54 The Costume Designer Winter 2016
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I
n 1939, legendary Costume Designer Adrian made 3,210
sketches for MGM's now classic film The Wizard of Oz.
Among the fanciful munchkins, winged monkeys, and
witches was a winsome gingham pinafore and ruby sequined
slippers for the lead character of Dorothy, played by Judy
Garland. Little did Adrian imagine that one of the Dorothy
dresses would command $1.56 million at auction last November
in New York, one of only two complete Dorothy costumes in
existence.
Why does the Dorothy costume garner so much adulation?
First, The Wizard of Oz ranks in the pantheon of the public's
most beloved films. Dorothy's humble frock and shoes not only
capture her character, they also have come to inhabit a singu-
lar place in pop culture. In a rare synchronicity epitomizing
Costume Design's far-reaching power, the garments are now
emblematic of an innocence that captures the American mind-
set of the time, which is recalled by the film's haunting mantra,
"There's no place like home."
A Judy Garland-worn 'Dorothy' dress from The Wizard of Oz is displayed during a press preview on November 19, 2015, in New York,
as Bonhams and Turner Classic Movies (TCM) present 'Treasures from the Dream Factory' auction which took place on November 23
in New York. AFP Photo/Timothy A. Clary.
The Dorothy Dress