The Artist has caused a renewed interest in the fashions of the Jazz Age. The 1920s flapper style has become a fashion icon, and Hollywood movies played a big part in spreading the look. The young flapper woman was herself a novelty. As a reaction to the end of World War I in 1918 and the massive loss of young men, women's styles became liberated, and favored the look of young men or boys. The short haircuts started earlier by Irene Castle became even shorter with stars Louise Brooks, Colleen Moore, Clara Bow, and Norma Shearer. The fashions of Paul Poiret and Coco Chanel that had eliminated corsets had now changed to straight-sided, flat-chested, short-skirted and sleeveless dresses. This provocative look was matched by a lifestyle that favored fast cars, jazz clubs, wild dancing, and smoking and drinking. Sex was always on the flapper's mind.
Photofest
Louise Brooks is shown above circa 1929. Louise was a free spirit that was the flapper ideal. She made several films for Paramount but quit the studio in a disagreement. She then went to Germany to star in the films Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl for G.W. Pabst in 1929. Both films were censored. Late in life she wrote an autobiography, Lulu in Hollywood. Her photos have a mesmerizing quality that make them prized collector items.
Joan Crawford, shown above, was considered by F.Scott Fitzgerald to be the perfect embodiment of the Jazz Age woman. She began her career at MGM in 1925, and is shown above in Our Modern Maidens, 1929. Adrian designed the costumes for this movie, as he did for most of her early films. "I don't remember any fashion before Adrian." she said.
The photo above shows Joan Crawford and Josephine Dunn in Our Modern Maidens. Joan wears a sequined coat over the flapper dress that is shown in her first photo. Josephine Dunn wears a coat over her silver-fringed flapper dress. Joan is also shown below in total flapper mode for Our Dancing Daughters, 1928. This dress was also an Adrian design.
Evelyn Brent was another silver screen flapper. She was a big star in the silent era but never made a successful transition to sound. She is often photographed with a wide silk headband and had a striking profile. She is pictured above for an unknown publicity shot, circa 1930. The dress "pajamas" she is wearing were very fashionable as boudoir or beachwear in Europe. Adrian popularized pajamas for evening wear in 1929-1930 by having Greta Garbo wear them on screen, and predicting the popularity of pants for women.
Evelyn Brent is shown above with Constance Cummings in Travelling Husbands, 1931. Constance wears a cloche hat, the trademark flapper head piece. When Adrian, the son of milliners, put Greta Garbo in a slanted Empress Eugenie hat in Romance in 1930, the cloche went out of style.
Julia Faye is shown above in a silver-fringed dress designed by Adrian for Dynamite, 1929.
Ms. Faye must hold a record for the most uncredited roles on film. She first appeared in movies in 1915 and ended her career on TV in 1963. She was in many C.B. DeMille films, including The Squaw Man in 1918 and the first The Ten Commandments in 1923.
Joan is seen again in Our Blushing Brides in 1930, the final film in the "trilogy" with Our Dancing Daughters and Our Modern Maidens. Adrian designed the dress with a great jazz age symbol of a zig-zag pattern on the bodice.
The jazz age flapper style was at its end by 1931. The stock market crash of 1929 took the wind out of the sails of the free-spirited lifestyle that the flapper signified. And the new long sleek dresses coming out of Paris put an end to the short-skirted flapper look. Hollywood films and movie stars had helped spread the style's popularity. But now the style making its debut on the silver screen was one of sex appeal and glamour - created by costume designers Adrian and Travis Banton. Fluctuations in style would no longer matter. The "Hollywood line" emphasized timeless glamour and the figure-hugging silhouette that plainly put sex appeal in clothing. The Hollywood styles would now be influencing the European couturiers.
The flapper look continues to enchant. Its fun and carefree style was the first breath of post-war women's liberation. It was a bumpy road, but interest in its look today echoes that ideal.
PhotofestLouise Brooks is shown above circa 1929. Louise was a free spirit that was the flapper ideal. She made several films for Paramount but quit the studio in a disagreement. She then went to Germany to star in the films Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl for G.W. Pabst in 1929. Both films were censored. Late in life she wrote an autobiography, Lulu in Hollywood. Her photos have a mesmerizing quality that make them prized collector items.
Joan Crawford, shown above, was considered by F.Scott Fitzgerald to be the perfect embodiment of the Jazz Age woman. She began her career at MGM in 1925, and is shown above in Our Modern Maidens, 1929. Adrian designed the costumes for this movie, as he did for most of her early films. "I don't remember any fashion before Adrian." she said.
The photo above shows Joan Crawford and Josephine Dunn in Our Modern Maidens. Joan wears a sequined coat over the flapper dress that is shown in her first photo. Josephine Dunn wears a coat over her silver-fringed flapper dress. Joan is also shown below in total flapper mode for Our Dancing Daughters, 1928. This dress was also an Adrian design.
