Use the scrollbar to explore costumes in this gallery or select a time period above to visit a different gallery.
This costume is arguably one of the most famous in all of cinema history. It was worn in 1939 by Billie Burke as Glinda in The Wizard of Oz. The question is – was it used at any time before or after The Wizard of Oz?
The truth is, we don’t know for sure. There has been some suggestion that the gown was used on Jeanette MacDonald in the 1938film Sweethearts and on Miliza Korjus in The Great Waltz, also from 1938, as well as by Lana Turner in the 1941 Ziegfeld Girl. Unfortunately, I have yet to find any convincing photos or research to back this up. That being said, the odds that this gown went on to be pulled apart and used again are very high. If the gown ever appeared anywhere else, the most likely candidate would be by Jeanette MacDonald in the 1936 film San Francisco, though it cannot be said with any kind of certainty.
Costume designer Adrian is credited with creating the “gowns” for the 1936 film San Fransisco. Three years later, when he designed all of the costumes for The Wizard of Oz, he may have taken his previous creation from San Franciso and altered it for use on Glinda, the good witch of the North.
Glinda’s dress, having been first used on Jeanette MacDonald in San Francisco, has been a part of Wizard of Oz trivia for years and years. I actually recall reading about it in a book about the making of the film years and years ago when I was quite young. David J. Hogan, the author of The Wizard of Oz FAQ, also mentions the fact that the dress was reused and stated that Burke looked at her costume and joked that “I look like a refugee from a German opera!”
The actresses only had height differences of about one inch, which is not terribly significant. The dress would have been heavily made over, but Adrian pulling an already extant gown to use as a base for Glinda is absolutely not something unheard of.
Interestingly enough, the fact that Glinda’s gown is pink is actually significant. Before color films became a common reality, designers had to deal with the fact that the colors from their costumes often translated differently on film. The most well-known example of this is the fact that Bette Davis’ famous ‘red dress’ in Jezebel was, in fact, brown. Red did not photograph properly in black and white. The color white also did not always photograph properly either, and if a designer wanted to feature a white dress on screen, they very often made the dress a pale blue or pale pink (the same rule applied for linens as well!). Norma Shearer’s famous white gown from Marie Antoinette was actually a pale blue, and so the idea of Jeanette MacDonald’s “white” dress being pulled from MGM costume stock actually being pink is interesting to consider.
I’ve had several people tell me that the fact that the dresses are the same is much more obvious when they’ve viewed the film on television, or in one instance, someone wrote to me about having seen San Francisco on the big screen. You can see the scene in which the gown appears here, and though the video has been “colorized” from its original black and white.
Is the gown the same? The truth is, we don’t know. Maybe not. Maybe so. Several books tell us that it is, but the stars on the skirt are so different that one would lead towards these two gowns being different. That being said, the chances that the dress was used after Oz are high. Dresses were reused. It didn’t matter where they came from.
Where is the gown now?
The short answer is we don’t know.
The longer answer is that we can speculate about the fate of this dress.
One person commented that they had seen in a documentary that the dress had been destroyed in a fire. However, I have been unable to locate the documentary or any other documentation to prove this. We do know there was a fire at vault 7 at MGM in 1965 or 1967 (there is speculation as to the date), which destroyed a good many silent films. To learn more about the fire, check out this great article at Classic Film Haven. TCM also has a listing of studio fires, though they focus on the destruction of film rather than sets, props, or costumes. If the costume was destroyed in any of these fires, or if there is another fire that destroyed a part of the wardrobe department, I have been unable to find anything about it.
If the dress was not the victim of fire, it could just as easily have been the victim of age. It could have gone on to be reused for more MGM films after 1939 and eventually just worn out, as many costumes did. It could very easily have been tossed into the garbage. It’s sad to think about, but this was the fate of many costumes that were beyond repair. In most instances, the person throwing the costume away had no idea where it originated.
Another possibility is that it was auctioned in the 1970 MGM auction. I do not have access to the full auction catalog (the auction catalogs themselves often sell for $500 or more), so I cannot say for sure. We do know, however, that quite a few Wizard of Oz costumes were sold during this auction – so if it was sold, this would have been when it happened. The auction saw the selling off of the costume of the Cowardly Lion, and the Wicked Witch’s hat and dress (which were both used in another film), one copy of Dorothy’s famous costume, a pair of ruby slippers, and pair of unused “Arabian’ ruby slippers. Were any other Oz costumes found and cataloged? A man by the name of Kent Warner was in charge of sorting through and cataloging MGM’s costumes to put up for sale. We know that he found a couple of additional pairs of ruby slippers and Dorothy costumes which he kept for himself and sold privately later. He also found Glinda’s shoes, which he gifted to Glenn Brown. These shoes recently went up for auction. Did Kent happen to find Glinda’s costume? Did he sell it or give it away to someone?
