Bluetramontana Style

In Memory of Lillian Bassman

2012-02-16T16:45:00.001+01:00

Ciao Whitney

2012-02-12T21:10:00.001+01:00

Style Icon: Elsa Martinelli

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Elsa Martinelli photographed my Mark Shaw, 1955

At a Chanel show in the 60s, sitting next to Marlene Dietrich. Babs Streisand is on the other end in head to leopard print.

Elsa Martinelli

Glamour Girl of the Silver Screen

Vogue Magazine, 1965 by David Bailey

Elsa Martinelli in dress from Yves Saint Laurent's African collection.

The official story was that Italian actress Elsa Martinelli was discovered for movies when Kirk Douglas spotted her on a 1954 magazine cover. Actually, Martinelli had been playing bits in Italian films since 1950, and had been a professional model since her early teens. Her first and only screen appearance while under contract to Douglas' Bryna Productions was The Indian Fighter (1955). The film should have made her a star, but (at least according to Douglas) Martinelli exercised nothing but bad judgment thereafter, taking parts that exploited her physical attributes but allowed her acting skills to atrophy. Finally, Douglas threw in the towel, telling Martinelli that she'd have to pay him to work for Bryna again. With such notable exceptions as Orson Welles' The Trial, Martinelli never had a part as good as her Native American heroine in Indian Fighter. She retired from filmmaking in the mid-1980s, making an unheralded return appearance in the inconsequential all-star comedy Once Upon a Crime. Elsa Martinelli is the mother of actress Cristiana Mancinelli.

Gorgeous 60s Italian model Elsa Martinelli

Elsa Martinelli, photo by Henry Clarke

Elsa Martinelli in Givenchy, photo by Clifford Coffin for French Vogue, 1954

Fashion pictures: http://www.flickriver.com/photos/52899036@N05/sets/72157624747867651/

Via: http://www.thegoldenyears.org/elsamart.html

Marc Chagall

2012-01-12T16:32:00.001+01:00

Model and artist Marc Chagall in his studio, 1955 / by Mark Shaw

Marc Chagall in his studio, 1955 / by Mark Shaw

“My art is an extravagant art, a flaming vermilion, a blue soul flooding over my paintings” Marc Chagall

Marc Chagall was born in Vitebsk, Byelorussia to a poor Hassidic family. The eldest of nine children, he studied first in a heder before moving to a secular Russian school, where he began to display his artistic talent. With his mother's support, and despite his father's disapproval, Chagall pursued his interest in art, going to St. Petersburg in 1907 to study art with Leon Bakst. Influenced by contemporary Russian painting, Chagall's distinctive, child-like style, often centering on images from his childhood, began to emerge.

From 1910 to 1914, Chagall lived in Paris, and there absorbed the works of the leading cubist, surrealist, and fauvist painters. It was during this period that Chagall painted some of his most famous paintings of the Jewish shtetl or village, and developed the features that became recognizable trademarks of his art. Strong and often bright colors portray the world with a dreamlike, non-realistic simplicity, and the fusion of fantasy, religion, and nostalgia infuses his work with a joyous quality. Animals, workmen, lovers, and musicians populate his figures; the “fiddler on the roof” recurs frequently, often hovering within another scene. Chagall's work of this period displays the influence of contemporary French painting, but his style remains independent of any one school of art. He exhibited regularly in the Salon des Independants.

In 1914, before the outbreak of World War I, Chagall held a one-man show in Berlin, exhibiting work dominated by Jewish images and personages. During the war, he resided in Russia, and in 1917, endorsing the revolution, he was appointed Commissar for Fine Arts in Vitebsk and then director of the newly established Free Academy of Art. The Bolshevik authorities, however, frowned upon Chagall's style of art as too modern, and in 1922, Chagall left Russia, settling in France one year later. He lived there permanently except for the years 1941—1948 when, fleeing France during World War II, he resided in the United States. Chagall's horror over the Nazi rise to power is expressed in works depicting Jewish martyrs and Jewish refugees.

