In the 1950s models, while beautiful, were not famous in their own right and were paid to show off the clothes rather than themselves. Jean Shrimpton was perhaps the first UK model to become a true household name in the 1960s and it was the incestuous relationship with photographers, particularly David Bailey, and designers such as Mary Quant which crystallized the Mod look that epitomized the Swinging Sixties. Bailey became such a star in his own right that he was contracted to give celebrity endorsement to Olympus cameras in a long-running series of press ads and TV commercials. These capitalized on his professional photographic credentials while debunking them humorously to make the ordinary snapshot photographer feel more confident in using an Olympus. In several of these TV spots he co-starred with George Cole, cast as the bumbling pro, and there were also cameo appearances by James Hunt and Lord Lichfield.
The advent of the 'supermodels' in the 1980s and 90s created a new phenomenon where the likes of Naomi Campbell, Elle MacPherson and Claudia Schiffer became famous for 'Not getting out of bed for less than British Pounds 10,000 a day'. These models were seen wearing the kind of clothes that they modelled on the catwalk in their private lives and were photographed by the paparazzi socializing with rock stars, movie stars, politicians, motor racing drivers and all sorts of other celebrities who themselves were wearing elements of the fashions which these supermodels had helped create.
More recently there's been a trend towards using celebrities as models, with actresses such as Lord of the Rings star Cate Blanchett working for Donna Karan, chart toppers J Lo and Christina Aguilera appearing for Louis Vuitton and Versace respectively, Missy Elliott and Madonna as a duo for Gap, Victoria Beckham for Rocawear and the emerging Jagger dynasty turning out for H&M in the shape of Mick's daughter Jade and granddaughter Amber. Although the top two earners in fashion positions in The Sunday Times Pay List for 2002 were occupied by the men behind Monsoon and French Connection, seven out of the top ten were fashion models confirming the value to customers of their key role in crystallizing 'looks that I can copy' for women.
Today supermodel Erin O'Connor reportedly rules the roost in financial terms, while, in a reflection of the fickle and competitive nature of the fashion business, Naomi Campbell has dropped out of the list. So too have previous incumbents, designers Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney.
The stars of pop, rock and rap music are great customers of the top fashion labels but in another example of the reciprocal relationship between creator and customer, the top fashion designers plunder street fashion, often closely associated with particular genres of music for their inspiration. The 1960s saw the lead coming from London's Carnaby Street, Kings Road and Portobello Market, where young kids picked up second-hand military uniforms from such shops such as 'I Was Lord Kitchener's Valet' and turned them into another look that came to typify the era. This has been immortalized in the most famous album cover of all time, British pop artist Peter Blake's artwork for 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', featuring the Fab Four in a psychedelic take on military regalia.
In 1969 Mick Jagger, fronting the Rolling Stones, and previously most closely associated with blue jeans and leather jackets, stunned the fans gathered for the now legendary Hyde Park concert by appearing in what many people thought was a girl's dress. In fact, it was a smock belonging to Marianne Faithfull worn over white jeans. This outrageous getup, combined with his theatrical reading of Adonis, Shelley's elegy to John Keats, in memory of the departed Brian Jones and the releasing of white cabbage butterflies into the sky launched a whole new kind of dandyfied rock star who fused masculine and feminine in a new androgynous look. The 1970 cult movie Performance starring Jagger pushed the idea of bisexuality even further.
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1. The work of Alan Arking in the show business world
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