Recently someone by the name of Rachel contacted me and told me her great grandfather, Roy Victor Ahlstrom was a friend with the associate producers on Oz, and he was able to purchase the dress. Unfortunately, she says it was stored in a trunk and fell apart.
Whatever the fate of the dress may be, we likely will not know about it unless someone comes forward or if it someday comes up for auction. You can read more about the Wizard of Oz costumes sold at auction over at Silver Screen Modes. You can also see some exciting footage of the auction here.
Have you seen this gown somewhere else? Do you need to be given credit for this sighting? Do you have corrections, additions or changes you would like to make?
Have you ever watched a film and noticed a character walk by in a gown that you just know you’ve seen before? Recycled Movie Costumes is dedicated to documenting the life of a costume through its various appearances on film and television.
This costume is arguably one of the most famous in all of cinema history. It was worn in 1939 by Billie Burke as Glinda in The Wizard of Oz. The question is – was it used at any time before or after The Wizard of Oz?
The truth is, we don’t know for sure. There has been some suggestion that the gown was used on Jeanette MacDonald in the 1938film Sweethearts and on Miliza Korjus in The Great Waltz, also from 1938, as well as by Lana Turner in the 1941 Ziegfeld Girl. Unfortunately, I have yet to find any convincing photos or research to back this up. That being said, the odds that this gown went on to be pulled apart and used again are very high. If the gown ever appeared anywhere else, the most likely candidate would be by Jeanette MacDonald in the 1936 film San Francisco, though it cannot be said with any kind of certainty.
Costume designer Adrian is credited with creating the “gowns” for the 1936 film San Fransisco. Three years later, when he designed all of the costumes for The Wizard of Oz, he may have taken his previous creation from San Franciso and altered it for use on Glinda, the good witch of the North.
Glinda’s dress, having been first used on Jeanette MacDonald in San Francisco, has been a part of Wizard of Oz trivia for years and years. I actually recall reading about it in a book about the making of the film years and years ago when I was quite young. David J. Hogan, the author of The Wizard of Oz FAQ, also mentions the fact that the dress was reused and stated that Burke looked at her costume and joked that “I look like a refugee from a German opera!”
The actresses only had height differences of about one inch, which is not terribly significant. The dress would have been heavily made over, but Adrian pulling an already extant gown to use as a base for Glinda is absolutely not something unheard of.
Interestingly enough, the fact that Glinda’s gown is pink is actually significant. Before color films became a common reality, designers had to deal with the fact that the colors from their costumes often translated differently on film. The most well-known example of this is the fact that Bette Davis’ famous ‘red dress’ in Jezebel was, in fact, brown. Red did not photograph properly in black and white. The color white also did not always photograph properly either, and if a designer wanted to feature a white dress on screen, they very often made the dress a pale blue or pale pink (the same rule applied for linens as well!). Norma Shearer’s famous white gown from Marie Antoinette was actually a pale blue, and so the idea of Jeanette MacDonald’s “white” dress being pulled from MGM costume stock actually being pink is interesting to consider.
I’ve had several people tell me that the fact that the dresses are the same is much more obvious when they’ve viewed the film on television, or in one instance, someone wrote to me about having seen San Francisco on the big screen. You can see the scene in which the gown appears here, and though the video has been “colorized” from its original black and white.
Is the gown the same? The truth is, we don’t know. Maybe not. Maybe so. Several books tell us that it is, but the stars on the skirt are so different that one would lead towards these two gowns being different. That being said, the chances that the dress was used after Oz are high. Dresses were reused. It didn’t matter where they came from.
Where is the gown now?
The short answer is we don’t know.
The longer answer is that we can speculate about the fate of this dress.
One person commented that they had seen in a documentary that the dress had been destroyed in a fire. However, I have been unable to locate the documentary or any other documentation to prove this. We do know there was a fire at vault 7 at MGM in 1965 or 1967 (there is speculation as to the date), which destroyed a good many silent films. To learn more about the fire, check out this great article at Classic Film Haven. TCM also has a listing of studio fires, though they focus on the destruction of film rather than sets, props, or costumes. If the costume was destroyed in any of these fires, or if there is another fire that destroyed a part of the wardrobe department, I have been unable to find anything about it.
