Omar Kiam

Alexander "Omar" Kiam (1894 – 1954) was an American fashion designer and costume designer.

Omar Kiam
Omar Kiam in 1937
Born
Alexander Kiam

(1894-07-19)July 19, 1894
Monterrey, Mexico.
DiedMarch 28, 1954(1954-03-28) (aged 59)
New York City, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
OccupationCostume designer; fashion designer
AwardsNeiman Marcus Fashion Award, 1941; Coty Award, 1946

Early life

Born Alexander Kiam in Monterrey, Mexico, to Texan parents.[1] Kiam picked up the nickname "Omar" at Riverview Preparatory School in Poughkeepsie, New York.[2] He later went to the Poughkeepsie Military Academy in New York.[3] His first job as a designer was producing caps for babies for a department store in Houston.[3] Kiam chose to retain his nickname professionally, as he appreciated the link to Omar Khayyám.[4]

Costume design
Janet Gaynor, costumed by Kiam, in A Star is Born

Following a stint in Paris as a student, Kiam returned to the United States and opened his studio in New York City, where he produced work for Broadway theatre.[3] Among the theatre productions he costumed were Dinner at Eight, the Robert E. Sherwood play Reunion in Vienna, and the Edward Sheldon and Margaret Ayer Barnes play Dishonored Lady.[5] In 1933 he moved to Hollywood, where he headed the film costume design departments for Sam Goldwyn Productions and United Artists.[3][5] Before leaving Hollywood in 1939, Kiam also worked for David O. Selznick and Hal Roach.[3]

One of Kiam's most notable films was the 1937 film A Star is Born, for which he dressed Janet Gaynor.[2] He collaborated with Irene on Algiers.[5]

Filmography

Omar Kiam costumed the following films:[5][6]

Fashion design

Although primarily known as a costume designer Kiam had also run a wholesale fashion design business supplying clothing to shops across the United States before he moved to Hollywood.[7]

After leaving Hollywood, in 1941 Kiam became head designer for the Ben Reig fashion label, a company founded in 1929. Also designing costume jewelry for them from 1948, he worked there until his death in 1954.[8]

Kiam won the Neiman Marcus Fashion Award in 1941, and in 1946, won the Coty Award jointly with Vincent Monte-Sano and Clare Potter.[2] During the early 1950s Liz Claiborne worked for Kiam.[9]

Kiam died 28 March 1954 at the Ritz Tower Hotel in New York City, after struggling with a sickness that lasted seven months.[10][11]

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See also

References
  1. "Clipped From The Brooklyn Daily Eagle". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. 1946-07-19. p. 9. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  2. Mara, Margaret (19 July 1946). "Omar Kiam, Former MGM Designer, gets Fashion Award". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. p. 9. Retrieved 13 March 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Bailey, Margaret J. (1988). Those glorious glamour years : Classic Hollywood costume design of the 1930's. London: Columbus. ISBN 9780862878832. OCLC 18071243.
  4. Room, Adrian (2010). Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins (5th ed.). Jefferson: McFarland & Co., Publishers. p. 261. ISBN 9780786457632.
  5. Leese, Elizabeth (1991). Costume design in the movies an illustrated guide to the work of 157 great designers. New York: Dover Publications. p. 66. ISBN 9780486134291.
  6. Staff writer. "Omar Kiam Filmography". BFI. British Film Institute. Archived from the original on 15 July 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  7. Staff writer (31 March 1934). "Omar Kiam to Design Garbs for Film Stars". The Waco News-Tribune. Associated Press. Retrieved 13 March 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Staff writer. "Ben Reig". Vintage Fashion Guild Label Resource. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  9. Woo, Elaine (28 June 2007). "Liz Claiborne, 78; clothes designer for career women built vast fashion empire". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  10. Staff writer (30 March 1954). "Dress Designer Dies". The Evening Independent. Associated Press. Retrieved 13 March 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. "OMAR KIAM: NOTED FOR DRESS DESIGNS; Fashion Creator Is Dead at 60--Had Made Clothes for Many Hollywood Stars". timesmachine.nytimes.com. The New York Times. March 30, 1954. p. 27. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
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