Tagged: Richard Gere
The Cotton Club: Richard Gere in Prohibition-era Black Tie
Richard Gere as “Dixie” Dwyer in The Cotton Club (1984)
Vitals
Richard Gere as Dixie Dwyer, mob-connected movie star and jazz trumpeter
New York Spring, Winter 1928 to Winter 1931
Film: The Cotton Club
Release Date: December 14, 1984
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Costume Designer: Milena Canonero
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Fraught with almost as much deadly drama behind the scenes as depicted on screen, Francis Ford Coppola’s contentious crime epic The Cotton Club was released 40 years ago last month in December 1984. From a story by Coppola, William Kennedy, and Mario Puzo, the story centers around the real-life titular Harlem nightclub that operated during Prohibition, which was first enforced across the United States 105 years ago today on January 17, 1920. The movie was received about as well as Prohibition itself, with both Oscar and Razzie nominations, four-star ratings and dead financiers.
The Cotton Club blends actual gangsters like Owney Madden and Dutch Schultz and popular musicians like Cab Calloway and Duke Ellington with fictional characters inspired by real-life figures. Richard Gere stars as “Dixie” Dwyer, a jazz musician destined for stardom as a matinee idol who shares biographical traits with the actor George Raft and alliteratively named trumpeter Bix Beiderbecke. Dixie finds himself vying against Schultz for the affections of Vera Cicero (Diane Lane), a vivacious singer reminiscent of nightclub owner “Texas” Guinan—who also inspired Gladys George’s brassy character in The Roaring Twenties. Continue reading
Breathless: Richard Gere’s Rockabilly Shirt and Plaid Trousers
Richard Gere in Breathless (1983)
Vitals
Richard Gere as Jesse Lujack, swaggering drifter
Los Angeles, Summer 1982
Film: Breathless
Release Date: May 13, 1983
Director: Jim McBride
Costume Designer: J. Allen Highfill
WARNING! Spoilers ahead!
Background
Happy 75th birthday to Richard Gere! To celebrate this prolific actor’s August 31, 1949, today’s post looks at one of my unexpectedly favorite performances from the prolific actor.
Jim McBride’s 1983 remake of Breathless flips the nationalities of the French crook and his American girlfriend in the 1960 French New Wave classic, starring Gere as the cocky ne’er-do-well Jesse Lujack who shacks up with Monica Poiccard (Valérie Kaprisky), a French UCLA student he had met once during a weekend trip to Las Vegas. Continue reading
Richard Gere’s Dark Purple Beach Shirt in American Gigolo
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye in American Gigolo (1980)
Vitals
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye, high-price L.A. escort
Malibu, California, Spring 1980
Film: American Gigolo
Release Date: February 8, 1980
Director: Paul Schrader
Costumer: Bernadene C. Mann
Costume Coordinator: Alice Rush
Richard Gere’s Costumes: Giorgio Armani
Background
American Gigolo, which provided Richard Gere with his breakout role as a leading man, numbers among the many movies that felt appropriate to this year’s surreal summer. Set against the backdrop of high fashions and low tides in sun-drenched southern California, the noir-influenced circumstances that follow our hustler protagonist Julian Kaye add an increasingly eerie mood to the proceedings. Of course, being framed for murder and living through a global pandemic are two different sets of circumstances, but both make it hard to enjoy the high life no matter how beautiful one’s surroundings or wardrobe may be.
American Gigolo: Stone Jacket and Jeans
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye in American Gigolo (1980)
Vitals
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye, high-price L.A. escort
Los Angeles, Spring 1980
Film: American Gigolo
Release Date: February 8, 1980
Director: Paul Schrader
Costumer: Bernadene C. Mann
Costume Coordinator: Alice Rush
Richard Gere’s Costumes: Giorgio Armani
Background
Strut into spring like Richard Gere’s confident Julian Kaye, the titular American gigolo of Paul Schrader’s 1980 thriller.
American Gigolo: Camel Double-Breasted Jacket
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye in American Gigolo (1980)
Vitals
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye, high-price L.A. escort
Los Angeles, Spring 1980
Film: American Gigolo
Release Date: February 8, 1980
Director: Paul Schrader
Costumer: Bernadene C. Mann
Costume Coordinator: Alice Rush
Richard Gere’s Costumes: Giorgio Armani
Background
“The worlds of cinema and fashion are very close, the one constantly communicating with the other,” wrote Sophia Loren in her recent memoir, Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow. “Richard Gere knows something about this, having been the first to introduce Giorgio to the world by wearing Armani fashions from head to toe in American Gigolo.” Continue reading
American Gigolo: Gray High-Yoke Armani Jacket
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye in American Gigolo (1980)
Vitals
Richard Gere as Julian Kaye, high-price L.A. escort
Palm Springs, Spring 1980
Film: American Gigolo
Release Date: February 8, 1980
Director: Paul Schrader
Costumer: Bernadene C. Mann
Costume Coordinator: Alice Rush
Richard Gere’s Costumes: Giorgio Armani
Background
For Richard Gere’s 68th birthday (happy birthday, Richard!), I’m taking a look at the role that made him famous: high-profile escort Julian Kaye in the stylish 1980 neo-noir American Gigolo.
Julian, riding high at the top of the L.A. escort scene, is called in by pimp Leon (Bill Duke) to fill in for one of his regulars for a client in Palm Springs. Continue reading