If the dress was not the victim of fire, it could just as easily have been the victim of age. It could have gone on to be reused for more MGM films after 1939 and eventually just worn out, as many costumes did. It could very easily have been tossed into the garbage. It’s sad to think about, but this was the fate of many costumes that were beyond repair. In most instances, the person throwing the costume away had no idea where it originated.
Another possibility is that it was auctioned in the 1970 MGM auction. I do not have access to the full auction catalog (the auction catalogs themselves often sell for $500 or more), so I cannot say for sure. We do know, however, that quite a few Wizard of Oz costumes were sold during this auction – so if it was sold, this would have been when it happened. The auction saw the selling off of the costume of the Cowardly Lion, and the Wicked Witch’s hat and dress (which were both used in another film), one copy of Dorothy’s famous costume, a pair of ruby slippers, and pair of unused “Arabian’ ruby slippers. Were any other Oz costumes found and cataloged? A man by the name of Kent Warner was in charge of sorting through and cataloging MGM’s costumes to put up for sale. We know that he found a couple of additional pairs of ruby slippers and Dorothy costumes which he kept for himself and sold privately later. He also found Glinda’s shoes, which he gifted to Glenn Brown. These shoes recently went up for auction. Did Kent happen to find Glinda’s costume? Did he sell it or give it away to someone?
Recently someone by the name of Rachel contacted me and told me her great grandfather, Roy Victor Ahlstrom was a friend with the associate producers on Oz, and he was able to purchase the dress. Unfortunately, she says it was stored in a trunk and fell apart.
Whatever the fate of the dress may be, we likely will not know about it unless someone comes forward or if it someday comes up for auction. You can read more about the Wizard of Oz costumes sold at auction over at Silver Screen Modes. You can also see some exciting footage of the auction here.
This costume is arguably one of the most famous in all of cinema history. It was worn in 1939 by Billie Burke as Glinda in The Wizard of Oz. The question is – was it used at any time before or after The Wizard of Oz?
The truth is, we don’t know for sure. There has been some suggestion that the gown was used on Jeanette MacDonald in the 1938film Sweethearts and on Miliza Korjus in The Great Waltz, also from 1938, as well as by Lana Turner in the 1941 Ziegfeld Girl. Unfortunately, I have yet to find any convincing photos or research to back this up. That being said, the odds that this gown went on to be pulled apart and used again are very high. If the gown ever appeared anywhere else, the most likely candidate would be by Jeanette MacDonald in the 1936 film San Francisco, though it cannot be said with any kind of certainty.
Costume designer Adrian is credited with creating the “gowns” for the 1936 film San Fransisco. Three years later, when he designed all of the costumes for The Wizard of Oz, he may have taken his previous creation from San Franciso and altered it for use on Glinda, the good witch of the North.
Glinda’s dress, having been first used on Jeanette MacDonald in San Francisco, has been a part of Wizard of Oz trivia for years and years. I actually recall reading about it in a book about the making of the film years and years ago when I was quite young. David J. Hogan, the author of The Wizard of Oz FAQ, also mentions the fact that the dress was reused and stated that Burke looked at her costume and joked that “I look like a refugee from a German opera!”
The actresses only had height differences of about one inch, which is not terribly significant. The dress would have been heavily made over, but Adrian pulling an already extant gown to use as a base for Glinda is absolutely not something unheard of.
Interestingly enough, the fact that Glinda’s gown is pink is actually significant. Before color films became a common reality, designers had to deal with the fact that the colors from their costumes often translated differently on film. The most well-known example of this is the fact that Bette Davis’ famous ‘red dress’ in Jezebel was, in fact, brown. Red did not photograph properly in black and white. The color white also did not always photograph properly either, and if a designer wanted to feature a white dress on screen, they very often made the dress a pale blue or pale pink (the same rule applied for linens as well!). Norma Shearer’s famous white gown from Marie Antoinette was actually a pale blue, and so the idea of Jeanette MacDonald’s “white” dress being pulled from MGM costume stock actually being pink is interesting to consider.
I’ve had several people tell me that the fact that the dresses are the same is much more obvious when they’ve viewed the film on television, or in one instance, someone wrote to me about having seen San Francisco on the big screen. You can see the scene in which the gown appears here, and though the video has been “colorized” from its original black and white.
Is the gown the same? The truth is, we don’t know. Maybe not. Maybe so. Several books tell us that it is, but the stars on the skirt are so different that one would lead towards these two gowns being different. That being said, the chances that the dress was used after Oz are high. Dresses were reused. It didn’t matter where they came from.
