Herbert Levine (company)
Encyclopedia
Herbert Levine is an American luxury shoe label founded in 1948 by Herbert Levine
and his wife Beth
. For over three decades, the New York label represented the best of America in shoes. Worn by Hollywood stars, endorsed by a succession of first ladies, praised by prominent shoe designers, and displayed in museums around the world, Herbert Levines still rank amongst the most cutting-edge shoes ever created.
Beth Levine described their vision for the label by saying, "We wanted to create a shoemaking niche. We were making very pretty shoes that nobody needed, but everybody wanted."
Herbert Levine shoes were distributed in numerous boutiques and high-end department stores across the United States and Canada including Neiman Marcus
, Saks Fifth Avenue
, Joseph
and Bonwit Teller
. Herbert Levines were also the first American shoes to be carried overseas by prestigious retailers such as Galeries Lafayette
in Paris and Harrods
in London.
In the 1950s, Herbert Levine advertisements were drawned by famous New York illustrator Saul Steinberg
and were regularly published in The New Yorker
and in Harper's Bazaar
.
Closed in 1975, the label was shortly revived in 2008 by Bernardo Footwear LLC and is today under the roof of a Luxembourg investment fund.
insoles, and shoes that were glued onto the wearer's nylon stockings.
Herbert Levine’s greatest influence however was re-introducing boots to women's fashion
in the 1960s and the popularization of the shoe style known as mules
.
First Ladies
Jackie Kennedy, Mamie Eisenhower
, Lady Bird Johnson
and Patricia Nixon in the 1960s and early 1970s.
Herbert Levine made black velvet knee-high boots for Mamie Eisenhower
as well as most of her pumps. For Jackie Kennedy, Herbert Levine custom-made a pair of thigh-high boots in burlap with a stacked heel, as well as many of the flats that became a signature element of the Jackie Kennedy style.
, Marlene Dietrich
, Marilyn Monroe
, Dinah Shore
, Janis Paige
, Jane Fonda
, Joanne Woodward
, Joan Crawford
, Lauren Bacall
, Barbara Walters
, Julie Andrews
, Rita Hayworth
, Peggy Lee
, Cyd Charisse
, Joan Collins
, Cher
, Linda Evans
, Babe Paley
, Rosemary Clooney
, Betty Grable
, Gladys Knight
, Natalie Wood
, Debbie Reynolds
, Arlene Francis
, Phyllis Diller
, Helen Hayes
, Chita Rivera
, Joan Sutherland
, Gwen Verdon
, Liv Ullman, Agnes de Mille
, Carol Channing
, Ali MacGraw
, Barbara Hale
, and Angela Lansbury
.
Marilyn Monroe
wore Herbert Levine shoes both in her private and public life. Visiting Bement
on August 9, 1955, Marilyn wore a pair of Herbert Levine's Spring-o-Lators, immortalized by many pictures, notably the series taken by photojournalist Eve Arnold
. In 1957, Marilyn purchased Herbert Levine red stilettos (size 7AA) from Vogue shop in Montreal; those shoes are now part of the Bata Shoe Museum
collection in Toronto.
Marlene Dietrich
ordered many custom pairs of the so-called "Gigi Stocking Shoes" (in size 7 1/2B) and inspired the "Marlene Boot" line of the label, named for her famous legs.
Joan Crawford
was a fan of Herbert Levine's Cinderella shoes. She had those Vinylite shoes custom made by Herbert Levine because "she loved to see her feet."
for their shoe designs. Stanley Marcus
, President and Chairman of Neiman Marcus
, said: "Beth and Herbert Levine step into the fashion foreground with shoe designs of such architectural perfection that they might have come from Da Vinci's notebooks."
In 1967, a Coty Special Fashion Critics Award
was voted to Beth and Herbert Levine for “the look of the leg.” In 1973, Beth and Herbert Levine received a second Coty Award
; to this day they remain the only shoe designers ever to win it twice.
Manolo Blahnik
: "Beth Levine
is without a doubt the most influential American shoe designer of the 20th century. She is to shoes what Eames
is to furniture."
Christian Louboutin
: "Beth Levine
was an influential free spirit. There is nothing that I like more than seeing a creation coming from pure fun and pleasure, and this is always the case with Levine's refreshing work. God bless her for that!"