Chagall painted with a variety of media, such as oils, water colors, and gouaches. His work also expanded to other forms of art, including ceramics, mosaics, and stained glass. Among his most famous building decorations are the ceiling of the Opera House in Paris, murals at the New York Metropolitan Opera, a glass window at the United Nations, and decorations at the Vatican. Israel, which Chagall first visited in 1931 for the opening of the Tel Aviv Art Museum, is likewise endowed with some of Chagall's work, most notably the twelve stained glass windows at Hadassah Hospital and wall decorations at the Knesset.

One of Chagall's most famous painting: “I and the Village”

Chagall received many prizes and much recognition for his work. He was also one of very few artists to exhibit work at the Louvre in their lifetime.

Chagall died on March 28, 1985, in Saint-Paul, France at age 97.

Vintage Party

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Giorgio di Sant'Angelo and Moniqe ivan Vooren at a party thrown by di Sant'Angelo, 1972. © Condé Nast Archive/Corbis.

Danny Roberts Drawings

2012-01-07T17:27:00.001+01:00

Via: http://igorandandre.blogspot.com/search/label/Wallpaper

Books: “Cary Grant a Celebration of Style”

2012-01-06T18:03:00.001+01:00

Cary Grant and Sophia Loren

Cary Grant and Grace Kelly

Cary Grant and Amelia Earhart

Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman

A definitive biographical style book on the ultimate icon of timeless elegance, Cary Grant. Includes rare and never-before-published photographs, drawings, personal letters, and other documents from the Cary Grant estate.

Dior at Home

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Dress Designer Christian Dior at home, in his living room.

Happy New Year and a lovely 2012!

2011-12-31T17:46:00.001+01:00

Happy New Year to all of my friends who visit, comment and read my posts! thank you!

Ines

2011-12-29T19:33:00.003+01:00

Chanel Muse-Inès de la Fressange

Merry Christmas to all my dear readers!

2011-12-23T17:28:00.001+01:00

This is the message of Christmas: We are never alone.

Harper's Bazaar December 1957 / Illustration: Andy Warhol

Partners: Jean Shrimpton and Terence Stamp

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Jean Shrimpton and Terence Stamp at Cannes, 1965

The Lovely Marilyn

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Marilyn Monroe

Simone

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Simone D'Alliencourt

Cult Movie: La Notte / The Night

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Michelangelo Antonioni and Jeanne Moreau, 1961

“La Notte” is the second installment of a film trilogy. Antonioni leads Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau through a night of self examination.

Mastroinanni (Giovanni) is a successful writer celebrating the publication of a new book. Moreau (Lidia) is his wife who has lost her way in newly modernized Milan. Wanders through the city and the events of the night trying to find some connection to life.

All You Need to Know About the Movie : http://www.culturecourt.com/F/Antonioni/LaNotte.htm

Sue Murray

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Sue Murray was a top Swinging Sixties model / photo by David Bailey

Supercool

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John Lennon and Mick Jagger, Century City, CA, 1974 by Ron Galella

Jerry Schatzberg

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Betsy Pickering on Wall Street, 1958

From creator of poetic images to compelling storyteller, Jerry Schatzberg has, over the past three decades, excelled in both the realms of photography and filmmaking. Published in Vogue, McCall’s, Esquire, Glamour, and Life in the 1960’s. Schatzberg captured intimate portraits of the generations most notable artists, celebrities and thinkers (from Bob Dylan to Robert Rauschenberg), and he pushed on in the 1970s to the medium of film and participated in the renaissance of American cinema, directing films such as: Puzzle of a Downfall Child, The Panic in Needle Park, Scarecrow. His films mark a significant time in the history of film when the importance of solid and introspective narrative proved paramount. There are currently two books in production chronicling Jerry Schatzberg’s life and work.

