Katharine Hepburn's infamous trousers

Katharine hepburn's

infamous trousers

Why is KAtharine hepburn an american symbol?

By being her authentic, effortlessly revolutionary self, Katharine Hepburn made people reconsider their views on social constructs and opened up a new path for American movies, especially Hollywood actresses.

Brief insight into a legend's life

“If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun.”

• leading Hollywood actress for more than 60 years
• received a record four Academy Awards for Lead Acting Performances, 12 Oscar nominations
• named by the American Film Institute the greatest female star of Classic Hollywood Cinema
• As a child, she joined her mother on "Votes For Women" demonstrations, thus raised with freedom of speech. This progressive upbringing was criticized by the community, which only made Hepburn want to fight against these barriers.
• She was a tomboy, liked to call herself Jimmy and cut her hair short. She deeply enjoyed golf and swimming, putting on plays and performing for neighbors (raising money for the Navajo people).

• All characters she played were wealthy, intelligent, strong and independent, which ultimately revealed their vulnerability to unsophisticated men, portraying the contradiction between a woman's nature and status.
• She powerfully stunned the Hollywood scene. In the 30s and 40s women's fashion had not been liberated yet. Women could be arrested if they wore pants in public, the decade when clothing was still perceived as a manifestation of one's gender and trousers showed a perversity in women.
• Hepburn said to hell with it and actively pioneered wearing trousers, collared shirts and suits, elements of an androgynous fashion at a gendered time in the era of glamour. Thus she inspired her admirers to imitate her clothing and make such radical choices.
• This alienated part of her audience, even gaining the nickname "box office poison". George Cukor said “The audience had never seen a girl like that—she seemed to bark at them. She didn’t play for sympathy at all. At first, the audience wasn’t quite sure whether it liked her or not.”
• She was pressured by directors to stop wearing pants because "they looked bad", even stopped in the street by men for wearing pants and not makeup. She once said, "Any time I hear a man say he prefers a woman in a skirt, I say, 'Try one.'"
• In 1986 she received a lifetime achievement award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America in recognition of her influence on women's fashion.

The Aviator (2004), Cate Blanchett as Katharine Hepburn

Joan Bennett

Marlene Dietrich

Ginger Rogers

Her legacy

• Katharine Hepburn was included in the book Women Who Changed The World, which honors 50 women who helped shape world history and culture. She is also named in Encyclopædia Britannica's list of "300 Women Who Changed the World", Ladies Home Journal's book 100 Most Important Women of the 20th century and many other.
• Her film legacy is insurmountable. It is said that she "broke the mold" for women in Hollywood,where she brought a new breed of strong-willed women and feminist issues to the screen.
• She was the symbol of the modern independent American woman, a dedicated Democrat.

Marilyn Monroe

Hedy Lamarr

I highly admire this woman. She is a force of nature, so outspoken, fierce, assertive of her own personality. She hated giving interviews, having pictures taken by the paparazzi, she did anything she could so she could ruin them and, once, she smashed one’s camera. She pushed the social boundaries for women with her powerful beliefs and never let anyone tell her otherwise, Simone de Beauvoir reincarnated. I believe that was stunning, even shocking for Americans at that time. A beautiful woman, wearing manly clothing, performing excellently on stage and asserting herself during production. Not only did she influence the beliefs of Americans and enforce gender equality, but she also secured the way for further generations of aspiring Hollywood actresses and media portrayal of "femininity".

Women---wow...

"Sometimes I wonder if men and women really suit each other. Perhaps they should live next door and just visit now and then."

Bibliography!! :)

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katharine_Hepburn
• https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/05/katharine-hepburn-style-pants
• https://40plusstyle.com/style-icon-katharine-hepburn/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4_rqDu7eB4&ab_channel=FactFiend-WithKarlSmallwood

THAnkS