(which owns around 140 pair), the Fashion Institute of Technology
in New York, the Bata Shoe Museum
in Toronto, and the Kyoto Costume Institute in Japan.
Herbert Levine
Herbert Levine was an American fashion executive active from the 1940s through the 1970s. Together with his fashion designer wife, Beth Levine, he led the fashion accessory Herbert Levine label bearing his name until 1975.- Life :...
and his wife Beth
Beth Levine
Beth Levine was an American fashion designer most known for her designs from the 1940s through the 1970s....
. For over three decades, the New York label represented the best of America in shoes. Worn by Hollywood stars, endorsed by a succession of first ladies, praised by prominent shoe designers, and displayed in museums around the world, Herbert Levines still rank amongst the most cutting-edge shoes ever created.
Background
The Herbert Levine label was named after publicity-savvy former-journalist Herbert. His wife, Beth, was the primary shoe designer of the label. She designed the footwear while Herbert handled the factory management, sales and marketing.Beth Levine described their vision for the label by saying, "We wanted to create a shoemaking niche. We were making very pretty shoes that nobody needed, but everybody wanted."
The company
Herbert Levine, Inc. established its first factory on 31 West 31st Street in New York on January 1949. The factory started with a production of 400 pair of shoes a week to reach 200 employees producing 5,000 pair of shoes a week in 1954. In 1975, Herbert Levine, Inc. was still making 900 pair of shoes a day.Herbert Levine shoes were distributed in numerous boutiques and high-end department stores across the United States and Canada including Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus, formerly Neiman-Marcus, is a luxury specialty retail department store operated by the Neiman Marcus Group in the United States. The company is headquartered in the One Marcus Square building in Downtown Dallas, Texas, and competes with other department stores such as Saks Fifth...
, Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue
Saks Fifth Avenue is a luxury American specialty store owned and operated by Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises , a subsidiary of Saks Incorporated. It competes in the high-end specialty store market in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, i.e. 'the 3 B's' Bergdorf, Barneys, Bloomingdale's and Lord & Taylor...
, Joseph
Joseph Magnin Co.
The Joseph Magnin Company was a high-end specialty department store founded in San Francisco, California by Joseph Magnin.Joseph Magnin was the son of Isaac and Mary Ann Magnin. Mary Ann Magnin was the founder of the I. Magnin & Co. high-end specialty department store she named after her husband. ...
and Bonwit Teller
Bonwit Teller
Bonwit Teller was a department store in New York City founded by Paul Bonwit in 1895 at Sixth Avenue and 18th Street. In 1897 Edmund D. Teller was admitted to the partnership and the store moved to 23rd Street, East of Sixth Avenue...
. Herbert Levines were also the first American shoes to be carried overseas by prestigious retailers such as Galeries Lafayette
Galeries Lafayette
- History :In 1893 Théophile Bader and his cousin Alphonse Kahn opened a fashion store in a small haberdasher's shop at the corner of rue La Fayette and the Chaussée d'Antin, Paris. In 1896, the company purchased the entire building at n°1 rue La Fayette and in 1905 the buildings at n°38, 40 et...
in Paris and Harrods
Harrods
Harrods is an upmarket department store located in Brompton Road in Brompton, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London. The Harrods brand also applies to other enterprises undertaken by the Harrods group of companies including Harrods Bank, Harrods Estates, Harrods Aviation and Air...
in London.
In the 1950s, Herbert Levine advertisements were drawned by famous New York illustrator Saul Steinberg
Saul Steinberg
Saul Steinberg was a Romanian-born American cartoonist and illustrator, best known for his work for The New Yorker.-Biography:...
and were regularly published in The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
and in Harper's Bazaar
Harper's Bazaar
Harper’s Bazaar is an American fashion magazine, first published in 1867. Harper’s Bazaar is published by Hearst and, as a magazine, considers itself to be the style resource for “women who are the first to buy the best, from casual to couture.”...
.
Closed in 1975, the label was shortly revived in 2008 by Bernardo Footwear LLC and is today under the roof of a Luxembourg investment fund.
The shoes
The Herbert Levine label gained media notoriety for outlandish designs that kept the brand in the news: gilded wood platforms, slippers with newspaper, money, or candy-wrapper covered fabrics, AstroturfAstroTurf
AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...
insoles, and shoes that were glued onto the wearer's nylon stockings.