Evelyn Brent was another silver screen flapper. She was a big star in the silent era but never made a successful transition to sound. She is often photographed with a wide silk headband and had a striking profile. She is pictured above for an unknown publicity shot, circa 1930. The dress "pajamas" she is wearing were very fashionable as boudoir or beachwear in Europe. Adrian popularized pajamas for evening wear in 1929-1930 by having Greta Garbo wear them on screen, and predicting the popularity of pants for women.
Evelyn Brent is shown above with Constance Cummings in Travelling Husbands, 1931. Constance wears a cloche hat, the trademark flapper head piece. When Adrian, the son of milliners, put Greta Garbo in a slanted Empress Eugenie hat in Romance in 1930, the cloche went out of style.
Julia Faye is shown above in a silver-fringed dress designed by Adrian for Dynamite, 1929.
Ms. Faye must hold a record for the most uncredited roles on film. She first appeared in movies in 1915 and ended her career on TV in 1963. She was in many C.B. DeMille films, including The Squaw Man in 1918 and the first The Ten Commandments in 1923.
Joan is seen again in Our Blushing Brides in 1930, the final film in the "trilogy" with Our Dancing Daughters and Our Modern Maidens. Adrian designed the dress with a great jazz age symbol of a zig-zag pattern on the bodice.
The jazz age flapper style was at its end by 1931. The stock market crash of 1929 took the wind out of the sails of the free-spirited lifestyle that the flapper signified. And the new long sleek dresses coming out of Paris put an end to the short-skirted flapper look. Hollywood films and movie stars had helped spread the style's popularity. But now the style making its debut on the silver screen was one of sex appeal and glamour - created by costume designers Adrian and Travis Banton. Fluctuations in style would no longer matter. The "Hollywood line" emphasized timeless glamour and the figure-hugging silhouette that plainly put sex appeal in clothing. The Hollywood styles would now be influencing the European couturiers.
The flapper look continues to enchant. Its fun and carefree style was the first breath of post-war women's liberation. It was a bumpy road, but interest in its look today echoes that ideal.
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| Julie Andrews in "Thoroughly Modern Millie" designed by Jean Louis. |
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| A costume design by Andre-Ani for Norma Shearer in His Secretary, 1925 |
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30 comments:
Great post! I've managed to get a couple of movies from the flapper era from Netflix and really enjoyed seeing some originals of such an iconic look.
Thanks Maria. I hope you enjoy those movies - the three Joan Crawford ones are especially fun.
Christian ~ a fun and interesting look at the actresses and the films that brought flapper chic to the silent era screen. I can not think of these women and their alluring style without simultaneously thinking of the designers Adrian and Clement André-Ani.
F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote, "I was the spark that lit up FLAMING YOUTH, Colleen Moore was the torch. What little things we are to have caused all that trouble". The statement is a reference to "The Great Gatsby" and "Flaming Youth" (1923), the novel and the film, and the author and actress’s role in the jazz age. Thank you for the lovely reminder of why this era fascinates me.
Thanks Whistlinggypsy. I'm glad you also mentioned Anre-Ani. He's not well known today but did great deco-inspired costumes in the early days of MGM. He was also influenced by Erte - a subject of his own - which is why I didn't bring him up. I'm glad you enjoyed the post.
I always enjoy teaching the Jazz Age to my students and discussing the Flapper. Personally, I don't like the hairstyle of clothes, but they were definitely a big departure from what women were wearing prior to the 1920s.
Thanks for the comment KimWilson.
Great photos Christian! I love the Flapper era with the beads, fringe and the pin wave hairstyles. I used to tell my mom I wish I could have been around in the 20's so I could be a flapper.
As you know I adore hats too! I'll be doing a star bio on Josephine Dunn this summer. Our Modern Maidens then Our Dancing Daughters always come to mind when I think of flappers portrayed on film.
Entertaining as always!
Have a wonderful weekend Christian.
Page
Thanks Page! That's great that you wanted to be a flapper! The hats were fabulous. I've done exhibits with hats and it's a lot of fun and some are such works of art in themselves. I'll look forward to your Josephine Dunn post. Have a great week-end too.
..."this provocative look was matched by a lifestyle that favored fast cars, jazz clubs, wild dancing, and smoking and drinking. Sex was always on the flapper's mind." ... Christian, sounds like a great time to be alive! I have always been so interested in the clothes of that era. The cloche, the fringe -- so cool. Did you ever see "Thoroughly Modern Millie"? Julie Andrews going flapper is a great scene. She proves that the 20's were NOT the best time for a woman with a Marilyn-Monroe body! Her efforts to make her long string of pearls lay flat on her chest was hilarious. That picture of Louise Brooks is my favorite -- she was indeed photogenic and so beautiful. Great post, Christian!