Joanna McCormick and Colin Fox, New York 1958

Anne St. Marie and Bob Smith, Fulton Fish Market, New York, 1958

Anne St. Marie and Bob Smith, TWA Terminal, New York, 1959

Anne St. Marie and Fabian Malloy, New York, 1958

1958

Inge Marie, New York, 1963

Isabella and Anne St. Marie, Gramercy Park, New York, 1959

The Man from U.N.C.L.E., Agneta Freiberg, Katherine Carpenter, Robert Vaughn, David McCallum, New York, 1965

Anne St.Marie

Faye Dunaway, 1967

Catherine Deneuve, New York, 1965

Liz Taylor

Helmut Newton

Edie Sedgwick

Andy Warhol

Sharon Tate

Jimi Hendrix, Mitch Mitchell, Noel Redding

Jerry Schatzberg took some of the greatest all time Bob Dylan photos from the mid 1960s including the famous Blonde on Blonde album cover.

Jane Holzer, Terence Donovan, David Bailey

Charlotte Rampling

YSL

Rose Marie Le Clerc, New York, 1958

Isabella Albonico, New York 1959

Idlewild Airport, New York, 1957

Peggy Moffitt, Central Park, New York, 1967

Central Park, NY November 1964 - Singer Paul Anka riding a bicycle in Central Park with model in a floral print dress

John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr

In Paris 1962: Yves Saint Laurent and Christian Dior, the Early Collections, Jerry Schatzberg’s photographs capture fashion history.

Behind the scenes at YSL’s first show

To see more examples of Jerry Schatzberg’s work, please visit his Web site at:http://www.jerryschatzberg.com/

All images Copyright Jerry Schatzberg

Thanks Ana for inspiration

William Haines

2011-11-26T22:57:00.002+01:00

William Haines was born in Virginia in 1900 and in 1914, opened a nightclub in Hopewell, Virginia. Destined for entertainment and high style, he arrives in Hollywood in 1922 after winning a talent contest. He appeared in over twenty films as a leading man to Hollywood’s most famous stars including Joan Crawford, Marion Davies and Constance Bennett.

Haines redefined the way movie stars lived. He lived large and played the role of a successful movie star to the max with the encouragement of his partner, Jimmie Shields. He defined style and his passion for grand automobiles was no exception.

One of the aspects Billy Haines enjoyed most about being a film star was developing friendships with other actors such as Joan Crawford, Carole Lombard and George Burns. In 1930 he opened an antiques shop while working at MGM. Celebrities such as Joan Crawford were so impressed with his taste in design, they hired him to update their own dark, heavy residences with a lighter fresher and more sophisticated look. Haines nicknamed Joan Crawford “Cranberry” when the studio changed her name from Lucille Le Seur.

In 1935, Haines moved his office to Sunset Plaza, located on Sunset Boulevard. The building was classically grand and the landlord allowed Haines to renovate it to his specifications. With four Ionic columns and two large curved windows, this prominent office was designed to impress his new clients. These offices would later become the famed Le Dome restaurant, popular with the celebrity clientele that originally visited the Haines offices.

When Haines moved his office to 446 Canon Drive in Beverly Hills in 1949, there was a definite transition and stylistic shift for Haines from Neo-Classicism into modernism. This style is now known as Hollywood Regency.

“When you do a home you must do it with the feeling that it has been lived in for years” Haines remarked. The studio was more than an office. Clients experienced amazing Haines touches first hand, such as draperies by Dorothy Liebes, handwoven screens, low furniture, cove lighting and Chinoiserie statues.

Haines loved doing formal presentations to clients. His acting skills and charming style were an asset when presenting fabric ideas to clients. The walls were made of cork to display drawings and brass pulls were used to drape fabric with great flexibility.

Haines’ clients were Hollywood movie moguls with big personalities and big dreams. Haines understood their desire for good taste but also how they were perceived by their industry peers. He reflected their sense of style while raising the bar of good taste and high style for all those who visited these mansions. They trusted Haines with their most personal image, their home interiors and sense of style.

William Haines

William Haines, Joan Crawford, 1920′s

William Haines, Marion Davies & George K. Arthur

Cover of Class Act: William Haines, Legendary Hollywood Decorator

Jimmie, Billy and Joan.

Offscreen, he was openly gay, his partner for over forty years, Jimmie Shields, was laid to rest next to him.

