Patricia Norris (March 22, 1931 – February 20, 2015) was an American

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 ...

and

production designer In film and television, a production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and feelings. Work ...

. She has received various accolades, including an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

and a Costume Designers Guild Award, in addition to nominations for six

Academy Awards 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 in ...

Career

Norris's first credit as

was for ''The Late Liz'' (1971). She went on to design costumes for several iconic films of the 1970s and 1980s, including ''

Capricorn One ''Capricorn One'' is a 1977 thriller film in which a reporter discovers that a supposed Mars landing by a crewed mission to the planet has been faked via a conspiracy involving the government and—under duress—the crew themselves. It was wri ...

'' (1977), ''

Days of Heaven ''Days of Heaven'' is a 1978 American romantic period drama film written and directed by Terrence Malick, and starring Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, Sam Shepard and Linda Manz. Set in 1916, it tells the story of Bill and Abby, lovers who trav ...

'' (1978), ''

Victor/Victoria ''Victor/Victoria'' is a 1982 musical comedy film written and directed by Blake Edwards and starring Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren, Alex Karras, and John Rhys-Davies. The film was released by Metro-Goldwyn-Maye ...

'' (1982) and ''

Scarface Scarface may refer to: Gangster-related * Scarface, nickname for Al Capone (1899–1947), an American gangster and a businessman. * ''Scarface'' (novel), a novel by Armitage Trail, loosely based on Capone's rise to power ** ''Scarface'' (1932 ...

'' (1983). In 1980, she designed the costumes for ''

The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890) was an English man known for his severe physical deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "The Elephant Man", and then went to live at the London Hospital, ...

'', the first of many collaborations with director

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Lynch was often called a "visionary" and received acclaim f ...

. For her next project with Lynch, '' Blue Velvet'', she received her first credit as

, taking responsibility for the entirety of the film's decor, not just the costumes. Norris continued to work on all of Lynch's films, up to ''

The Straight Story ''The Straight Story'' (stylised as ''the Straight story'') is a 1999 biographical road drama film directed by David Lynch. It was edited and produced by Mary Sweeney, Lynch's longtime partner and collaborator, who also co-wrote the script with ...

'' (1999). In later years, Norris collaborated with

Plan B Entertainment Plan B Entertainment, Inc., more commonly known as Plan B, is an American production company founded in November 2001 by Brad Pitt, Brad Grey, Kristin Hahn and Jennifer Aniston. The company first signed with Warner Bros. as a replacement for ...

on ''

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford ''The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' is a 2007 American epic revisionist Western film written and directed by Andrew Dominik. Based on Ron Hansen's 1983 novel of the same name, the film dramatizes the relationship be ...

'' (2007), ''

Killing Them Softly ''Killing Them Softly'' is a 2012 American neo-noir crime film written and directed by Andrew Dominik, starring Brad Pitt. It is based on George V. Higgins's 1974 novel '' Cogan's Trade.'' The story follows Jackie Cogan, a hitman who is hir ...

'' (2012), and ''

12 Years a Slave ''Twelve Years a Slave'' is an 1853 memoir and slave narrative by Solomon Northup as told to and written by David Wilson. Northup, a black man who was born free in New York state, details himself being tricked to go to Washington, D.C., whe ...

'' (2013).

Awards

She was nominated six times for the

Academy Award for Best Costume Design The Academy Award for Best Costume Design is one of the Academy Awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) for achievement in film costume design. The award was first given in 1949, for films made in 1948 ...

: for ''

'', ''

'', '' 2010: The Year We Make Contact'', ''

Sunset Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its Earth's rotation, rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it ...

'' and ''

''. She won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Costumes for a Series and was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Art Direction for a Single-Camera Series for ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Surrealist cinema, surrealist Mystery film, mystery-Horror film, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It Pilot (Twin Peaks), premiered on American Broad ...

'' (Episode: ''

Pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

''). She also won the

Costume Designers Guild Award for Excellence in Period Film The Costume Designers Guild Award for Excellence in Period Film is one of the annual awards given by the Costume Designers Guild. At the 1st Costume Designers Guild Awards ceremony (celebrating excellence in film and television of 1998), all films ...

for ''12 Years a Slave''."Patricia Norris Courted Oscar Six Times Over." Variety. March 10, 2015. In 2010, she received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the

Art Directors Guild The Art Directors Guild (ADG; IATSE Local 800) is a labor union and local of the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) representing 3,278 motion picture and television professionals in the United States and Canada. The ...

. She was the only person to receive Lifetime Achievement Awards from both the Costume Designers Guild and the Art Directors Guild.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norris, Patricia 1931 births 2015 deaths American costume designers American production designers Primetime Emmy Award winners American women costume designers American women production designers Place of birth missing