Diana Julie Harris (26 March 1921 – 30 May 2015) was a British

costume designer A costume designer is a person who designs costumes for a film, stage production or television show. The role of the costume designer is to create the characters' outfits or costumes and balance the scenes with texture and colour, etc. The costum ...

. Her accolades include an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

and a

BAFTA Award The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to f ...

Career

Born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1921, Harris began her career in 1947 at

Gainsborough Pictures Gainsborough Pictures was a British film studio based on the south bank of the Regent's Canal, in Poole Street, Hoxton in the former Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch, east London. Gainsborough Studios was active between 1924 and 1951. The co ...

with ''

Holiday Camp A holiday camp is a type of holiday accommodation, primarily in the United Kingdom, that encourages holidaymakers to stay within the site boundary, and provides entertainment and facilities for them throughout the day. Since the 1970s, the term ...

'', the forerunner of the Huggett family film series. During her early career, she was mentored by

Elizabeth Haffenden Elizabeth Haffenden (18 April 1906 – 29 May 1976) was a British costume designer. She is recognized for her prolific work across stage and screen. She is best known for creating costumes for most of the Gainsborough melodramas. Haffenden receiv ...

, and went on to work for the

Rank Organisation The Rank Organisation (founded as the J. Arthur Rank Organisation) is a British entertainment conglomerate founded in 1937 by industrialist J. Arthur Rank. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the Uni ...

, until that studio wound down its business in the 1950s. Over the next 30 years, she worked with actors such as

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, ''Playboy'' Playmate, and sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s. She was known for her numerous publicity stunts and open personal life. He ...

Joan Crawford Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, 190? was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway theatre, Broadway. Crawford was signed to a motion-picture cont ...

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress of film, television, and theater. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, she was noted for her willingness to play unsympatheti ...

Lauren Bacall Betty Joan Perske (September 16, 1924 – August 12, 2014), professionally known as Lauren Bacall ( ), was an American actress. She was named the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 20th-greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the America ...

and

Alan Ladd Alan Walbridge Ladd (September 3, 1913 – January 29, 1964) was an American actor and film producer. Ladd found success in film in the 1940s and early 1950s, particularly in films noir and Westerns. He was often paired with Veronica Lake in ...

and directors

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

Joseph Losey Joseph Walton Losey III (; January 14, 1909 – June 22, 1984) was an American film and theatre director, producer, and screenwriter. Born in Wisconsin, he studied in Germany with Bertolt Brecht and then returned to the United States. Hollywood ...

Billy Wilder Billy Wilder (; ; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter. His career in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and ver ...

and

John Schlesinger John Richard Schlesinger ( ; 16 February 1926 – 25 July 2003) was an English film and stage director, and actor. He emerged in the early 1960s as a leading light of the British New Wave, before embarking on a successful career in Hollywood ...

. She made a "

mink Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera ''Neogale'' and '' Mustela'' and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": the A ...

bikini A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by women that features one piece on top that covers the breasts, and a second piece on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but usually exposing the navel, and the back generally covering ...

" (actually made out of

rabbit fur Rabbit hair (also called rabbit fur, cony, coney, comb or lapin) is the fur of the common rabbit. It is most commonly used in the making of fur hats and coats, and is considered quite valuable today, although it was once a lower-priced commodit ...

) for

Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a Bombshell (slang), blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, and Mamie Van ...

. She worked steadily on

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

s throughout the next three decades, hitting her stride in the 1960s, before shifting her attention to

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

s until her retirement in 1991. Harris won the

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

for Best Costume Design for '' Darling'' in 1965, and the

BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design The BAFTA Award for Best Costume Design is a film award presented by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) at the annual British Academy Film Awards to recognize a designer who has delivered outstanding costume design in a film. ...

for ''

The Wrong Box ''The Wrong Box'' is a 1966 British comedy film produced and directed by Bryan Forbes and starring John Mills, Ralph Richardson and a large ensemble cast. The screenplay was by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove, based on the 1889 novel '' The ...

'' in 1967. She also worked on the

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

' first two live action feature films, '' A Hard Day's Night'' (1964), and ''

Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their Help! (film), film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965 by Parlophone. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the sin ...

'' (1965), quipping that "I must be one of the few people who can claim they have seen

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

George George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

and Ringo naked." She also worked on the

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

film '' Live and Let Die'' (1973) with

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the actor to portray Ian Fleming's fictional secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in the Eon Productions/MGM Studios film series, playing the ...

