rsilvago Posted May 3, 2004 Share Posted May 3, 2004 Does anyone know where I can find any color sketches, color photos, or an actual collection of Travis Banton costumes? Robert Silva rsilvago@aol.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
classicsfan1119 Posted May 4, 2004 Share Posted May 4, 2004 Mr. Banton was a fabulous Costume Designer for many years in Hollywood. I think your best bet might be to locate the archives that might exist for Costume Design from the major studio's during the periods you're interested in. Be sure to check at your local Library, too. You can also (possibly) find Movie Poster's, many in color, at various Internet Websites that will show his costumes on a star in the poster. Good luck! ML Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhnrndglt Posted May 4, 2004 Share Posted May 4, 2004 Agreed. After a short internet check, there doesn't seem to be a book released with Banton's designs. You might want to check his film credits and then look for specific photos of the stars he was most famous for designing for, including Mae West and Marlene Dietrich, and look for photos of them from those films. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moviejoe79 Posted May 4, 2004 Share Posted May 4, 2004 There was a large hardcover book released awhile ago which I think was called "In a Glamorous Fashion" which showcased many of the famous costume designers of the 1930's, among them, Travis Banton. If you can find a copy of this book, it's worth looking at. I remember there being some nice full page photos of actresses of the 30's in his gowns. As far as I know, he strictly worked at Paramount, and was their number one costume designer during the 30's. In fact, I think Edith Head trained under him before taking over the costume department when he retired. As for the actual gowns that he created - I have seen them in Hollywood auctions from time to time, and they usually sell for thousands of dollars. Except for a few museum societies, such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Collection, I think most of his pieces are owned by private collectors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
classicsfan1119 Posted May 5, 2004 Share Posted May 5, 2004 Wow, Moviejoe....as always, you've really come up with the goods here. I thank you too, for I've also learned something from the information you provided. ;)ML Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bansi4 Posted May 5, 2004 Share Posted May 5, 2004 Travis Banton also did costume designs for 20th Century-Fox including stars Betty Grable, Carmen Miranda and Gene Tierney. He also dressed Rita Hayworth in "Cover Girl" and Claudette Colbert in "Cleopatra". As good as Mr. Banton was he never received an Oscar nomination for his work. Mongo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandykaypax Posted May 5, 2004 Share Posted May 5, 2004 Speaking of COVER GIRL, I loved the bridesmaid dresses that he designed for that film. Eve Arden looks stunning in a deep red/wine jersey dress with purple silk lilacs and matching hat. I love the striking color combo. Rita also wears a great dance dress in the "Put Me to the Test" number with Gene Kelly-aquamarine blue and lime green with chiffon skirt-gorgeous! Actually, everyone looks FABULOUS in that film! Sandy K Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moviejoe79 Posted May 5, 2004 Share Posted May 5, 2004 Thanks for the accolades ML, but I'm really not as knowledgeable as you might think. I'm definitely not as well read as Mongo or Coffedan or some of our other comrades on the boards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsilvago Posted May 12, 2004 Author Share Posted May 12, 2004 Thanks for great info -- I will check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musclephoto2 Posted May 21, 2004 Share Posted May 21, 2004 Regarding Travis Banton. His contribution to COVER GIRL consisted of two dresses, one a marvelous silver fox design for Rita Hayworth. Muriel King designed the modern dresses and Gwen Wakeling the period flashback costumes. Banton was drinking heavily at the time and studios could not count on him although he worked at Universal from 1945-48 as Head Stylist. There is another book: COSTUME DESIGN IN THE MOVIES: An Illustrated Guide to the Work of 157 Great Designers by Elizabeth Leese (Dover, 1991) that includes some of Banton designs as well as those of other designers. When I get a moment from working, I'm printing "The Making of COVER GIRL" a complete description of how the film was made including interviews with all collective talent on the film including those behind the scenes as well as in front of the camera. One little known fact from the studio files is that Columbia's first choice for a leading man was Dennis Morgan. When Warner Brother's would not loan him out, they settled for Gene Kelly. Hiring Kelly, made Columbia Pictures nervous since he was newly classified 1-A in the draft. But since Rita is at her best when she is romanced AND danced by her co-star, hiring Kelly guaranteed the film's success. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandykaypax Posted May 22, 2004 Share Posted May 22, 2004 Musclephoto, thanks for the info about COVER GIRL. I didn't realize that Banton only designed 2 dresses for the film! The silver fox trimmed-gown that he designed for Hayworth is beautiful! Will your book about the making of COVER GIRL be published anytime soon? Sandy K Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hassan974 Posted May 30, 2004 Share Posted May 30, 2004 Hi, It's not a book I am doing. It is a series of quarterly newsmagazines in which each features a different Hayworth film with in depth behind the scenes "creation of" kind of stuff. It's the kind of thing that has limited marketability since it does not contain sleezy personal life details. There is no "hook" to bring in buyers; just good old fashioned accurate Hollywood history. It's strictly for people interested in film from that standpoint. It really gives an idea of how a studio work at creating these now classic films. I haven't figured out the cost per issue yet but I do have my printer lined up. I've done everything myself on computer: layout, typesetting, design. You didn't think that Orson Welles was the only one who liked controlling everything, did you? lol The nice thing is that people are able to email me photos from their collection to use without having to send originals. People have been generous in scanning and sending photos rare photos at the required resolution for printing. I don't need to retire off these newsmagazines but I would like to recover my costs and make a little for years spent researching. We'll see what happens in this soft book market. The people at Columbia have been very generous with tie-ins because I am also giving them publicity for their Rita Hayworth DVD's. Thanks for asking. Hassan K. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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