Herbert Levine’s greatest influence however was re-introducing boots to women's fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
in the 1960s and the popularization of the shoe style known as mules
Mule (footwear)
Mule, a French word, is a style of shoe that is backless and often closed-toed. Mules can be any heel height - from flat to high. The style is predominantly worn by women....
.
Innovations
Fashion innovations introduced under the Herbert Levine label include:- Fashion BootsFashion bootA fashion boot is a boot worn for reasons of style or fashion . The term is usually applied to women’s boots. Fashion boots come in a wide variety of styles, from ankle to thigh-length, and are used for casual, formal, and business attire...
into Haute CoutureHaute coutureHaute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...
. Herbert Levine is widely credited as the first label to have introduced boots into Haute Couture. As early as 1953, Herbert Levine introduced a calf-length boot in white kidskin, which sold poorly. Most retailers saw boots as a separate category of footwear from shoes, to be worn for protection from bad weather or for work. By contrast, Herbert Levine argued that boots were shoes and could be an integral part of a woman's outfit. In 1957, Herbert Levine produced an entire collection built around fashion boots, and despite widspread skepticism on the part of other designers and manufactuers, calf-high, kitten-heeledKitten heelA kitten heel is a short, slender heel, usually from 3.5 centimeters to 4.75 centimeters high with a slight curve setting the heel in from the edge of the shoe. The style was popularized by Audrey Hepburn.-Definition:...
fashion boots for women began to grow in popularity in the late 1950s and early 1960s. With fashion bootsFashion bootA fashion boot is a boot worn for reasons of style or fashion . The term is usually applied to women’s boots. Fashion boots come in a wide variety of styles, from ankle to thigh-length, and are used for casual, formal, and business attire...
, Herbert Levine started a trend which remains current four decades later.
- "Ballin' The Jack," also known as Spring-o-Lator mulesMule (footwear)Mule, a French word, is a style of shoe that is backless and often closed-toed. Mules can be any heel height - from flat to high. The style is predominantly worn by women....
, where an elasticElastomerAn elastomer is a polymer with the property of viscoelasticity , generally having notably low Young's modulus and high yield strain compared with other materials. The term, which is derived from elastic polymer, is often used interchangeably with the term rubber, although the latter is preferred...
strip allowed the wearer to keep the shoes securely on while wearing stockings despite the lack of any straps at the side or back of the shoes. Through much of the 1950s and 1960s a wide range of shoe designers used Herbert Levine's Spring-o-Lators in their shoe lines.
- Stocking boots (panty hose with heels attached), as well as boots made from materials like vinyl and acrylic.
- The "Kabuki" shoes, introduced in 1959, featured a close shoe set atop a curved wooden platform.
- "Cinderella" clear plastic shoes (1961), a style that inspired later designers including Charles JourdanCharles JourdanCharles Jourdan was a French fashion designer known best for his designs of women's shoes starting in 1919. His name reached its greatest notoriety in the years since his death under the leadership of his sons, first with an emphasis on the use of innovative materials and later for more...
.
Iconic Creations
- On A Roll: Created in 1952, the unusual rolled heel of this shoe is a highlight of the label’s creative genius.
- No-Shoe: Introduced in 1957, this unique design reduces footwear to its most essential element - the sole - which is treated as decorative abstract shape. Those topless shoes were designed on a dare from Stanley MarcusStanley MarcusHarold Stanley Marcus was an early president and later chairman of the board of the luxury retailer Neiman Marcus in Dallas, Texas, which his father and aunt had founded in 1907...
. While topless shoes were in fact functional (they were secured to the foot with adhesive pads), the form has more importance as a theoretical exercise than a significant fashion. The “No-Shoe” was the culmination of the brands exploration of the transparent shoe concept, spearheaded by the Cinderella shoe. The effect is of a bared, tiptoeing foot: nature supported by artifice.
- Aladdin's Lamp: Emulating the shape of the magic oil lamp of AladdinAladdinAladdin is a Middle Eastern folk tale. It is one of the tales in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights , and one of the most famous, although it was actually added to the collection by Antoine Galland ....