Where is the gown now?
The short answer is we don’t know.
The longer answer is that we can speculate about the fate of this dress.
One person commented that they had seen in a documentary that the dress had been destroyed in a fire. However, I have been unable to locate the documentary or any other documentation to prove this. We do know there was a fire at vault 7 at MGM in 1965 or 1967 (there is speculation as to the date), which destroyed a good many silent films. To learn more about the fire, check out this great article at Classic Film Haven. TCM also has a listing of studio fires, though they focus on the destruction of film rather than sets, props, or costumes. If the costume was destroyed in any of these fires, or if there is another fire that destroyed a part of the wardrobe department, I have been unable to find anything about it.
If the dress was not the victim of fire, it could just as easily have been the victim of age. It could have gone on to be reused for more MGM films after 1939 and eventually just worn out, as many costumes did. It could very easily have been tossed into the garbage. It’s sad to think about, but this was the fate of many costumes that were beyond repair. In most instances, the person throwing the costume away had no idea where it originated.
Another possibility is that it was auctioned in the 1970 MGM auction. I do not have access to the full auction catalog (the auction catalogs themselves often sell for $500 or more), so I cannot say for sure. We do know, however, that quite a few Wizard of Oz costumes were sold during this auction – so if it was sold, this would have been when it happened. The auction saw the selling off of the costume of the Cowardly Lion, and the Wicked Witch’s hat and dress (which were both used in another film), one copy of Dorothy’s famous costume, a pair of ruby slippers, and pair of unused “Arabian’ ruby slippers. Were any other Oz costumes found and cataloged? A man by the name of Kent Warner was in charge of sorting through and cataloging MGM’s costumes to put up for sale. We know that he found a couple of additional pairs of ruby slippers and Dorothy costumes which he kept for himself and sold privately later. He also found Glinda’s shoes, which he gifted to Glenn Brown. These shoes recently went up for auction. Did Kent happen to find Glinda’s costume? Did he sell it or give it away to someone?
Recently someone by the name of Rachel contacted me and told me her great grandfather, Roy Victor Ahlstrom was a friend with the associate producers on Oz, and he was able to purchase the dress. Unfortunately, she says it was stored in a trunk and fell apart.
Whatever the fate of the dress may be, we likely will not know about it unless someone comes forward or if it someday comes up for auction. You can read more about the Wizard of Oz costumes sold at auction over at Silver Screen Modes. You can also see some exciting footage of the auction here.
All intellectual property rights vests with the owner of the copyrighted material. Recycled Movie Costumes is not copying, distributing and using these materials except for entertainment purposes only and deems itself to be protected under the regulations of mandatory law (such as the right to quote), unless otherwise stated for certain material. We are happy to take down any material that the copyright owner/trademark owner feels is a violation of their statutory right. Before proceeding with the legal measures, we request the alleged aggrieved to contact us at [email protected] for us to assist them with our cooperation.
The films/television shows/books and other media represented in the images on this website do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints of Recycled Movie Costumes. Said media may contain mature content. Viewer discretion is advised at all times.
Do you have more information to add to this page?
Do you have a brand new costume to share?
NOT the same dress, Maybe same pattern, but not dress.
Log in to ReplyThe bodices are very different (Glenda’s has a slight point…among other things)….as are the glitz on the skirts. Not the same.
Log in to ReplyThe same gown worn by Jeanette MacDonald in “Maytime” in the “Czaritza” scene was also worn by Ilona Massey at the end of “Balalaika”.
Log in to ReplyThanks Evelyn! Do you happen to have photos you could share?
Log in to ReplyThat’s interesting-thank-you . Are all the “Maytime” costumes Adrian as well?
Log in to ReplyThis is not the same gown. Jeanette MacDonald was 5′ 4″ and Billie Burke was 5′ 5″ meaning that you cannot take a circle-patterned skirt and make it oval in order to take the 1860’s MacDonald gown and create a French period style pannier gown as it would make the sides of the round pattern lift at the sides when being placed over an appropriately shaped pannier hoop (which was generally a wire framed-curved device on either side of the wearer’s hips with a fabric gridwork ending with the hem. I scanned pictures of both costumes and overlaid them in Photoshop to see if the star pattern was the same. It is not. Jeanettes have “swirling” bugle beads of the same color as the stars, and Billies have white bugle beads in a straight and larger glowing pattern from each gold star. The bodice is in fact, pointier. To be polite, the 40+ Miss Burke was larger through the midsection than the perennially underweight Miss MacDonald. As for the designer, Adrian also used a chiffon-and-stars pattern in a “Camille” gown for Garbo and in the rotating steps “A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody” sequence from “The Great Ziegfeld” there are yet more gowns with the same sleeve and the star-beaded patterns. Pink or Pale Blue was always used in these costumes because white bleached out on film, either color or black and white. As I had said in an earlier post, gowns were reused all the time. If there were fur or feathers on them, they were removed after the filming, with the garment being reused – feather and fur-less in other films. I only know of one instance in which Adrian reused a costume deliberately.
