I wanted to post this picture on Valentine's Day but unfortunately could only actually take the shot today as the light has been so bad here (still not great!) but better late than never I suppose! This is an early Gene outfit called 'Ransom In Red' and it is one that I bought/sold/bought back! It is fabulous fabric, the cut and design are superb and the shoes are nice too,if a little fiddly to get on.
The gown was made for an advertising campaign to promote a fragrance that Gene was advertising - here is the story ...
It was the commercial success story of the 1949 holiday season. 'Ransom in Red', the haunting new fragrance by a renowned Parisian parfum house, took America by storm with a sweeping advertising campaign starring Miss Gene Marshall. Newspapers, magazines, radio and television airwaves were redolent with the sensuous allure of 'Ransom in Red'... and Gene Marshall. In the commercials Gene was the essence of what the fragrance evoked. Strong yet utterly feminine; tantalizing yet inaccessible; elusive yet beckoning with a siren's irresistible lure. Set above a mere mortals on a white pedestal, glittering with a king's ransom in fabulous jewels, Gene held millions of television audiences enrapt for thirty unforgettable seconds. They watched, spellbound, as her sultry, half lidded blue eyes captured the camera lens. A myriad of images danced across the screen...Gene turning, a close-up of her hand caressing the elegant cut-crystal perfume bottle, a flash of diamonds as she gracefully tilted her head, a mysterious Mona Lisa smile. Then she spoke in a provocative, breathless whisper that riveted attention, those full scarlet lips savoring every word..."Hold his heart captive with...Ransom in Red". Sales skyrocketed as long lines formed at perfume counters in upscale department stores across the nation. 'Ransom in Red' was at the top of many woman's Wish List - to the delight of many man!