Thanks Becky! I saw Millie many years ago, and have been looking to see it again. It had great flapper fashions designed by Jean Louis. And the body styles were quite different than in the 50s as you say. Of course not having as much food as now helped that. Louise was not thin, but she was as mesmerising on screen as in her photos. I'm glad you enjoyed the post.
Great info and photos. All those women looked so glamourous... But what was the deal with the cloche hat!
I've always thought Louise Brooks the most interesting "Flapper era" movie actress. Magnetic presence, much allure and an obviously rebellious spirit. But she was one glittering young thing who didn't quite survive that moment - though she did manage to resurface with great success as a writer several decades later.
For Joan Crawford, though, the era served as the launching pad for her extremely successful career of many decades. A tale of two flappers...
I'd been familiar with Evelyn Brent's name but only recently watched one of her films for the first time - Josef von Sternberg's mesmerizing "Underworld" (the recent Criterion Collection release of "Three Silent Classics" by Josef von Sternberg" is must-see for silent film fans and anyone interested in his pre-Marlene Dietrich work).
As always, Christian, a completely interesting and enjoyable post that inspired me to reflect a bit.
Stunning post, as always. Thanks, Christian. You are truly the gold standard!
Love the flappers! They are so joyful. And thanks for including Evelyn Brent. She was, indeed, a very big star who is largely overlooked now. Another flapper I adored was Constance Talmadge. She was quite chic (I think Fitzgerald called her "the flapper de luxe" - love that). A most entertaining post, Christian.
Lady Eve, than you for your observations on the flappers, and bringing up the Criterion Collection. While they weren' all flappers, there were so many stars of the silent era that withered, while others like Crawford and Garbo just kept getting bigger.I think it was because they had "faces," as Norma would say.
Thank you Inge for the compliment. I'm glad you liked this post.
FlickChick - yes Evelyn Brent was such a star in her day. Her photos are so evocative of the era. And Constance Talmadge too. Thanks for bringing her up. There should be a blogathon about the forgotten ladies of the silver screen.
R.A. Kerr - The cloche hat (the French term means bell) was everywhere in the mid to late 20s. Who knows why, but it was definetely different from the big hats and those with all kinds of flowers or feathers on them. Its difference is what seemed to interest the flappers and then eventualy it became THE style.
Marvelous post as always and timely with the success of "The Artist." I have a question for you: What well-known actress today do you think could embody the flapper look best?
Thanks for the comments Classicfilmboy. Regarding a current leading actress that best embodies the flapper look, I would have to say Michelle Williams. The 20s flapper ideal was for the "garconne" look or boyish look. This was best served by a short hair style and a very young looking, sort of impish face. While Michelle doesn't have the same flapper temperament, she has the perfect look. Twiggy had it too in that film "The Boyfriend," and Natalie Wood in "Inside Daisy Clover."
Excellent suggestions! Once you said Michelle Williams I could see it. And Natalie Wood in Inside Daisy Clover ... again, once you said it I knew what you meant. Thank you for answering.
Great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Awesome post and beautiful pictures!! I also loved the Flapper era with flippy dresses and slick hairstyles.
Joan Crawford, made an awesome flapper. I was very surprised last year when I learned she started out as a dancer.
I was JUST thinking of you last evening, Christian, as I viewed (for the 1st time) RIPTIDE. It has to have THE most bizarre Adrian costumes ever...the masked ball "worlds to come" costumes worn by Norma Shearer and George Marshall. I assume you're familiar with it? Quite the pre-code dust-up! Norma wears some lulus! Thanks for this terrific article. I always learn so much when I drop by!
Warmly,
Kay
www.moviestarmakeover.com/blog/
Kay - thanks for your comments and mentioning Riptide - it is quite the movie. That's one of the things I admire so much about Adrian is his range of designing abilities - from the outrageous to the simple. Have you seen Madame Satan (1930)?
Hi Christian - Check out my site, as you have been awarded a 7x7 Link Award. Congratulations!
http://flickchick1953.blogspot.com/
Thank you very mush FlickChick for the 7X7 Link Award! I'll follow the instructions and look for my picks and links. Thank you!
Hi, Christian,
No, I haven't seen M. Satan yet, but I've seen screen shots of it. INCREDIBLE! Adrian must have had SO much fun designing those loopy outfits!
BTW, will you be going to the TCM film festival in April? Love to chat with you "in person"!
Kay
Thanks again Kay - yes those outfits in Madame Satan were totally over the top. Yes, I'll be attending the TCM film festival - love to see you there.
Wonderful to hear you're coming to TCM FF...a few of us are meeting at Musso & Frank's for dinner on Weds evening..any chance you (and whomever else) can join us? We're angling to sit in the Charlie Chaplin booth!! Please do try!
Warmly, Kay
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