Log in to ReplyIt’s not the same dress. As others said, the skirt is a different style and could not have been changed to the style used on the Glinda dress, the decorations on the skirt are in different places, etc.
However, the most obvious “proof” – Jeanette’s dress is clearly white or a very, very light color. Try turning a picture of Glinda black and white. The dress comes out the same color as her skin because…it’s peach-colored, just like her skin. Unless Jeanette had a very dark tan, her dress was white, not peach. 😉
Ultimately, with all the work Adrian put into the Wizard of Oz, knowing how important it was, does anybody really think he would RE-USE a dress on one of the principal characters? He was a designer. He just created a similar design.
Log in to ReplyYes that is just what I was thinking as I was picturing in my mind how they would have used a round cut dress to form a oval cut pannier dress. Another interesting point that you brought up is that the dress was peach color and not pink as so many photos show. I’m a dollmaker,researching this costume to recreate it. thank-you for your information
Log in to ReplyAdrian was given free reign on Wizard of Oz, spared no expense. With the amount of work and detail that went into all the extras costumes, I have no doubt that he’d put even more effort into the main casts clothing. Jeanette MacDonald’s dress probably was reused but in period movies and only on an extra. Glinda’s dress would have been made from scratch.
Log in to ReplyI’m not sure this is the same gown either. The pointed waistline is not as pronounced on Jeanette’s costume, plus Adrian was very fond of reusing styles and patterns and reused costumes very rarely. The star sequins/applique pattern was also used on a Greta Garbo gown in “Camille” and Jeanette MacDonald wore another similar pink gown in “Maytime” when she sang “Les Filles de Cadiz”. This is not to say a costume was not reworked or remade, but Adrian’s reuse of designs can lead to confusion. This being said, a good eye can pick out MacDonald costumes worn in at least two other M.G.M. films she wasn’t in!
Log in to ReplyThank-you ;your information and knowledge is astounding to me.As wellas fascinating. I’m a doll maker and would like to recreate Glinda’s dress as well as others . Im researching this costume. This is one website that came up in my research.
Log in to ReplyThat does make sense.
Log in to ReplyI had heard, sadly, that this glorious Glinda costume was consumed in a fire at MGM sometime in the 40’s. Such a loss! You may have to look up more info, but I had heard of it’s loss in a documentary about MGM some time ago. 🙁 Great article though! I didn’t realize it was a remake of Jeanette’s SF coatume! At least we’ll have the movies and stills to remember it by.
Log in to ReplyThat is really sad about that fire destroying this costume for Glinda. I want to research this costume for a doll I’m designing of glinda
Log in to ReplyDoes this inclde her wand and crown? Were too both lost in the fire?
Log in to ReplyI studied Glinda’s costume a great deal in order to recreate it. I dunno….unless Billie was a lot shorter than Jeanette, I am not so sure these are the same gown. Hoops vs pannier would mean you’d need to shorten the front and back of the dress to accomodate the extra width (it’s 5 ft wide), but teh reduction in depth. The sleeves are cut as one for Glinda, so they’d have replaced the whole sleeve, and the stars are not in the same place on both gowns. The shape of the bodice differs, with Glinda’s being pointier at the bottom. Not convinced.
Log in to ReplyWendy may I ask what you recreated the Glinda costume for. I would like to recreate it for a large doll that I am working on. I’m researching the costume but not finding the information I need online.
Log in to Reply
Scroll back to top
Costume Commentary
NOT the same dress, Maybe same pattern, but not dress.
The bodices are very different (Glenda’s has a slight point…among other things)….as are the glitz on the skirts. Not the same.
The same gown worn by Jeanette MacDonald in “Maytime” in the “Czaritza” scene was also worn by Ilona Massey at the end of “Balalaika”.
Thanks Evelyn! Do you happen to have photos you could share?
That’s interesting-thank-you . Are all the “Maytime” costumes Adrian as well?
