Hitchcock Heroines: 10 Looks Inspired by Director’s Muses
Photo: Bud Fraker/Getty Images
By Howell Conant. Grace Kelly on vacation in Jamaica, 1955.
This beautiful picture of Grace Kelly was made by photographer Howell Conant in Jamaica in 1955. Howell Conant was the photographer’s favorite Grace Kelly,responsible for dozens of photos of the iconic actress. It all started when Conantworked as a fashion photographer, when he was commissioned by a Photoplay magazine cover photograph of Grace Kelly, who soon became Princess of Monaco. Howell Conant also ended up being the favorite photographer of the royal family of Monaco.
Grace Kelly photographed by Cecil Beaton in 1954.
Grace Kelly’s apparent frigidity was like a mountain covered with snow, but that mountain was a volcano.
~ Alfred Hitchcock
Grace Kelly as Frances Stevens in Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘To Catch a Thief’, 1955.
Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief (1955) dir. Alfred Hitchcock
Grace Kelly in Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954)
“I’m not much on rear window ethics.”
“The first time I met Grace Kelly and saw what a beautiful girl she was and how photogenic – that was an important point. She came to make the film To Catch a Thief with Hitchcock. I saw straight away that she was very photogenic and a beautifully kind lady. That’s what made all the men fascinated by her. She had this very feminine attitude.”
- photographer Edward Quinn
Grace Kelly, Cary Grant, To Catch a Thief, 1955 by Classic Film
<br /><i>Via Flickr:</i>
<br />Film synopsis, via <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048728/?ref_=nv_sr_1" rel="nofollow">IMDb</a>:
When a reformed jewel thief is suspected of returning to his former occupation, he must ferret out the real thief in order to prove his innocence.
The 1955 Alfred Hitchcock classic romantic thriller “To Catch a Thief” starred Cary Grant (January 18, 1904 - November 29, 1986) and Grace Kelly (November 12, 1929 - September 14, 1982). Also in the cast was Jessie Royce Landis (November 25, 1896 - February 2, 1972), John Williams (April 15, 1903 - May 5, 1983), Brigitte Auber (b. April 27, 1928), and Charles Vanel (August 21, 1892 - April 15, 1989).
Much of the Paramount Pictures film was filmed on location in France and Monaco, with breathtaking views of the coast and architecture. It won the Oscar for Best Cinematography, Color. Legendary costume designer Edith Head, who designed the film’s wardrobe, including Kelly’s gorgeous gowns and street clothes, was nominated for an Oscar (color film category). She lost to Charles LeMaire for his costume designs for “Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing.”
“Grace Kelly has a presence - a charisma. She also has reason. She is a reasonable person. I will place Grace by far the most amenable and cooperative and untroublesome actress that I have worked with. What is it that Gertrude Stein said: ‘a rose is a rose is a rose.’ What else can you say about her?”
- Alfred Hitchcock
“She is an exceptional human being. She not only had good judgment and good taste, but a tremendous ability to concentrate and was an absolute delight to work with.”
- William Holden
“I’ve worked with some of the biggest stars, but Grace Kelly was the best actress I’ve ever worked with in my life. That woman was total relaxation, absolute ease - she was totally THERE. She was an extraordinarily serene girl.”
- Cary Grant
“So many people ask me that same repetitious question, ‘Who is your favorite actor or actress?’ I say 'Grace Kelly’ every time. Not because I am fond of her, not because she looks so superb in anything I design; but working with her is an extraordinary experience because you don’t actually work for her - you work with her.”
- Edith Head
Stars + Fashion/Costume Designers
Audrey Hepburn and Hubert de Givenchy
Brigitte Bardot and Jacques Esterel
Grace Kelly and Edith Head
Elizabeth Taylor and The Fontana Sisters
Ava Gardner and Christian Dior
Catherine Deneuve and Yves Saint Laurent
Marlene Dietrich and Travis Banton
Romy Schneider and Coco Chanel
Greta Garbo and Gilbert Adrian
travis banton
