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Jean-Louis

Jean-Louis Berthault.

Date of birth : October 5, 1907, Paris, France.

Date of death : April 20, 1997, Palm Springs, California.

 

Practise: Chief designer for the Hollywood studios.

 

Portrait :

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Story

At the end of the 30's, after graduating from the École des Arts décoratifs in Paris, Jean-Louis Berthault started in fashion design with Agnes Drecoll.

In 1935 he  visited New York and spent a great deal of time in his hotel room sketching dresses. The day before returning to Paris a friend suggested that he shows his work to a few prestigious 7th Avenue clothing design firms. Powerful Hattie Carnegie Inc. became Jean Louis' introduction to the fashion world. Hattie Carnegie hired him to give a Parisian "touch" to her collections.

In 1936 he settled in New York. He worked with her until 1943.

His first clients were actress Irene Dunne and Joan Cohn, Harry Cohn's wife, founder of the Columbia Pictures, which would open wide the Hollywood studios doors.

He quickly gained recognition and began a lifetime of dressing the stars of Hollywood and the New York society.

In 1943, he left the profitable New York fashion business and was named Chief Designer at Columbia Pictures. Later, he moved on to design costumes at Universal Pictures and then as an independent freelance costume designer. He eventually founded his own fashion and costume design atelier.

With Adele Jergens : .

Since 1958, he mostly worked for the United Artists.

Nominated 15 times for an Academy Award in Best Costume Design. These marvelous films include "Born Yesterday" (1950), "Affair in Trinidad" (1952), "From Here to Eternity" (1953), "A Star Is Born" (1954), "It Should Happen To You" (1954), "Queen Bee" (1955), "Pal Joey" (1957, "Bell, Book and Candle" (1958), "Back Street" (1961), "Judgment at Nuremberg" (1961), "Ship of Fools" (1965), "Gambit" (1966), "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (1967) and the 1956 film "Solid Gold Cadillac" starring Judy Holiday, for which he won the Oscar for Best Costume Design.

After working for Universal Pictures in the early 60's, Jean-Louis left full-time studio work. Although he would continue to freelance for pictures, he devoted most of his time to his salon in Beverly Hills, where clients included Nancy Reagan.

Jean Louis lived in Santa Barbara with his wife of 30 years, Maggie (), until her death in 1987.

In 1988, he retired to Palm Springs.

On August 10th 1993,  he married his companion and close friend, Loretta Young ().
He had designed gowns and costumes for the stunning actress throughout her long career, including the gowns worn for her famous staircase entrances on her television show.

Jean Louis was known for creating glamorous gowns for some of Hollywood's most sensuous leading ladies. Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth, Doris Day, Lana Turner, Joan Crawford, Marlene Dietrich, Mary Tyler Moore and Julie Andrews were all immaculately costumed by Jean Louis. His brilliant clothes were known for the luxurious materials, simple and elegant cut, virtuosity of workmanship, and a modern uncluttered silhouette, which make his clothes as wearable today as they were fifty years ago.

Two of Jean Louis' superb costumes have become fixtures in the American cultural history. The unforgettable nude sequin gown that Marilyn Monroe wore to serenade President John F. Kennedy on his birthday in 1962, and the black strapless duchesse satin gown Rita Hayworth wore in the 1946 movie "Gilda."

Link with Marilyn

He met Marilyn at the beginning of her career and designed her costumes whaen she played in "Ladies of the Chorus" (1948).

Then he worked with her in "The Misfits" (1961)  (,,,,,,,) and in "Something's Got to Give".

 

During his long career, he dressed all the Hollywood great actresses. He designed the long black satin dress worn by Rita Hayworth when she sang "Put the Blame on Mame" in "Gilda" (Columbia Pictures, 1946).

He also designed 52 dresses for the TV show of the actress Loretta Young, who would become his wife. 

Marilyn contacted him when she wanted to make a remarkable entrance. He designed the long tight-fitting dress in sparkling silk, which made her looked naked under the limelights, that she wore to sing "Happy Birthday" to
John Kennedy on May 19th 1962.

The dress : 

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At the Madison Square Garden : 

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The days before her death, he had taken measures for a 1 600 $ dress. According to the versions, it was either a spangled evening dress, or the dress she planned to wear to remarry Joe DiMaggio.

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