Via: http://williamhaines.com/

Femme Fatale: Lauren Bacall

2011-11-26T17:49:00.001+01:00

“A woman isn't complete without a man. But where do you find a man - a real man - these days?” Lauren Bacall

Lauren Bacall studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. She worked as a model and appeared off-Broadway. She was barely 20 when she starred in her first film, To Have and Have Not (1944) with Humphrey Bogart, whom she married soon after. Bacall reportedly practiced for months to get her voice at that low, dusky pitch for the role. It became her trademark, and eventually became her day-in day-out voice. Her other films with Bogart includeThe Big Sleep, Dark Passage, and Key Largo. Memorable titles among her many, many other movies include How to Marry a Millionaire with Marilyn Monroe, Harper with Paul Newman, The Shootist with John Wayne, and Murder on the Orient Express with Sean Connery.

Lauren and Marilyn Monroe

Bogart and Bacall both suffered from a mild vocal disorder that has been named for them, Bogart-Bacall Syndrome. BBS is now the medical term for an ongoing hoarseness that often afflicts actors, singers or TV/radio voice workers who routinely speak in a very low pitch. Her cousin, Shimon Peres, was Prime Minister of Israel in the 1980s.

Lauren Bacall is still considered a fashion icon.

Bluetramontana Style

1973, St. Tropez

2011-11-20T20:29:00.001+01:00

Brigitte Bardot and her friend Laurent Verges lounge at Club 55 in St. Tropez, June 7, 1973. Photo credit: AFP/AFP/Getty Images.

Bluetramontana Style

Inspiration

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Untitled

Naomi Sims

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Naomi Sims, the first black supermodel.

“Naomi was the first,” the designer Halston told The New York Times in 1974. “She was the great ambassador for all black people. She broke down all the social barriers.

Naomi Sims was repeatedly turned down by modeling agencies, so she went to photographers Credit: Associated Press 1969

It was a defining achievement for the "Black is Beautiful" movement at the time - and Sims went on to appear on the covers of Life, Cosmopolitan and Essence.
Raised in Pittsburgh, she came to New York at age 18 to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology and hit the pavement to jump-start her own modeling career.

She died of breast cancer on August 1, 2009, aged 61, in Newark, New Jersey.

Bluetramontana Style

Forever Young: Pier Angeli

2011-11-19T22:05:00.002+01:00

A Tribute to Pier Angeli.

She wasn’t exuberant like Sophia Loren, vivacious like Gina Lolobrigida, or intense like Anna Magnani. But she was just as talented. What distinguished her from these women were an ordinary-girl quality, a soft-spoken manner, a most delicate face, and the ability to deliver truly heartbreaking performances.

Perhaps she took from real experiences the emotions she conveyed on the screen. Her personal life was filled with turmoil. The world lost her in 1971, still at a young age. Fame, glory and happiness did not last very long for her.

Joan Crawford & Pier Angeli, early 1950s.

Her real name was Anna Maria Pierangeli. She had two sisters, Marisa (twin sister/actress) and Patrizia (actress, dialogue and voice coach). Anna and Marisa were born on June 19, 1932, in Cagliari , Sardinia ( Italy ), to a Catholic family, and would find fame under the names Pier Angeli and Marisa Pavan.

At the age of 16, when Angeli was studying Arts in Rome , she was discovered by director Leónide Moguy, who invited her to appear in “Tomorrow is Too Late” (1949). Her work was so impressive that she won an Italian award for Best Acress, and caught the eye of MGM producers, who offered her a contract with the studio. There, she enchanted everyone with her beauty and simplicity.

In 1951, she was given the title role in Teresa, opposite John Ericson. It turned out to be one of her best films and was a promising beginning for the 18 year-old Italian actress.

The next year she had the opportunity to work with the great Gene Kelly in “The Devil Makes Three”, a movie about an ex-soldier who returns to Germany looking for a family that helped him while he was stationed there during World War II. Angeli, who plays the only survivor of the family, becomes involved with Kelly.

In 1953, she was paired with Ricardo Montalban in “ Sombrero ”, a musical also featuring Cyd Charisse, Vittorio Gassman and Yvonne de Carlo. It told three stories of romance, drama and comedy. Angeli’s character, a gentle family girl controlled by her father, is romanced by the charming but irresponsible Montalban.