, this shoe was actually designed in 1959 by Beth LevineBeth LevineBeth Levine was an American fashion designer most known for her designs from the 1940s through the 1970s....
at the request of Diana VreelandDiana VreelandDiana Vreeland was a noted columnist and editor in the field of fashion. She worked for the fashion magazines Harper's Bazaar and Vogue and the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.Born as Diana Dalziel, Vreeland was the eldest daughter of American socialite mother Emily Key Hoffman...
, fashion editor of Harper’s Bazaar, who wanted a shoe with a low heel, turned up at the toe, open yet closed, and with jewels on it.
- Barefoot in the Grass: Created in 1966, the “Barefoot in the Grass” sandals (made of an AstroTurfAstroTurfAstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...
insole, a vinyl vamp and a green kid heel) are a witty use of contemporary and unexpected materials. When those sandals were worn, the grass was supposed to go with you.
- Paper Twist: Appearing in a special feature of the Harper’s Bazaar (July 1967), “Paper Twist” shoes were designed by Kathryn Stoll for Herbert Levine. The series was composed of brightly coloured, doublefaced, laminated paper strips twisted into exquisite swirls and multicolour bands that flexed on composition soles.
- Race Car Shoe: First designed for the wife of one of the drivers in the 1967’s Indianapolis 500Indianapolis 500The Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, also known as the Indianapolis 500, the 500 Miles at Indianapolis, the Indy 500 or The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually, typically on the last weekend in May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana...
, Herbert Levine produced many more versions over the years, including evening shoes with windshields and headlights. The shoe was featured in the 1967 movie Sole Art as well as in a full editorial spread in Harper’s Bazaar in March 1967.
- Scarf Shoe: Winning eternal fame thanks to a legendary picture from renown photographer Guy BourdinGuy BourdinGuy Louis Bourdin , born Guy Louis Banarès, was a French fashion photographer.-Life and career:Guy Louis Banarès was born December 2, 1928, at 7 Rue Popincourt, Paris...
published in Harper’s Bazaar in 1968, the "Scarf Shoe" is an iconic model of the Herbert Levine line. Enclosing all the body in yards of silk chiffon, the "Scarf Shoe" flies upwards from a jewelled heel. Each "Scarf Shoe," a free-flowing stocking based on a solid sole, covering the leg with long streamers wrapping around the body.
- Lunar Boot: A series of space-age boots were created to celebrate the landing of Apollo 11Apollo 11In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
on the moon on July 20, 1969. The “Lunar Boot” was created out of reflective space-suit material and was issued from a collaboration between Beth LevineBeth LevineBeth Levine was an American fashion designer most known for her designs from the 1940s through the 1970s....
and Sara Little TurnbullSara Little TurnbullSara Little Turnbull is an American product designer, design innovator and educator. She advised corporate America on product design for more than 50 years, and has been described as "corporate America's secret weapon." She was one of America's first female industrial designers and one of the...
, an innovative product designer who was then collaborating with the NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
.
First Ladies
The house of Herbert Levine served the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
First Ladies
First Lady
First Lady or First Gentlemanis the unofficial title used in some countries for the spouse of an elected head of state.It is not normally used to refer to the spouse or partner of a prime minister; the husband or wife of the British Prime Minister is usually informally referred to as prime...
Jackie Kennedy, Mamie Eisenhower
Mamie Eisenhower
Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower was the wife of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961.-Early life:...
, Lady Bird Johnson
Lady Bird Johnson
Claudia Alta "Lady Bird" Taylor Johnson was First Lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969 during the presidency of her husband Lyndon B. Johnson. Throughout her life, she was an advocate for beautification of the nation's cities and highways and conservation of natural resources and made that...
and Patricia Nixon in the 1960s and early 1970s.
Herbert Levine made black velvet knee-high boots for Mamie Eisenhower
Mamie Eisenhower
Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower was the wife of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961.-Early life:...
as well as most of her pumps. For Jackie Kennedy, Herbert Levine custom-made a pair of thigh-high boots in burlap with a stacked heel, as well as many of the flats that became a signature element of the Jackie Kennedy style.
Stars and socialites
In addition to the popularity of the label with Presidents' wives, Herbert Levine shoes were also a nonstop favorite of Broadway stars, movie stars and socialites. Most famous clients included Barbra StreisandBarbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
, Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
, Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
, Dinah Shore
Dinah Shore
Dinah Shore was an American singer, actress, and television personality...
