Many people would attribute the origins of 1970s' 'Glam Rock' to David Bowie and his 'Aladdin Sane' look and acts ranging from Slade to Sweet to T. Rex and Swedish group Abba, whose use of silvery shiny satiny fabrics, allied to platform boots, created a look that was emulated by many others, with Queen's Freddy Mercury taking it to the heights of theatrical glamour. It spilled over into the high street at the start of the decade and dominated its early years.
In a classic example of action begetting reaction, Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood single-handedly created the punk rock look with its safety pins, bondage straps and sadomasochistic rips and tears, launching from their legendary shop 'Sex' at the end of London's Kings Road. But without the astonishing impact of the Sex Pistols it is unlikely that this iconic style would have dominated the late 1980s and gone on to be recycled periodically ever since. The early 1980s also saw the emergence of the slogan T-shirt originated by band Frankie Goes to Hollywood with their enormous hit 'Relax' and Katharine Hamnett's 1983 'Choose Life' T-shirt collection, which featured her famous soapbox slogan 'Stop Acid Rain', 'Preserve the Rainforests' and other protest messages.
Hollywood has long had a huge influence on fashion as in so many other areas of life. When Clark Gable appeared with a bare chest in the 1934 film It Happened One Night sales of vests fell off dramatically. James Dean in the 1955 movie Rebel Without a Cause was one of the earliest exponents of the biker look comprising black leather jacket and jeans often teamed with a white T-shirt. Over the decades a succession of stars has perpetuated it, including Marlon Brando, Bruce Springsteen, George Michael and, of course, Elvis Presley in his early years.
This inspiration from celebrity rock stars feeding through into mainstream fashion applies not only to complete looks but also to specific items. One of the biggest selling girl groups of all time, TLC, single-handedly put combats and cargo pants on the map and one of Britney Spears' enduring claims to fame has been to turn the midriff into a surprisingly erogenous zone by combining crop tops with low-rise jeans. The penchant of 'Gangsta' rap stars such as Tupac Shakur, Biggie Smalls and Puff Daddy for wearing outrageously ostentatious gold jewellery has spawned another whole look and indeed a new entry into the dictionaries, namely the expression 'Bling bling' or to wear your gold on show in a vulgar display of wealth.
The public's voracious desire for new looks and styles is such that a single photo of the right dress on the right body can launch not only a new look but also a whole career. Liz Hurley stole the show at the premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral despite the fact that she was competing with the actual stars of the movie. She did this through adroit planning and a mutually beneficial deal with the Gianni Versace who lent her that extraordinary 'safety pin' dress. Top designers make these kinds of arrangement all the time and providing a dress for the right person on the right occasion can create acres of free publicity.
The high point of this activity, of course, is the annual Hollywood Oscars where intense activity goes on behind the scenes with the top stylists manoeuvring for position and vying with each other to secure the most photogenic dress for their client to wear while making that crucially important walk from the stretch to the door. Accessorized with fabulous jewellery from Harry Winston and shoes from Manolo Blahnik, the total look can do wonders for the actress, the designer and the label while, of course, flattering the male escort too.
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