Sue Sue's TCM Film Festival Tidbit Travel Blog

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Photo Courtesy of the TCM FILM FESTIVAL 2012 Photo Gallery

The third annual Turner Classic Movies Film Festival held in Los Angeles at the historic Hollywood Hotel
was the place to see and be seen this past week. Festival passholders from as far away as India, Scotland,
and Nova Scotia, as well as 49 of the contiguous United States were well represented, as well as many Houstonians
who were also swept up in filmdom fervor. The popular film channel also celebrated its 18th birthday with hosts
Robert Osborne, Ben Mankiewicz, film favorites Robert Wagner, Peggy Cummins, Margaret O’Brien, Kim Novak
and many others attending the festivities with hundreds of TCM Film Festival 2012 passholders dressed in their finery.


Photo courtesy of the Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund and TCM Film Festival 2012 Photo Gallery

Early festival goers were able to catch a glimpse of Hollywood’s “Dress of the Century,” the Audrey Hepburn
inspired Givenchy creation for the 1954 film Sabrina . The lovely gown was on loan for the festival from
the Audrey Hepburn’s Children’s Fund, and was a popular exhibit in the heart of Club TCM, a gathering place for
passholders and panel discussions, situated in the “Blossom Room,” the sight of the first Oscar ceremony in 1929.

Even before the first official event of the festival began at 1 p.m.on Thursday, April 12, glitterati were circling
the famous pool and its environs. On Tuesday evening, an after- screening cocktail party for crew and fans of
Waiting for Lightening , a documentary film seven years in the making, was held by the Hollywood Roosevelt
pool bar, where Marilyn Monroe modeled for photographers early in her career. Oscar-nominated Emmy winning sound
mixer Deb Adair, whose last film was Moneyball with Brad Pitt was in attendance at the Waiting For Lightening premiere with her husband Al, an L.A.P.D. officer who has collaborated with crime novelist Joseph Wambaugh on several of his award-winning detective novels.


Photo courtesy of Deb Adair


Deb Adair and Brad Pitt at the final wrap party for Moneyball (Photo Courtesy of Deb Adair)

Ms. Adair revealed that her work as a sound mixer allows her the privilege of collaborating with
directors so that she can “make films come to life with sound” because “sound is half the experience of going to a movie.”

Rob Dyrdek from MTV’s Ridiculousness was also spotted at the poolside party Tuesday night.

Check out the TCM FILM FEST 2012 PHOTO GALLERY at:
http://www.tcm.com/festival/about/galle ... night.html
Visit the Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund website at :
http://www.audreyhepburn.com/menu/index.php

More Later...
But in the meanwhile, don't forget to have fun!

[movieman1957]

No pictures of you?

One of these years we're going to see a movie together.

[JackFavell]

I want to hear about (or see) your wardrobe choices!

[Sue Sue Applegate]

OK. By popular demand...

....the casual Christy...

That is Hollywood High, and John Ritter is popping out of my beret. It's close to Mel's Drive In where I enjoyed my last breakfast in Hollywood.

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Cocktail Christy with friends from New York City.....

Ensuing photo ops include Cinerama Christy, Coco Chanel Christy, and Contemplative Christy....

[JackFavell]

Lovely! I love your dress, top, or whatever in the cocktail Christy photo! I'd kill to be able to wear grey.

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Well, dearest Jackie, it is actually sort of a creamy coffee, and it is coctail length, but it is difficult to tell from the photo. ( You can actually see some of my delightful gams in a full-length shot. )

Thank you so much for your interest and comments!

[JackFavell]

Well, whatever it is, it's beautiful on you.

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Your comments have made my day so much happier! Thank you!

You are a sweetheart, Jacks !

[Sue Sue Applegate]

As soon as I had arrived at the Hollywood Roosevelt, I unpacked after the unusually smooth check-in process, enjoyed a long, tall glass of iced tea, and felt the call of the styled.

I headed for the elevator, and felt I truly hit terra firma when I landed in the lobby and was swept up in the hustle and bustle of preparations for the festival. Club TCM was still being tweaked and polished, but the Givenchy juggernaut was pressing me on. The doors were flung wide open, and I stepped in.

