Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1076085
Winter 2019 The Costume Designer 31 events. As time passed, we became friends. With each event I attended, I watched Betty's quiet passion. I asked questions. I witnessed Betty's interaction with groups of fellow activists. She knew everyone and the causes they championed. I had to laugh because she was in as much awe of them as they were of her. Betty's long history of participating in labor conventions and walking picket lines is well known. She believes in uni- versal healthcare, a living wage, and the right to a safe work environment. I never pictured myself on a picket line; how- ever, I knew the importance of politics. Politics was kitchen table conversation in my parents' home. As I watched Betty, I realized that I was walking in the footsteps of my mother, former secretary of the New Rochelle Democratic City Committee, and found myself more involved with the labor community. One night, I watched with pride as Betty and other activists stood up to the police and allowed them- selves to be arrested in front of the Los Angeles Chinatown Walmart, as we protested for a worker's right to earn a living wage. Using Cesar Chavez's motto "One by one," Betty has been influencing the next generation of labor activists one person at a time. She does not see herself as remarkable, however. Betty lives her beliefs. Although I did not get to assist Betty or work with her when she was designing, I have been the beneficiary of her extensive costume experience. We have long conversations regarding costumes, CDG history, and my Costume Design projects. Betty has designed some of the most iconic movies and television shows in our culture. There are many times during our conversation, when I have what I will call a jaw- dropping moment. For example, I knew about her work with Michael Jackson but when I found out that she contributed to Michael Jackson's iconic "Smooth Criminal Lean," I flipped. In typical Betty fashion, her response was casual yet gracious. She was "just doing her job." Her assessments are always direct and any advice to the point. Invariably, the theme of our con- versations involve story. This is not surprising when discuss- ing costume-related subjects, but there is also a parallel in real life. The parameters for a costume-related story are what you define them to be. If you think about it, it is the same with our lives. This is Betty's philosophy. In the process, she learned to stand up for herself and not to undervalue her worth or work. Her life story has been anything but straightforward and with each turn, Betty added the experience to her life's baggage and moved forward and upward. Betty began as a farm girl working behind the counter at her parents' bar. Interested in nursing, she left home and found work as a surgical assistant at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Later, she moved to Chicago where she designed costumes for rock-n-roll bands, including Chicago, and Huey Lewis and the News. Betty then moved west to Las Vegas with her first husband, where she worked as a waitress while designing the wardrobe for the wives of casino management's upper echelon. Betty then moved further west to Hollywood to pursue Costume Design. Her first job was designing The New Mickey Mouse Club for Disney Studios. The name on all the shows she designed was that of the head Costume Designer for Disney Studios. She made her mark. Betty is uncredited in her contribution to the iconic Mickey Mouse ears that people know and love. While on the show, she met her second husband to whom she is still married. Following The New Mickey Mouse Club, Betty worked continually until her retirement. In celebration of her dedication and commitment, the Costume Designers Guild is honoring Madden with the 2019 CDG Distinguished Service Award. Photos: Robert Reiff