L a - b e a u t é - s a u v e r a - l e - m o n d e ~ D o s t o ï e v s k i

L a - b e a u t é - s a u v e r a - l e - m o n d e  ~  D o s t o ï e v s k i



Sunday, July 5, 2015

Ridiculous Allure - costumes for stage or soirée


Silent film actress Betty Blythe, as Zahrat in "Chu Chin Chow", 1923.
"Ziegfeld model".
Margaret Morris, British dancer, choreographer and teacher.
The marchesa Casati, dressed as "Light" for a Paris ball, costume by Worth, 1922.
Piroska "Zita" Gellért, of the dancing duo, the Gellért Sisters, 1924.
One of the showgirls from MGM's "The Great Ziegfeld", costume by Adrian, 1936.
Dancer Nina Payne.
Martha Pierre as "Candlelight", photograph by Alfred Cheney Johnston, 1921.
Dancer Maria Ley, Vienna, 1926.
Mlle. Fouguet of the Folies Bergère, circa 1925.
Yvonne Gregory (herself a photographer), photographed by her husband Bertram Park, 1919.
Backstage at the Viennese revue "Alles aus Liebe", 1928.

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Other than those identified, I don't have any information on the ladies - and gentleman - pictured here. Let me know if you can give anyone a name or context.



9 comments:

  1. Absolutely Fanatastic: We share an interest in this era, Stephen.
    My father danced in burlesque and vaudeville and spent his youth in Paris hanging around with showgirls from the Folies Bergere, nights at Maxim's. He married three before he finally met my mother. I adore looking at the old programs he collected, the Erte costumes and sets he collected. These photos you've posted are amazing!

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    1. Glad you enjoyed this, Alice. Thank you! Your father sounds like he was quite the fellow; sounds like someone you should write about...?

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  2. Replies
    1. Hmm, is that something you should be able to do, normally. Hopefully just a temporary glitch.

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  3. Now I know where Cirque du Soliel gets ideas for their costumes.

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  4. Hi. I'm afraid that you've fallen into a common trap. That photo at the top is not Aileen Pringle in The Mystic. It is Betty Blythe in the 1923 film, Chu Chin Chow. I knew Erte for the last ten years of his life and for the past 30 years, I have traveled around the world lecturing on his life and art. I hope that you will make the correction. Cheers, Stephan artist-in-residence The Art Deco Society of california

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    1. Thank you SO much, Rhodd! I'm constantly finding just this kind of mistake ALL over the internet, and I try VERY hard not to pass on the misinformation. I feel a very strong responsibility to get this kind of thing RIGHT, so I really appreciate the correction. : )

      Now, is the costume actually by Erté? Verifying your information, I didn't see his name anywhere connected to this film.

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    2. Rhodd...thanks for this correction! I've drawn both Betty & Aileen & I knew it was Betty! (I'm a published paper doll artist)...

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  5. Hi again, My name is Stephan yet for some reason, my co-worker, Rhodd's name and photo appears. There is no credit given to a costume designer but I suppose that is typical for a film that old. Many behind-the-scene people were never given credits in films. I knew Erte for the last ten years of his life and I travel around the world lecturing on his life and art as well as other aspects of Art Deco. Also, I've been artist-in-residence for the Art Deco Society Of California for since 1984. Have a good one! Cheers, Stephan

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