All was unusually quiet, but a man was feverishly reviewing notes at a table just to the right as I entered. I quietly interrupted his reverie, and enquired if I might move closer to the warm glow that would eventually draw every mover and shaker to sift through the crush of the party central crowd.

The glass case was almost humming with electricity as I grew closer to one of the most beautiful gowns ever seen on film, and ever worn by Audrey Hepburn. I felt my pulse quicken as each step I made drew me closer to the dress that would mesmerize me and every other passholder bold enough to venture near.

I heard myself gasp as I stood before that lovely creation, and it held me in suspended animation for a moment that I hope will never dissolve from my memory.

As I glanced at the lovely appliqued buds in the flowers varying in shades of black and grey, my eyes slowly fell to the floor of the luminous glass case, and I saw something that I never expected to see. I had never noticed it in the photos, and certainly never realized it was there when I viewed Sabrina, but the 3- inch black ruffle surrounding the hem of the garment was like a ruffly strand of icing on the cake.

In the film, when Audrey is standing on the grass as she makes that breathtaking entrance, the little black ruffle is obviously overstaged by the understated elegance of Audrey. Entranced by the entirety of seeing the gown in person, and being by its delicacy of its creation, finding and realizing the ruffle had been there all the time so surprised me, I heard myself say "oh, how lovely," but no one really heard me.

Every time since that first glance at Givenchy inspiration, I would always gravitate to the shrine no matter how many times I breezed through Club TCM, and I wasn't the only passholder astonished at some aspect of its spectrum of loveliness. Several times I heard visitors gasp and say, "Why, I didn't know it had a ruffle on the hem!"

Someone heard me after all. Maybe it was Audrey.


Audrey Hepburn and William Holden in a publicity still from Sabrina

Up next: How I met Deb and Al
Don't forget to have fun!

[JackFavell]

I never realized it either! It's lovely!

So the dress is entirely black and white? I never thought about the color before, I had assumed it had some pale touches of sky blue or some other color in those beads and flowers. it's such a confection of a dress, and I guess the real color doesn't matter one whit, because it's such a flowery light statement of beauty.

[Sue Sue Applegate]

True Jackie. It's black and white with varying shades of gray. In the center of each flower flowing down from the bodice, each bud has a tiny, perfect cluster of little seed pearl-sized puffs appliqued on top. The dress is lined satin with an outer veil of silk organdy. And it is this outside layer that has the printed pattern of flowers with the buds appliqued in the center of each swirl of petals.

The train is detachable and was the part of the dress that made Audey appear as if she was a butterfly that just happened to land in the middle of a Long Island party, and her wings were just relaxing while she descended into the human realm.

Somewhere I read that Audrey chose this dress from Givenchy's spring and summer collection of 1953.

And I didn't see any apparant slips of the stitch anywhere in the applique. Breathtakingly lovely!

I will try to find a photo in my cache that can reveal a little of this magic.

Thanks for the lovely comments!

Visit the following link to learn about her legacy:
http://www.audreyhepburn.com/

For ALL about that fabulous dress, check out the dress diary at:
http://www.kartanonrouva.net/couture/ressabrinabw.shtml

[CineMaven]

CASUAL CHRISTY & COCKTAIL CHRISTY

Let's just say the FANTASTIC CHRISTY!!!

Looking forward to seeing and reading more from you, Christy. In fact, quit grading those papers, and start sending submissions to Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Cosmo, Look, etc.etc.etc. Nice write-up on that Givenchy dress of Audrey's. Seeing it up close and personal...it was to die for, and I'm no fashion maven! Keep 'em coming, Christy!

[JackFavell]

Thanks for explaining the dress to a T, Christy! You wrote that beautifully. I can actually visualize the real dress now in a way I never could before.

[Sue Sue Applegate]

Oh, you kids.
You are both too sweet!
Maven, Monday is photo shop day for you, if I am not a..I mean, knee-deep in essays...