, Janis Paige
Janis Paige
Janis Paige is an American film, musical theatre and television actress. Born Donna Mae Tjaden in Tacoma, Washington, she began singing in public from the age of five in local amateur shows...
, Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
, Joanne Woodward
Joanne Woodward
Joanne Gignilliat Trimmier Woodward is an American actress, television and theatrical producer, and widow of Paul Newman...
, Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
, Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall
Lauren Bacall is an American film and stage actress and model, known for her distinctive husky voice and sultry looks.She first emerged as leading lady in the Humphrey Bogart film To Have And Have Not and continued on in the film noir genre, with appearances in The Big Sleep and Dark Passage ,...
, Barbara Walters
Barbara Walters
Barbara Jill Walters is an American broadcast journalist, author, and television personality. She has hosted morning television shows , the television newsmagazine , former co-anchor of the ABC Evening News, and current contributor to ABC News.Walters was first known as a popular TV morning news...
, Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews
Dame Julia Elizabeth Andrews, DBE is an English film and stage actress, singer, and author. She is the recipient of Golden Globe, Emmy, Grammy, BAFTA, People's Choice Award, Theatre World Award, Screen Actors Guild and Academy Award honors...
, Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
, Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee
Peggy Lee was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress in a career spanning six decades. From her beginning as a vocalist on local radio to singing with Benny Goodman's big band, she forged a sophisticated persona, evolving into a multi-faceted artist and...
, Cyd Charisse
Cyd Charisse
Cyd Charisse was an American actress and dancer.After recovering from polio as a child, and studying ballet, Charisse entered films in the 1940s...
, Joan Collins
Joan Collins
Joan Henrietta Collins, OBE , is an English actress, author, and columnist. Born in Paddington and raised in Maida Vale, Collins grew up during the Second World War. At the age of nine, she made her stage debut in A Doll's House and after attending school, she was classically trained as an actress...
, Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
, Linda Evans
Linda Evans
Linda Evans is an American actress. She is known primarily for her roles on television, and rose to fame playing Audra Barkley in the 1960s Western TV series, The Big Valley...
, Babe Paley
Babe Paley
Barbara "Babe" Cushing Mortimer Paley was an American socialite and style icon. She was known by the popular nickname "Babe" for most of her life. She was named to the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1958....
, Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the novelty hit "Come On-a My House" written by William Saroyan and his cousin Ross Bagdasarian , which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me" Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 –...
, Betty Grable
Betty Grable
Elizabeth Ruth "Betty" Grable was an American actress, dancer and singer.Her iconic bathing suit photo made her the number-one pin-up girl of the World War II era. It was later included in the LIFE magazine project "100 Photos that Changed the World"...
, Gladys Knight
Gladys Knight
Gladys Maria Knight , known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author...
, Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood, born Natalia Nikolaevna Zacharenko was an American film and television actress. After first working in films as a child, Wood became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult, receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old.Wood began acting in movies at the...
, Debbie Reynolds
Debbie Reynolds
Debbie Reynolds is an American actress, singer, and dancer.She was initially signed at age 16 by Warner Bros., but her career got off to a slow start. When her contract was not renewed, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer gave her a small, but significant part in the film Three Little Words , then signed her to...
, Arlene Francis
Arlene Francis
Arlene Francis was an American actress, radio talk show host, and game show panelist...
, Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller
Phyllis Diller is an American actress and comedian. She created a stage persona of a wild-haired, eccentrically dressed housewife who makes jokes about a husband named "Fang" while pretending to smoke from a long cigarette holder...
, Helen Hayes
Helen Hayes
Helen Hayes Brown was an American actress whose career spanned almost 70 years. She eventually garnered the nickname "First Lady of the American Theatre" and was one of twelve people who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony Award...
, Chita Rivera
Chita Rivera
Chita Rivera is an American actress, dancer, and singer best known for her roles in musical theater. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award...
, Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
, Gwen Verdon
Gwen Verdon
Gwenyth Evelyn “Gwen” Verdon was an actress and dancer who won four Tony awards for her musical comedy performances. With flaming red hair and an endearing quaver in her voice, Verdon was a critically acclaimed dancer on Broadway in the 1950s and 1960s...
