Titanic: Tea Dress Ensemble

This Franklin Mint Titanic outfit is known as the Tea Dress ensemble, because it is based on the outfit that Rose wore when having tea.



Besides the beauty of this outfit and the delicate lace, once again, the Mint did a superb job with the jewelry.



Gene Marshall, with gorgeous up-do by Kathy Johnson, is happy to model this Edwardian outfit.







See more Gene Marshall Titanic photos on my Gene Marshall web page.

More Titanic Fashion

Gene Marshall models Rose's traveling suit from the movie "Titanic."



This outfit is our first glimpse of Rose, as she boards the ill-fated luxury liner.



Here's a shot of Billy Zane and Kate Winslet, who is wearing the same outfit in this scene:



Although made for the Titanic Rose doll, this fashion also fits Gene. It also comes with the (non-functioning) umbrella shown in these shots.





See more Gene Marshall Titanic photos on my Gene Marshall web page.

Receiving Guests with Melanie

One of my favorite scenes in "Gone With The Wind" is where Rhett forces Scarlett to attend Ashley's birthday party so that the town gossips will not be able to talk about her indiscretion from earlier in the day.



As they get to Ashley & Melanie's home, Rhett informs her that he will be going elsewhere and she is to attend alone. Watching Vivien Leigh's face go from horror to haughty pride in a few seconds is like a living lesson from the Actor's Studio.



Although Franklin Mint released a version of this outfit for their vinyl doll, Robert Tonner was the first to do a dressed 16" version complete with hairstyle.



Overall, this really is a beautiful doll; a few flaws can be found but those are the ones I expect from a Tonner doll: cheap jewelry that is definitely not screen accurate and somewhat shoddy craftsmanship when it comes to the details. Naturally, the white lining shows (I retouched it out of a few of the photos). The faux plastic crystals are also not up to the caliber of the Swarovski crystals that the Franklin Mint used on Scarlett's dress.



Still, for those Scarlett fans that aren't mired by the nitpicky details, this one is still a beauty.



See more Scarlett O'Hara doll photos on my GWTW doll web page.

Holly Golightly: A Girl I Know Named Holly

The other doll recently released in Integrity's "Breakfast at Tiffany's" series is "A Girl I Know Named Holly." This is one outfit that Mattel did not release. I debated whether or not to purchase it; I can't say the outfit itself, consisting of a white shirt and peach colored robe, is really all that exciting. But those accessories...they sucked me in.



The fun earrings, the mask...



I ended up getting her. With her poseability, even this bland outfit seemed fun.







See more Audrey Hepburn/Holly Golightly doll photos on my Audrey doll web page.

Holly Golightly: Fifth Avenue at 6 AM

The flagship doll of the Holly Golightly line from Integrity has been released: Fifth Avenue at 6 AM. I loved the style & quality of the first doll's fashion; but as I feared from looking at the publicity stills, the face was not really something that I cared for. It was too similar to the squinty-eyed trout-mouthed dolls that Integrity typically churns out, with very little (if any) of the doe-eyed wonder of Holly's portrayer, Audrey Hepburn.



However, with the sunglasses on that come with this doll, I actually like this one. She has grown on me and will probably stay in my collection.



The pluses: unlike Mattel's version of the same doll (made famous in the opening scene of "Breakfast at Tiffany's"), the scale of the wrap, dress, and jewelry is perfection. The glasses actually fold...the earrings, tiara, and necklace are about as close as you could possibly get to looking the actual jewelry used in the movie. INCREDIBLE! The hairstyle and poseability of the doll are also in the plus category.



The minuses: Those damn black gloves. What a b&*%h they are to put on! I already snagged one just trying to get them over the claw-like fingers. Still...there is a silver lining. Unlike the typical gloves you get with a 12" doll, these don't look like mittens. Instead, they fit snuggly over the hand and actually have 3 individual finger areas to make them resemble a scaled-down version even more. It's a Catch-22; easy-to-put-on vs. a snug fit. The necklace is a big minus, too...it just does not stay fastened. For some reason the catch in back doesn't hold very well, and the damn thing keeps slipping off.



One more note - if you like the look of the Schrafft's bag and the decorated coffee cup, don't get too excited; these came from the Mattel set, not the Integrity one.



Integrity comes with a generic white coffee cup, without the decorative blue square band around the rim, and there is no Schrafft's bag, either.



All minor points though...overall, I'd say this doll is a winner.

See more Audrey Hepburn/Holly Golightly doll photos on my Audrey doll web page.

Goodbye New York

When it comes to Gene's first year, my website didn't have too many photos of Gene's first outfits. I decided to rectify that by shooting Goodbye New York, which is one of my very favorite Gene ensembles. Released in 1995, this Doug James circa 1941 design was released separately, not on a dressed doll. It even comes with the teddy bear that you see here in the photos! Hello Hollywood, Hello Gene is modeling for us today.

From the story card:

Lucky travelers at Grand Central got a major eyeful last Tuesday if they happened to be heading toward Track 14. Noted Hollywood producer Eric von Sternberg was off to the City of Dreams…and at his side, a young lady named Gene Marshall, his latest and most luscious discovery, a dynamite blonde in a fur trimmed suit.



To the rest of the world, you look the part: a newly-discovered starlet, about to depart for Hollywood. But only you…and the kindly producer who has become your friend…know how you really feel. Happy, but wistful about leaving the simple life behind forever. Excited, but a little nervous about what the future holds.



Nonetheless, Gene starts to play her first "role" at the train station, where family, friends, and the press have come to see her off. And she'll certainly be going in style…because she's wearing the most beautifully tailored suit even sophisticated New York has seen!



Cut of brown crepe and houndstooth tweed, the jacket has the wide shoulders of classic '40s fashion, lavishly trimmed with faux fur. The crepe skirt has inverted pleats. Color flourishes at the suit's neckline, with the bright russet jersey blouse...and matching russet gloves truly help "make" the outfit. Gene's "fur" hat and muff are an unexpected, luxurious gift from the producer (the muff has a secret pocket for her hanky). Her hatbox declares her new "star" name: Gene. But the most touching goodbye gift of all is the teddy bear, Gene's childhood companion, brought to the station by her father to remind Gene forever of her family's love.





See more Gene Marshall photos on my Gene Marshall web page.

Gene as Cinderella

Thanks to Madame Alexander, Gene Marshall is able to dress up as the famous storybook Princess Cinderella, made even more famous by Walt Disney's animated feature of the same name from 1951,











Hope she doesn't lose her shoe this time!



See more Gene Marshall photos on my Gene Marshall web page.

Gene Marshall: Back on the Titanic

Gene is back on the Titanic again, this time wearing another Franklin Mint creation. As mentioned in the previous post, the Rose Titanic doll from FM is smaller than Gene; therefore, these outfits do not totally fasten in the back.

Kate Winslet is seen in these two images with Leonardo DiCaprio from the movie "Titanic" wearing the same gown:





Naturally, I think Gene wears it better!





Trying a higher contrast more dramatic lighting; look at that bone structure!



See more Gene Marshall Titanic doll photos on my Gene Marshall web page.