Medavog talks! Walter Plunkett Hollywood Couturier

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medavog
June 26, 2008

part 33 - My couture collection of Hollywood designers dates back before zippers where still patent pending dating back to specific times in the 1920's. My collection that spans 200 years would not be important without my couture collection of the best fashion designers that shaped the early years in Hollywoodland! Adrian Gilbert who designed the clothes for THE WIZARD OF OZ, Irene & Edith Head to name a few.

http://www.medavog.com

"The brilliant and talented Walter Plunkett was born June 5, 1902.
Walter moved to New York in 1923, where he began work as an actor, as well as a costume and set designer, on the stage.

He drifted through the gay circles of Greenwich Village and was referred to Hollywood. He moved back to California, this time to the movie capital, and found work as an extra. He can be spotted dancing with Irene, another future top designer, in Erich von Stroheim's The Merry Widow (1925). In 1927, Walter's first (credited) work as a costume designer first appeared on screen for Hard-Boiled Haggerty (1927). During the late twenties and early thirties, while working at RKO, Plunkett managed to fashion the enormous costume and wardrobe department into a department that was both efficient and creative. With so much free reign, Walter set about creating outstanding costumes that rivaled the work of his contemporaries, such as Travis Banton and Adrian. His two best-known films were Gone with the Wind (1939) (including that dress made from green velvet drapes, probably the most famous movie costume of all time), and Singin' in the Rain (1952), in which he lampooned the very style his work had begun in (the roaring 20s). Walter was well-liked by most people for his generous and easy-going nature, as well as his inventiveness and ingenuity. Walter retired from films and spent the last years of his life with his partner Lee. He died in 1982."

"Francisco Medavogs collection started off as a small sampling of some European couture designs to help him study FASHION design. By looking at the French seams and other intricacies, he learned about couture construction through the true masters of design. This hobby quickly became a collection of more than 25,000 fashion items, primarily 20th century European designs, with a number of them extending back to the 1920s and 30s.

"At first, I didn't quite understand why so many people were interested in seeing these clothes," says Francisco. "For me, the clothes were simply great examples of what I was able to study while at the Fashion Institute. Now, I feel that my collection is the beginning of a wonderful museum collection."

"I'd love to open the first American Fashion Museum, devoted solely to fashion and couture, similar to Zandra Rhodes' museum in London."

Designers in my private collection
include: 1,000's of Vera's + Hardcore Givenchy & Jean Paul Gaultier.
Designer labels in my private collection: Halston, Koos Van Dan Aker,
Adria Gilbert, Betsey Johnson for Alley Cat, BEENE BAZAAR,Irene, Schiaparelli, Anna Sui, Todd Oldham, Mugler, Dolce, Montana, Diane
Von, Kenzo, Balmain, Fath, Marc Jacobs, Raf Simons, Armani, 70's Anne and
Calvin Klein, 60's-70's-80's Oscar De La Renta, Lilli Ann, Chanel,
Dior, Nina Ricci "Couture", Pierre Cardin, Estevez, Stephen Burrows, Mori,
Sonia Rykiel, Gaultier, Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent, Missoni, Emilio Pucci,
Rudi Gernreich, Pauline Trigere, Missoni, Versace.

Category: People & Blogs

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Hollywooodland Silent Film Medavog Fashion Designers Irene of Hollywood Adrian Gilbert Walter Plunkett Edith Head

Medavog talks! Walter Plunkett Hollywood Couturier

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