand and her ironed hair as well (perhaps her most glamorous role to date).

Sydney Pollack directed the film (he later teamed with Redford on Out of Africa) and rumor has it, the golden one had to be literally coaxed into doing the role (Warren Beatty and Ryan O'Neal were also considered). The film is based on Arthur Laurent's book which I highly recommend as well. 

On location in Central Park...

...and in Malibu

Pollack with Streisand and Redford

A on-again-off-again sequel was in the works for decades but Redford could never come to terms with the story or script. Apparently "The Way We Were II" would pick up in the sixties, and the pair would come back together to deal with their radical daughter who protests the Vietnam War. Some things are best left alone and what are the chances magic can happen twice?

The film has become a camp classic and you would be hard pressed to find fans who cannot come up with at least a line or two of the dialogue or a favorite scene. (And since you didn't ask mine would be Redford and Bradford Dillman sailing - "Best Saturday Afternoon").  Sex and the City even paid homage when Carrie told Mr. Big goodbye at the Plaza Hotel. And if you've seen the film you know what I am talking about.

"Your girl is lovely Hubbell"

The Way We Were garnered six Academy Award nominations (Best Actress, Costume, Art Direction and Cinematography) and won two for Best Song and Original Score. Rent the movie, download the score and set your Tivo.

Photo Credits: Columbia Pictures

Nine Film Sets of the 20th Century

Fox News Magazine just posted a slideshow of the top film sets of the 20th Century as seen in my upcoming book Designs on Film: A Century of Hollywood Art Direction (Harper Collins). I am happy to report the publication date has been moved up to November 30th -- just in time for the holidays! (The title image for you non-film buffs is Gene Kelly in the classic An American in Paris (1951).

With over 400 images to choose from, we selected films that were representative of each decade from the Art Deco sets of the twenties to contemporary interiors of modern films today. You can see the slideshow here and the book is available for pre-order on Amazon.

Jean Harlow in MGM's  Dinner at Eight (1933) was one of the many Big White Sets of the period

Production designer Doug Kraner's contemporary interiors for the Julia Roberts
beach house in Sleeping With the Enemy (1991)

Photo Credits: MGM/Photfest, 20th Century Fox/Courtesy of Doug Kraner

It Takes a Legend to Make a Star: The World of Burlesque

One of the more intriguing holiday releases is the musical drama Burlesque which hits theaters Thanksgiving weekend (November 24th). Starring the timeless Cher and mega voice pop star Christina Aguilera, the costumes, choreography and musical performances should be worth the price of admission alone.

Aguilera plays a small town girl who heads to Los Angeles to follow her dreams. She stumbles upon the Burlesque Lounge where she finds work as a cocktail waitress only to yearn to sing and dance with the musical revue. Cher plays the proprietor and headliner, Julianne Hough from Dancing with the Stars as one of the dancers and reliable sidekick actor Stanley Tucci plays the sharp-witted stage manager.

Aguilera eventually makes her way from the bar to the stage and helps restore the Burlesque Lounge to its former glory. Sets were designed by Jon Gary Steele (who gave us those wonderful interiors in Cruel Intentions) and costumes by Michael Kaplan. Here's hoping the movie is more Chicago and less Showgirls.

Tucci and Cher

Aguilera

No stranger to over the top costumes, Cher's collaboration with designer Bob Mackie over the years could fit right in with burleque costumes of the golden age.

Seventies Cher: Headress by  Bob Mackie

Cher's appearance at the 1986 Oscars remains one of red carpet history

Mackie's drawings for Cher 

Modern day Cher: Mackie's costumes for her Caesars Palace show in Las Vegas

And if you'd like to read about the world of burlesque, I recommend author Liz Goldwyn's Pretty Things: The Last Generation of American Burlesque Queens (Harper Collins). The book is a fascinating retrospective of the original queens of burlesque's golden age, back in the day when it was considered an art form. Goldwyn is also a filmmaker and her documentary Pretty Things appeared on HBO in 2005.