James Dean & Pier Angeli (1954)

"I have loved one person in my whole life, and that was James Dean." Pier Angeli

The same year she had one of her most memorable roles as Nina in “The Story of Three Loves”. As a young widow who lost her husband in a concentration camp, Angeli’s Nina is unable to cope with her loss and tries to commit suicide by throwing herself off a bridge. She is saved by an ex-trapeze artist, played by Kirk Douglas , whose life has also been struck by tragedy. He longs to gain back his lost glory, but must find a compatible partner. So he trains Nina and, in the process, falls in love with her – which, by the way, also happened to Douglas off screen.

Soon Angeli herself would be deeply in love as well – only not with Douglas .

Paul Newman and Pier Angeli.

In 1954, Angeli was cast as the sweet and loyal Deborra in “The Silver Chalice”. She was lovely as the Christian who devotes herself to her faith in God and her love for the slave Basil, played by newcomer Paul Newman.

For Newman and many critics, it was not a memorable film. For Angeli’s fans, however, it was a chance to see her at her most endearing.

Entertainer Dean Martin Talking with Actress Pier Angeli on the Lot of a Studio.

One day, after shooting, a dashing young actor working on a nearby set stopped by to visit Newman and another friend. They introduced him to Angeli. It was a meeting that would chance both their lives. He was just starting his career in Hollywood , and would become one of the biggest screen legends of all times. His name was James Dean, and he was working on “East of Eden ”, his first movie.

The attraction between Angeli and Dean was immediate. Maybe they completed each other, for while he was wild and rebellious, she was peaceful and conformist. She could bring him the stability he didn’t have, and he could bring fun and excitement to her life. They began to date and were soon inseparable.

Little by little, Dean became more gentle and easygoing under Angeli’s influence. Friends say he even wore a tuxedo for the first time to accompany her to a première. Apparently, the made each other very happy.

But it was not all a bed of roses for the handsome Hollywood couple. There was Angeli’s controlling mother, who did not consider Dean suitable for her daughter and forbade her to see him. She even tried to make the studio keep them apart. When Pier threatened to leave home, however, Mrs. Pierangeli desisted.

Angeli wanted to marry Dean, but he was reluctant. Though he thought she was “the marrying kind”, he was afraid of having his freedom restrained and of not being ready or able to take care of her properly. His indecision and insecurities hurt Angeli, who believed if he had such doubts, it was because he did not love her. All this pressure began to take a toll on the relationship.

One day Dean travelled to New York for two weeks to do a TV show, while Angeli stayed in L.A. . When he returned, their relationship had changed. Though he and Angeli would still date, their romance had cooled considerably.

Angeli began dating a young singer she had met while making a movie in Germany, three years before. His name was Vic Damone – a rising star at MGM at the time. He was charming and had a magnificent voice. But most importantly he came from a Catholic Italian family and, unlike Dean, was not a rebellious type. He possessed a clean cut image. In other words, Damone was the son-in-law of Mrs. Pierangeli’s dreams.

After a few months, to Dean’s bewilderment, Pier announced she and Damone were engaged.

They had a big church wedding in Beverly Hills , on November 24, 1954. Legend has it that on this day, Dean sat on his motorcycle outside the church, with his red jacket, worn-out jeans, boots and leather cap, waiting for the bride and groom to come out. When they did, he hit the gas and sped noisily away at full speed. After their break-up, Dean was desolate and broken-hearted. Though he would have other affairs until his death in 1955, there would never be another Pier Angeli in his life. No other woman would ever be so romantically linked to him.

The same year, Pier gave birth to a son, Perry Damone. In 1956, she starred in one of her most important films, “Somebody Up There Likes Me”. Ironically, Dean was supposed to have starred in it. When he died, Paul Newman was signed to replace him. He and Angeli worked together for a second time, and the result was much better than their first effort, “The Silver Chalice”.

Vintage Cine Revelation cover with Pier Angeli, 1958.

