Monday, February 16, 2009

Help- The Worst Hats in Movie History

Let me begin by confessing that I am a great lover of hats. Hats make me very happy; they let me look pulled together on days when showering has been elusive; they add color; they let me do crazy things to my hair, but still have a way to go to a meeting without being ostracized.

But what is up with so many of the hats women are wearing in old films! There are some truly, truly awful hats. Last night watching the 1940 movie Half a Sinner, in which our heroine was wearing this little hat all draped and wrapped in veiling. The veil went down to at least the middle of her back. I couldn't help wondering the whole time how wardrobe came to the decision that enshrouding veil-hat was the very best option. Granted it is a B-movie, but you wouldn't think that they'd be entirely blind.

Something seems to go horribly wrong with hats sometime during the late 1930's and 1940's. I mean just look at these things! Very few are flattering, or even really seem glamourous; they are mostly just monstrous. They are pointy, or very tall, or covered in feathers, or draped in weiling. It is such a curious thing to me that in movies with such strong female leads such as His Girl Friday or The Big Sleep or pretty much any movie in which Jean Arthur appears, inevitably there is an atrocious hat.

Poking around online looking for photos to support my claim, I found it nearly impossible to find stills with any of these hats. I couldn't even find a list of "The Worst Hats in American Film". So help me out--what are some of your least favorite hats from the movies??

5 comments:

  1. Lol - I just searched 'worst hats in film' and your blog came up as the third hit! So no - you are right. There seems to be nothing around :-)

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  2. Sah---weet!

    There is one that is eluding me. It might be from Mr. Smith Goes To Washington....it's like witch hat.

    It's so strange, because I can barely even find any photo examples...

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  3. I've actually ran into these hats in my line of work. You know a lot of people collect them? A few fashion designers too. They are a sight to behold. They always make me giggle. :)

    Michie

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  4. Want to see the latest look on the catwalk?

    Courtesy of Isaac Mizrahi. (One of the vintage hat collectors).

    http://www.dlisted.com/files/bagheadsopenpost.jpg

    http://www.dlisted.com/files/imagecache/photo-preview/files/galleries/baghead1.jpg

    http://www.dlisted.com/files/imagecache/photo-preview/files/galleries/bagheads2.jpg

    http://www.dlisted.com/files/imagecache/photo-preview/files/galleries/bagheads3.jpg

    Don't deny it. You know you want one in every color.

    Michie

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  5. Sorry about the dead links. Maybe you can fix them.

    Michie

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