Orry-Kelly : an Australian in Hollywood : producing meaning through costume

Costume designer Orry-Kelly has a unique place in Hollywood history as one of the few designers to win three or more Academy Awards and one of the few Australians to succeed in\ud the Hollywood studio system. His work was a major factor in the success of Bette Davis at Warner Bros. However, Orry-Kelly and his work have received little critical attention.\ud This study examines the function of Orry-Kelly's costumes in a selection of Bette Davis vehicles produced at Warner Bros. between 1938 and 1942. In order to assess the value of Orry-Kelly's contributions, the thesis charts the development of the role of the Hollywood studio costume\ud designer and summarises theories relevant to the function of costume in classical Hollywood narrative.\ud Films analysed are Jezebel, Dark Victory, The Letter, The Little Foxes, Now, Voyager, The Great Lie and In This Our Life. Sources consulted for background to Orry-Kelly's life and career include records in the Orry-Kelly File in the Warner Bros. Archives at the University of Southern\ud California, and material gathered in Australia which has not been previously presented in an academic study.\ud The study concludes that Orry-Kelly's costume concepts display an intuitive understanding of processes of human perception and behaviour, and knowledge of the requirements of the film medium, to convey the preferred meanings about characters and aid in story-telling