This is not the same gown. Jeanette MacDonald was 5′ 4″ and Billie Burke was 5′ 5″ meaning that you cannot take a circle-patterned skirt and make it oval in order to take the 1860’s MacDonald gown and create a French period style pannier gown as it would make the sides of the round pattern lift at the sides when being placed over an appropriately shaped pannier hoop (which was generally a wire framed-curved device on either side of the wearer’s hips with a fabric gridwork ending with the hem. I scanned pictures of both costumes and overlaid them in Photoshop to see if the star pattern was the same. It is not. Jeanettes have “swirling” bugle beads of the same color as the stars, and Billies have white bugle beads in a straight and larger glowing pattern from each gold star. The bodice is in fact, pointier. To be polite, the 40+ Miss Burke was larger through the midsection than the perennially underweight Miss MacDonald. As for the designer, Adrian also used a chiffon-and-stars pattern in a “Camille” gown for Garbo and in the rotating steps “A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody” sequence from “The Great Ziegfeld” there are yet more gowns with the same sleeve and the star-beaded patterns. Pink or Pale Blue was always used in these costumes because white bleached out on film, either color or black and white. As I had said in an earlier post, gowns were reused all the time. If there were fur or feathers on them, they were removed after the filming, with the garment being reused – feather and fur-less in other films. I only know of one instance in which Adrian reused a costume deliberately.
It’s not the same dress. As others said, the skirt is a different style and could not have been changed to the style used on the Glinda dress, the decorations on the skirt are in different places, etc.
However, the most obvious “proof” – Jeanette’s dress is clearly white or a very, very light color. Try turning a picture of Glinda black and white. The dress comes out the same color as her skin because…it’s peach-colored, just like her skin. Unless Jeanette had a very dark tan, her dress was white, not peach. 😉
Ultimately, with all the work Adrian put into the Wizard of Oz, knowing how important it was, does anybody really think he would RE-USE a dress on one of the principal characters? He was a designer. He just created a similar design.
Yes that is just what I was thinking as I was picturing in my mind how they would have used a round cut dress to form a oval cut pannier dress. Another interesting point that you brought up is that the dress was peach color and not pink as so many photos show. I’m a dollmaker,researching this costume to recreate it. thank-you for your information
Adrian was given free reign on Wizard of Oz, spared no expense. With the amount of work and detail that went into all the extras costumes, I have no doubt that he’d put even more effort into the main casts clothing. Jeanette MacDonald’s dress probably was reused but in period movies and only on an extra. Glinda’s dress would have been made from scratch.
I’m not sure this is the same gown either. The pointed waistline is not as pronounced on Jeanette’s costume, plus Adrian was very fond of reusing styles and patterns and reused costumes very rarely. The star sequins/applique pattern was also used on a Greta Garbo gown in “Camille” and Jeanette MacDonald wore another similar pink gown in “Maytime” when she sang “Les Filles de Cadiz”. This is not to say a costume was not reworked or remade, but Adrian’s reuse of designs can lead to confusion. This being said, a good eye can pick out MacDonald costumes worn in at least two other M.G.M. films she wasn’t in!
Thank-you ;your information and knowledge is astounding to me.As wellas fascinating. I’m a doll maker and would like to recreate Glinda’s dress as well as others . Im researching this costume. This is one website that came up in my research.
That does make sense.
I had heard, sadly, that this glorious Glinda costume was consumed in a fire at MGM sometime in the 40’s. Such a loss! You may have to look up more info, but I had heard of it’s loss in a documentary about MGM some time ago. 🙁 Great article though! I didn’t realize it was a remake of Jeanette’s SF coatume! At least we’ll have the movies and stills to remember it by.
That is really sad about that fire destroying this costume for Glinda. I want to research this costume for a doll I’m designing of glinda
Does this inclde her wand and crown? Were too both lost in the fire?
I studied Glinda’s costume a great deal in order to recreate it. I dunno….unless Billie was a lot shorter than Jeanette, I am not so sure these are the same gown. Hoops vs pannier would mean you’d need to shorten the front and back of the dress to accomodate the extra width (it’s 5 ft wide), but teh reduction in depth. The sleeves are cut as one for Glinda, so they’d have replaced the whole sleeve, and the stars are not in the same place on both gowns. The shape of the bodice differs, with Glinda’s being pointier at the bottom. Not convinced.
Wendy may I ask what you recreated the Glinda costume for. I would like to recreate it for a large doll that I am working on. I’m researching the costume but not finding the information I need online.