A Conversation with Edith Head

Edith Head’s story is as fascinating as the history of the film industry itself, filled with humor, frustration and, above all, glamour. This diva of design helped to define glamour in the most glamorous place in the world – Hollywood! Edith Head was a Hollywood costume designer for more than 60 years. 44 of those years were spent at Paramount Studios, where she worked with the most famous actors of the time, from Mae West and Clara Bow, Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn and Bette Davis. When Paramount failed to renew her contract in 1967, Alfred Hitchcock stepped in and Ms. Head was invited to join Universal Studios. At Universal she costumed Robert Redford and Paul Newman in "The Sting" and won the first-ever Oscar® for a film without a female lead. Her eight Academy Awards® celebrated her artistry in "The Heiress" (her first Oscar®), "Samson & Delilah",
"All About Eve", "A Place in the Sun", "Roman Holiday", "Sabrina", "The Facts of Life" and "The Sting". Edith Head died in October 1981, still under contract to Universal Studios, having just completed the Steve Martin film, "Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid".