We jumped on the Anne White incident...
We jumped on the Anne White incident the minute she made international news last week by wearing a white Spandex unitard on the Wimbledon tennis court to compete against Pam Shriver. Who made this marvel of curve control, and where can we get one? These were among the questions we set out to answer. The outfit, designed by Pony Sports & Leisure Inc., was designed to White’s specifications: tennis white, easy to move in, fitted through the calves and thighs to ensure warmth. “It’s cold and damp on the Wimbledon court most of the time, and Anne wanted to keep her muscles warm,” Chester Wheeler, director of Pony promotions, explains. Versions of the suit in pastel colors and floral prints will be available next fall at specialty stores, but Wheeler can’t name a price or tell us exactly how much it cost to produce White’s suit. “I haven’t seen the bill yet,” he says. As for why she switched to more conventional tennis gear for her second day on the court, Wheeler says: “To be honest, we didn’t check with the Wimbledon officials about Anne’s Spandex suit. We knew there might be a problem.” Sure enough. “They told her she couldn’t wear it the second day.” White lost the match to Shriver, but she gained a place in the ad campaign Pony Sports & Leisure will launch soon. As for her suit, Wheeler says: “I imagine she’ll retire it. It’s a bit like Roger Maris’ 61st home-run ball.” (The one the Yankee hit in 1961 to beat Babe Ruth’s one-season record.)
Raj Report: London-based pop singer Annie Lennox is nothing if not loyal. The British fashion plate stopped into the Azar Woods boutique on Melrose Avenue recently with thoughts of Mother England in mind. “It was the raj look in our window that brought her in,” Evonne Woods of the store says. “She wanted the jacket.” A British-in-India inspired cut, the jacket is mid-thigh length and made of metallic brocade with jeweled buttons. It goes with a contrasting brocade skirt or a pair of tight silk pants all designed by Wayne Woods. Despite her best efforts, Lennox turned out to be a turncoat in the end, leaving the store with a chartreuse silk shirt instead of a brocade jacket. “We didn’t have her size,” Woods explains.
There were always sweat shirts meant to be sweated in. Now there are “pre-accessorized” sweat shirts--appliqued with rhinestones, draped pearls, lace and even mink tails. And what are they meant for? “Dinner at Spago or Chinois or movie screenings,” designer Francine Kay says. The new sweats, available at Fred Segal, Traffic and Philippe Derey, also are good for busy women who don’t want to bother putting on their own rhinestones, pearls and mink tails, says Kay, who adds that her customer list includes Cher and dancer Marine Jahan. The one-of-a-kind sweat shirts sell for $110 without mink, $120 with mink.
The Marty award isn’t exactly up there with Oscar, Emmy or any of the other biggies, unless, of course, you’ve just won one. And Ron Herman, owner of Fred Segal, just won one. His Marty for outstanding West Coast menswear retailing in the specialty-store category prompted this response: “I grew up in this business. My father had retail stores. Fred Segal--the man--is my uncle. And I’ve been going down to the Mart (the California Mart, which sponsors of the award) for more than 15 years. This is my Academy Award.” Winner for outstanding West Coast menswear retailer in the department-store category is Jack Irving, Nordstrom vice president for menswear.
Who says Washington is all business and no glamour? We happen to know, from secret sources, that 90 members of the Congressional Women’s Club showed up to hear L.A. glamour broker Aida Grey talk in Washington recently, although only 40 women were expected. We also happen to know that Grey did four hours’ worth of beauty slides, makeovers and question-answering for these wives of congressmen and senators, after which they asked her to come back and do a workshop for an entire day. Grey, whose usual constituency is in Beverly Hills, reports she will be happy to serve.
Newport Beach isn’t exactly wild-animal country, but since Amen Wardy opened a David Webb jewelry salon in his store in February, Wardy reports that he’s sold 30 18-karat gold cuffs embossed with lions, leopards, horses, monkeys, rams, griffins and crocodiles. Leaping into the lead as early best sellers and continuing to lead the pack are frogs. Some of the bracelets come with precious stones for eyes, and each is priced at $6,600. Some women are buying two beasts at a time--one per wrist. How does Wardy explain the trend? “A lot of jewelry you buy and put it right in the vault. You can wear these with jeans and a T-shirt.”
Ford model Ted Dawson definitely looks the part. So it’s not surprising that he got the part of style consultant for Hartmarx, the Chicago-based clothing giant. Dawson, who began his modeling career 25 years ago, is beginning a series of presentations to business groups across the country. His personal appearances will include the showing of the Hartmarx film, “Looking the Part,” which helps businessmen and women analyze their wardrobes. According to Hartmarx, 50 of the Fortune 500 companies have requested the film, and more than 300 retailers have shown it to customers. Dawson tells Listen: “This is a nice way for me to slide out of modeling into something I know. I can drop it before it drops me.”
