THE DISCO HIPPIES OF "WITH SIX YOU GET EGGROLL" (1968)

 
 

Seems like we are long overdue for a little disco hippyism here at The Social Design.  A friend of mine brought this clip to my attention the other day and we had to have a laugh at what is perhaps one of the "squarest" psychedelic swinger scenes known to film. Well, it is a Doris Day film after all - "With Six You Get Eggroll" of 1968.  And if you look closely, everyone is drinking ...um...coffee. Well, it's seldom about social realities on The Social Design, only their stylized representation...

It's pretty apparent Doris Day and the production company are far removed from the psychedelic experience: their idea of a trippy reference effect (and my favorite) is a close up on a stained glass light fixture.  The house band actually is a real band, though - The Grassroots - probably best known for the hit "Midnight Confessions" of the same year. Granted, not as keen as The Strawberry Alarm Clock's appearance in "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls", of course, but given this level of vanilla be appreciative as the band could just as easily turned out to be The Lettermen in fringed suede vests and ponchos. 

What is interesting though is that as this is being filmed, Doris Day's son, the musician and record producer Terry Melcher, is hanging out with Charles Manson and his hippie family, who, though pre-murderous, are most definitely not drinking coffee in a discotheque and tripping on a stained glass light fixture. Otherwise some great swinging beads, minis, and Sassoon bubble cuts. Enjoy!

 

COSTUMES FOR THE "WORLD OF THE FUTURE" BALL, FROM "RIPTIDE" (1934)

 
 
 

Meet Insect Man and Lady Sky Bug. They are from the Future. Specifically, the fictitious  "World of the Future" Ball otherwise (and I have to add, very unfortunately) not attended by Norma Shearer and Herbert Marshall in the 1934 film "Riptide".  Era-wise, not the standard fare on The Social Design, but we caught this one the other night and really, who can resist the appeal of these sort of spoofy-Surrealist-Futurist costumes? I know I couldn't. And I sure as hell wouldn't have traded my invitation to the ball for dinner in a supper club... 

The film itself runs a little slow after a while. But there are some stand-out moments - such as Norma's Deco furnished apartment seen above, with that coral piece that would have been the jaw-dropping envy of any decorator about eight years ago. (I'd still take it if you gave it to me, I won't lie).  Later in the film keep an eye out for Norma and cocktails in a white pantsuit with bias-striped silk halter top that frankly looks like it went down a Milan runway yesterday.  And, my favorite, a quiver-inducing shot where Norma is framed by a wingback chair  - upholstered in a crisp but undulating stripe (I am thinking navy on white), railroaded to the horizontal, and looking about as fresh as ever.  Enjoy!

VILLA OF DISTINCTION: TAYLOR & BURTON IN "BOOM" (1968)

 
 

File this under "Villas of Distinction".  In my last post I mentioned coming across a spread in the July issue of Architectural Digest on the private Bel Air residence of the late Elizabeth Taylor.  Honestly, it was a privileged view, but one quite a bit softer than the cinematic image of the lady so many of us have loved and enjoyed.  It got me thinking about one of my favorite Taylor-Burton films, 1968's "Boom"...

An adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play, "The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore", apparently the film was a bit of both a commerical and critical flop. It sat in obscurity for many years until sometime in (if I remember correctly) the very late 90s bootleg copies began making the rounds and it soon reasserted itself as a campy, cult classic. Also stars Richard Burton, of course, and Noel Coward as "The Witch of Capri" - in a role originally offered to Katherine Hepburn and in part inspired by the eccentric Italian Marchesa Luisa Casati .

Despite the stellar cast, my favorite presence in the film is that of the Mediterranean villa in which it was filmed (Sardinia, actually). Airy, spacious, perched on a dramatic natural setting - the villa once again satisfies my eternal appetite for the white room.  And Taylor's predominantly white wardrobe set against this stylish backdrop is like the icing on the (apparently vanilla) cake.  I also like the approach the designers took in creating the interior mix: the juxtaposition of the clean-lined, modern upholstered pieces (and expansive white interior) with older, detailed casepieces and accents for texture and visual interest.  Hope you enjoy, too...

And below, the trailer for "Boom" - if you are more into dramatic sound bites than interiors. Though I am willing to say the two together are mutually beneficial...



 

 

OP-ART INFLUENCE IN FLOOR TREATMENT (A.D., JULY 2011)

How I hate to stumble on an abandoned blog. Or worse: a blog whose last entry starts with "sorry I haven't posted anything lately..."  And here I am, my own blog teetering on the verge. Well, suffice it to say my creative/editorial energy was directed, by necessity, elsewhere throughout the better part of the summer. But still I was always making note of great little items I knew I wanted to share...

Last month I was waiting to get my hair cut. I like to arrive early so I can peruse the magazines in the reception area and otherwise unwind.  Usually I don't go for the Architectural Digest, but the July cover promised a sneak peek into the private residence of the sadly late, great Elizabeth Taylor. Of course someone with a taste for Sixties glamour like myself is going to take the bait.

Liz aside, what I did find and actually liked quite a bit was a spread on the South Carolina beach house of interior designer Amelia Handegan (photos posted above and below).  And of course anyone who coos on about Op-Art accents as much as I do is going to flip over the graphic floor treatment in the hall above.  I've always loved a white room to begin with - add a dash of that optical black & white and I'm all about it!

Of course on a practical note, I'll say it's good this is a light-usage second home or that A.H. is well off enough to have domestics: painted floors, especially white ones, are frankly a colossal pain in the ass to keep up. I speak from experience since I have painted hardwood floors (long story) myself, the color of an elephant.

Below, a couple more photographs from the editorial - these of a guest bedroom where Handegan again brings in an optical punch, in this instance a black and white Persian kilim I like quite a bit.  Ambiguously Franco-Indienne textiles compliment the airy interior and add a little hippie chic, which is also fine by me, of course...