, and the spoof '' Casino Royale'' (1967) with

David Niven James David Graham Niven (; 1 March 1910 – 29 July 1983) was an English actor, soldier, raconteur, memoirist and novelist. Niven was known as a handsome and debonair leading man in Classic Hollywood films. His accolades include an Academ ...

. Harris also designed costumes for the ''Carry On'' film ''

Carry On Cleo ''Carry On Cleo'' is a 1964 British historical comedy film, the tenth in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). Regulars Sid James, Kenneth Williams, Kenneth Connor, Charles Hawtrey, and Jim Dale are present and Connor made his l ...

'' (1964), a

sword and sandal Sword-and-sandal, also known as peplum (: pepla), is a subgenre of largely Italian-made historical, mythological, or biblical epics mostly set in the Greco-Roman antiquity or the Middle Ages. These films attempted to emulate the big-budget Holly ...

spoof set in ancient Rome and Egypt, described as "perhaps the best" of the series. Harris died after a brief illness from a chest infection, aged 94, on 30 May 2015.

Notable credits

*''

Another Man's Poison ''Another Man's Poison'' is a 1951 British drama film directed by Irving Rapper and starring Bette Davis, Gary Merrill and Emlyn Williams. The screenplay by Val Guest is based on the play ''Deadlock'' by Leslie Sands. Plot Successful mystery no ...

'' (1951) *''

The Story of Esther Costello ''The Story of Esther Costello'' is a 1957 British drama film directed by David Miller and starring Joan Crawford, Rossano Brazzi and Heather Sears. It was produced by Miller and Jack Clayton. The screenplay by Charles Kaufman was based on ...

'' (1957) *'' Swiss Family Robinson'' (1960) *'' All Night Long'' (1961) *''

The Chalk Garden ''The Chalk Garden'' is a play by Enid Bagnold that premiered in the USA in 1955 and was produced in Britain the following year. It tells the story of the imperious Mrs St Maugham and her granddaughter Laurel, a disturbed child under the care o ...

'' (1964) *'' A Hard Day's Night'' (1964) *''

'' (1964) *''

'' (1965) *'' Darling'' (1965) *''

'' (1966) *'' Casino Royale'' (1967) *''

The Whisperers ''The Whisperers'' is a 1967 British drama film directed by Bryan Forbes and starring Edith Evans. It is based on the 1961 novel by Robert Nicolson. Plot Mrs Margaret Ross, an impoverished, elderly, eccentric woman, is living in a ground f ...

'' (1967) *'' Prudence and the Pill'' (1968) *''

Goodbye, Mr. Chips ''Goodbye, Mr. Chips'' is a novella about the life of a school teacher, Mr. Chipping, written by English writer James Hilton (novelist), James Hilton and first published by Hodder & Stoughton in October 1934. It has been adapted into two featu ...

'' (1969) *''

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes ''The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes'' is a 1970 DeLuxe Color film in Panavision written and produced by Billy Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond, and directed by Wilder. The film offers an affectionate, slightly parodic look at Sherlock Holmes, ...

'' (1970) *'' Live and Let Die'' (1973) *'' Rollerball'' (1975) *'' The Land That Time Forgot'' (1975) *''

The Slipper and the Rose ''The Slipper and the Rose: The Story of Cinderella'' is a 1976 British musical retelling the classic fairy tale of Cinderella. The film was chosen as the Royal Command Performance motion picture selection for 1976. Directed by Bryan Forbes, th ...

'' (1976) *''

Candleshoe ''Candleshoe'' is a 1977 American children's adventure comedy film, directed by Norman Tokar in a screenplay by David Swift and Rosemary Anne Sisson, produced by Walt Disney Productions, and distributed by Buena Vista. Based on the Michael ...

'' (1977) *''

Dracula ''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...

'' (1979) *''

The Great Muppet Caper ''The Great Muppet Caper'' is a 1981 musical heist comedy film directed by Jim Henson (in his feature directorial debut) and the second theatrical film featuring the Muppets. The film stars Muppet performers Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Jerr ...

'' (1981)

Awards and nominations

References

* Harper, Sue, ''Women in British Cinema: Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know''. London: Continuum International Publishing Group 2000. , pp. 215–16

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Julie 1921 births 2015 deaths Best Costume Design Academy Award winners Best Costume Design BAFTA Award winners British costume designers British women costume designers English costume designers Infectious disease deaths in England Designers from London

Career

Notable credits

Awards and nominations

References

Further reading

External links