50s Hollywood Style Icons Rock!

Westside Story's 5oth Anniversary and those fab 50s Fashion: (see previous post)


Marilyn Monroe is still as hot as ever in the industry as my post on Michele Williams does Marilyn Monroe revealed: (see AFI 2011 post). The upcoming NBC TV show SMASH also is loving on Ms. Monroe. SMASH is produced by Steven Spielberg and it stars former American Idol Katherine McPhee as a young actress fighting for a role as Marilyn in a Broadway stage production. This show also features my favorite actors, Debra Messing and Angelica Huston, so I'll definitely check it out. Monroe's statue, likenesses, live impersonators and her Walk of Fame star are also very popular along Hollywood Blvd.

Elizabeth Taylor Rocks!
Elizabeth Taylor literally rocks as countless pieces of her jewelry collection will be on display at Christie's Auction House in New York City. This collection is legendary and includes costly "rocks" and sparkling "ice" diamonds as large as 8 carats. Can you say "B-L-I-N-G"!

Those Ruby Slippers:
It's all about the shoes, girl! I saw on TV that the original ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz were being shown at Solange jewelers on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills so I raced on down there for a fashionista-grade close-up and a trip down memory lane.

The Wizard of Oz was always shown on TV every Easter/Resurrection Sunday when I was a kid and I've loved Dorothy (iconically played by Judy Garland) and her ruby slippers since. Every time I bought a red shoe of any kind, it had to live up to the quintessential standard of the original and I frequently went shopping looking for a red sparkly shoe. (In fact, even bought a tiny pair for my sister's daughter for Christmas when she was only 2)!

I did some research on the slippers online and found out that there were actually 7 or 8 pairs of the ruby slippers made for the movie but this particular pair is the most famous ones because they are the ones Judy Garland wore in the scene when she clicked her heels to return back home to Kansas (“there's no place like home”). Some believe that they are the ones taken off the flattened witch, too.

I got to the jeweler and saw that the slippers were housed in a glass case with a mock up of the Emerald City but lots of beefy security men were around too, all wearing slick black suits and a hint that they were packing heat. I hesitated a bit 'til a pleasant lady in a black pant suit greeted me and ushered me right up to those slippers. I got about an inch away from the case to make sure I got a good look and I was looking for a few minutes before I realized I was holding my breath-lol.

The shoes are a little scuffed and faded to a pink in areas but I still got a tingle being so close to them. They have “Judy Garland #7” (or 7th pair) hand-written in ink on the insides and I'm told they are a size 6 or 6 and a half like Garland was. The sparkle of the shoe is not from jeweled appliques or glitter like I had thought but from is from rows and rows of sequences carefully sewn on with great skill. IMHO, it's the height of the heel and the delicate bow detail, along with that ruby sparkle, that makes this shoe the show stopper it is.

This is the last time these ruby slippers will be seen by the public because they are soon to be auctioned off with bids starting at 2 million dollars. So save that cash girls, 'cause Christmas is right around the corner.