Note: If you are in Los Angeles this weekend and interested in film history -- or a fan of the cult favorite Planet of the Apes -- the 1968 thriller where primates ruled the world will be screened along with a panel discussion with the film's production designer William Creber, actor Lou Wagner and make-up artist Daniel Striepeke (Forrest Gump and Saving Private Ryan) on Sunday, November 7th, 5:00 pm at the Darryl F. Zanuck Theater, 20th Century Fox Studios, 10201 West Pico Blvd in Los Angeles. Hollywood Escapes co-author Harry Medved will serve as moderator. For more information go here.

The Ape Village was filmed at Malibu State Creek Park. Amazing transformation!

Photo Credits:  Screen Gems, New York Daily News, Bob Mackie, Harper Collins, Malibu State Park Docents

A Halloween History Lesson

Forget Saw I-III, Hostel I-II, Halloween I-whatever and anything with Freddy Krueger, bad backlighting and a chainsaw. This Halloween, go back to the classics.

As far as I am concerned, the horror genre began with Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari a.k.a. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) a German silent classic that is best known for its Expressionist sets (German Expressionist to be exact). Dr. Caligari plays the first true mad doctor/scientist who exhibits a somnambulist (sleepwalker) who predicts the future which of course include murders, madness and mayhem. It is considered by film historians (Martin Scorsese as one) to be one of the best of films of all time and the first to introduce the ending with a twist.

The wild, warped and perhaps dizzy-inducing sets were wildly applauded for their Expressionist style and a template for horror films to come. Flat panels and floors of painted horizontal and vertical lines, distorted camera angles,  inventive use of shadows, costumes and makeup (all in stark black and white) create the menacing atmosphere. Street lamps that hang askew and long twisted alleyways that fall into each other are just a few of the elements that make the production design unique.

Edward Scissorhands was said to be influenced by Caligari's style

And if you can't find the film at Blockbuster (pretty sure it's not in the Red Box outside of your local Walgreens), you can always resort to The Shining or The Exorcist two films that are always on my top ten list.

The Shining

The Exorcist

Happy Halloween!

Happy Birthday Catherine Dorleac

 She is an Oscar nominated and Cesar award winning actress, a former face of Chanel, the muse of Yves St. Laurent and her image was used for Marianne, the national symbol of France. And how many women can make that claim? Happy birthday to Catherine Fabienne Dorleac a.k.a. Catherine Deneuve who turned 67 this past week.

Bust of Marianne

The iconic beauty has appeared in over 100 films and her classic looks are legendary. She rose to stardom in The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and appeared in a variety of roles ranging from a bisexual vampire opposite Susan Sarandon  in cult-classic The Hunger, an ice maiden in Roman Polanski's Repulsion and an Academy Award nominated performance in Indochine. (One role that was not of interest -- the Bond girl in On Her Majesty's Secret Service). Perhaps one of my favorite Deneuve films was the comedy The April Fools (1969) where she plays the neglected wife of Peter Lawford and falls in love with stockbroker Jack Lemmon. (Wonderful costumes and a great Burt Bacharach soundtrack too).

The April Fools

Indochine

As the face of Chanel No. 5 in the seventies, perfume sales soared and eventually she designed a fragrance for herself, aptly known as "Deneuve." Yves St. Laurent designed the costumes for her film Belle de Jour which marked a long collaboration between the two both on (The Hunger, Liza and La Chamade) and off screen. Her romantic collaborations were just as famous -- she married sixties photographer David Bailey and had children with Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni and director Roger Vadim.

Chanel Ad circa de 1974

Deneuve with Yves St. Laurent

Belle de Jour

A grandmother of four (and perpetual smoker), her looks remain timeless which she attributes to monthly vitamin injections, Pilates and visits to a facial masseuse. I am thinking it is probably in the genes. And perfect bone structure.

You can catch her next in the film The Big Picture on November 3rd.