Tag Archives: Dolly Tree

Dolly Tree, Fashion, Film

Dolly Tree costume design at MGM

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The Evolution of a Screen Gown by Dolly Tree at MGM in the 1930s

In the 1930s MGM was regarded as Hollywood’s premier film production company and renowned for the excellence of its costumes and gowns from its two designers Adrian and Dolly Tree and an array of costume makers. How did this incredible team produce such wonderful visions of beauty?

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Personalities

Gypsy Rhoumaje

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Gypsy Rhoumaje

Shrouding herself with an exotic sounding name and persona, Gypsy Rhoumaje struck the big time in London and Paris from 1926 and delighted fashionable continental audiences with her exotic style of dancing and her own personal beauty. Of course nobody, least of all journalists, could spell her name right with several attempts that included Gypsy Rohoumage, Gypsy Roumahje, Gypsy Rhouma-je and Gypsy Rhouma (all with Gipsy variants).

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Dolly Tree, Fashion

Mae West and the gowns for She Done Him Wrong (1933) the film version of Diamond Lil (1928)

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Le style Mae West, c’est magnifique! The gowns for She Done Him Wrong (1933) the film version of Diamond Lil (1928)

Mae West’s gowns for She Done Him Wrong (1933), the film version of Diamond Lil (1928), seemingly caused a sensation at the time. But what is the story behind them? And who created them?

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Venues

The Kursaal Pleasure Palace Ostende

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The Kursaal Pleasure Palace, Ostende

One of the premier locations in Europe in the 1920s and the show piece of Ostende was the magnificently appointed Kursaal entertainment complex.

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Art & Decor, Dolly Tree

Dolly Tree illustrations

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Dolly Tree’s Jazz Age illustrations

Before she became an international renowned costume designer for stage and screen in the early 1920s, Dolly Tree excelled as an illustrator.

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Dolly Tree, Fashion

The Artistry of Jean Peron Couture

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The Artistry of Jean Peron Couture

Jean Peron Couture was a thriving couture establishment with outlets in Paris and London that flourished in the Jazz Age. During the 1920s Peron received glowing praise for its gowns in publications such as The Queen and The Times and The Era announced in one feature that ‘Peron prides himself on always being a little in front of fashion.’

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Fads

The Fascination of Mah Jong

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The Fascination of Mah Jong

One of the more curious fads that took America and then Europe by storm in the Jazz Age was the Chinese game of Mah Jong – the result of a long history of the West’s cultural assimilation of many aspects of Chinese culture.

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Dolly Tree, Theatre

The Magic of The Windmill Man

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The Magic of The Windmill Man

At Christmas, traditional pantomime ruled theatres nationwide, but some interesting and curious Christmas fairy plays also emerged after the turn of the century including such delights as Peter Pan, Where the Rainbow Ends, The Blue Bird and Make Believe. Another big success was the charming production of The Windmill Man, which at its heart was a quaint moral tale condeming selfishness. Produced by the actor Bert Coote it was given its first performance on 26th December 1921 at the Victoria Palace Theatre.

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Film

Woman to Woman (1923)

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Woman to Woman (1923)

Graham Cutts’ Woman to Woman (1923) has been regarded as the most ground breaking British film to be released in the 1920s and although the film is lost and cannot be viewed, from the available commentary, reviews and remaining stills it was obviously a lavish and sophisticated production. It was a commercial success both at home and in the USA and launched the careers of three men who would play major roles in the development of British Cinema – Michael Balcon, Victor Savile and Alfred Hitchcock.

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Personalities

Marcelle de Saint Martin

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Marcelle de Saint Martin

French born Marcelle de Saint Martin was creative, talented and a striking beauty who found great success designing costumes for the stage in London at the end of the First World War and later became chief designer and head of one of the first British film wardrobe departments. And yet her career was sadly all too brief and short-lived.

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