LIFE: Actress Pier Angeli, Clad in Strapless Chiffon Party Dress Sitting on a Rock in a Pond, 1954.

“Somebody Up There Likes Me” is a movie Newman is proud of. As prizefighter Rocky Graziano, he was the star of the picture and gave a commanding performance. But Angeli contributed a great deal with her sweetness and vulnerability to the role of Graziano’s supportive and self-sacrificing wife, Nora.

In 1957, she appeared in “The Vintage”, a romantic and dramatic story of forbidden love and hidden meetings involving two couples. Co-starring with Angeli were Mel Ferrer, John Kerr and Michèle Morgan. Angeli played the tormented heroine who was willing to do anything for love.

Douglas & Angeli

Her next part was in a much lighter movie – the musical comedy Merry Andrew, starring Danny Kaye. The film became quite popular and gave Angeli the chance to play the cheerful Selena Gallini, a trapeze artist who wins the heart of Kaye’s Professor Andrew Larabee.

But if on screen it was all joy and laughter for Angeli, in real life things were going badly. In 1958, she and Damone were divorced.

Pier went on to work in “SOS Pacific” – the only film she made in 1959. It told the story of survivors of a plane crash who land on a nuclear-test island.

In 1960, she made “Musketeers of the Sea”, “Estoril y Sus Fiestas” and “The Angry Silence”. While the first two were forgettable, “The Angry Silence” was highly praised. Angeli played the distressed wife of Richard Attenborough’s character, a man who refused to take part in a strike and accepted the consequences of his decision.

In 1962, things seemed to be definitely looking up for Angeli. She decided to take a new chance on marriage with composer Armando Trovajoli. In addition, she worked in two great productions: “ Sodom and Gomorrah ” and “White Slave Ship”. And in January 8, 1963, Pier gave birth to another son, Howard Andrew Rugantino.

The following years would prove, however, to be disappointing. Angeli kept busy, but mostly in obscure European films.

Her union with Trovajoli did not bring her happiness either. They separated in 1965.

As Angeli aged, it became increasingly difficult for her to find good parts. The times were different, too: the studio system, under which she was nurtured, was falling to pieces. As the seventies arrived, there was little to hope for.

Angeli made her last film in 1971. Titled “Octaman”, it was considered the worst film of her career.

At the age of 39, despondent and lonely, suffering from a nervous illness and in a very difficult financial situation, Angeli died of anaphylatic shock after being given a tranquilizer by her doctor.

Her twin sister, Marisa, had changed her surname to become Marisa Pavan. Her life was happier than Angeli’s and her film career more successful. Though Pavan did not work in many pictures, one of them was especially noteworthy: “The Rose Tatoo”. Her performance earned her a nomination for an Oscar of Best Supporting Actress in 1950.

Pavan’s marriage to French actor Jean-Pierre Aumont was somewhat troubled and the couple divorced, but reconciled years later and remarried. Today Marisa is 78 years old, widowed and lives in Paris .

Anna Maria Pierangeli was unpretentious, simple and realistic. She would not become a glamorous Lana Turner type, but instead, she was the girl next door, the girl who suffered, cried and had weaknesses and fears, like most people.

Angeli conveyed sadness, the need for love and protection, and broke the audience’s hearts with her sweet, gentle way. She possessed great charisma and should be remembered as a beautiful, talented woman who had all it takes to become a superstar.

It is a shame that the motion picture industry never fully recognized her potential. But she left behind a legacy of 30 movies that bear witness to the wonderful actress and lovely lady she was.

Bio: http://www.annamariapierangeli.com/

Bluetramontana Style

Eternal Beauty: Carmen Dell'Orefice

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Carmen Dell’Orefice, by Parkinson, 1950

Bahamas, 1952 / Photography by Norman Parkinson.

Dell'Orefice in the 2005 /Red Dress Collection show for The Heart Truth.

Carmen Dell'Orefice was born in New York in 1931, from Italian and Hungarian parents. She was introduced by her godfather to Vogue, and in 1946 at the age of 15, she signed a contract with the magazine for $7.50 per hour.

CLASS IS FOREVER.

Bluetramontana Style