, Liv Ullman, Agnes de Mille
Agnes de Mille
Agnes George de Mille was an American dancer and choreographer.-Early years:Agnes de Mille was born in New York City into a well-connected family of theater professionals. Her father William C. deMille and her uncle Cecil B. DeMille were both Hollywood directors...
, Carol Channing
Carol Channing
Carol Elaine Channing is an American singer, actress, and comedienne. She is the recipient of three Tony Awards , a Golden Globe and an Oscar nomination...
, Ali MacGraw
Ali MacGraw
Elizabeth Alice "Ali" MacGraw is an American actress. She is known for her role in Love Story, for which she won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination.-Early life:...
, Barbara Hale
Barbara Hale
Barbara Hale is an American actress best known for her role as legal secretary Della Street on more than 250 episodes of the long-running Perry Mason television series and later reprising the role in dozens of made-for-TV movies....
, and Angela Lansbury
Angela Lansbury
Angela Brigid Lansbury CBE is an English actress and singer in theatre, television and motion pictures, whose career has spanned eight decades and earned her more performance Tony Awards than any other individual , with five wins...
.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
wore Herbert Levine shoes both in her private and public life. Visiting Bement
Bement, Illinois
Bement is a village in Piatt County, Illinois, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 1,784, and in 2009, the population was 1,703.-Geography:Bement is located at ....
on August 9, 1955, Marilyn wore a pair of Herbert Levine's Spring-o-Lators, immortalized by many pictures, notably the series taken by photojournalist Eve Arnold
Eve Arnold
Eve Arnold, FRPS is an American photojournalist. She joined Magnum Photos agency in 1951, and became a full member in 1957....
. In 1957, Marilyn purchased Herbert Levine red stilettos (size 7AA) from Vogue shop in Montreal; those shoes are now part of the Bata Shoe Museum
Bata Shoe Museum
The Bata Shoe Museum is a museum in downtown Toronto, Canada that collects, researches, preserves, and exhibits footwear from around the world. It offers four exhibitions, three of which are time-limited, as well as lectures, performances and family events....
collection in Toronto.
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
ordered many custom pairs of the so-called "Gigi Stocking Shoes" (in size 7 1/2B) and inspired the "Marlene Boot" line of the label, named for her famous legs.
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
was a fan of Herbert Levine's Cinderella shoes. She had those Vinylite shoes custom made by Herbert Levine because "she loved to see her feet."
Famous appearances
- Nancy SinatraNancy SinatraNancy Sandra Sinatra is an American singer and actress. She is the daughter of singer/actor Frank Sinatra, and remains best known for her 1966 signature hit "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'"....
wore Herbert Levine boots for publicity shots and on stage during her period of fame for the song These Boots Are Made for Walkin'These Boots Are Made for Walkin'Jessica Simpson recorded her own version of "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" for the soundtrack to the film The Dukes of Hazzard . Simpson's cover was co-produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and was released as the soundtrack's first single in 2005)...
.
- Shirley MacLaineShirley MacLaineShirley MacLaine is an American film and theater actress, singer, dancer, activist and author, well-known for her beliefs in new age spirituality and reincarnation. She has written a large number of autobiographical works, many dealing with her spiritual beliefs as well as her Hollywood career...
used Herbert Levine boots for dance numbers in Sweet CharitySweet Charity (film)Sweet Charity, full title of which is Sweet Charity: The Adventures of a Girl Who Wanted to Be Loved, is a 1969 American musical film directed and choreographed by Bob Fosse, written by Neil Simon, and with music by Cy Coleman and Dorothy Fields...
(1966) and Irma La DouceIrma La Douce (musical)Irma La Douce is a musical with music by Marguerite Monnot and French lyrics and book by Alexandre Breffort. The English lyrics and book are by Julian More, David Heneker and Monty Norman. It was first produced in Paris in 1956.-Productions:...
(1960), as did Eydie GormeEydie GorméEydie Gormé is an American singer, specializing, with her husband, Steve Lawrence, in traditional pop music, in the form of ballads and breezy swing. She has earned numerous awards, including the Grammy and the Emmy...
in the Broadway show Golden RainbowGolden RainbowGolden Rainbow is the title of a Broadway musical that opened in 1968. It starred Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé for its entire run until it closed in early 1969....
(1968) while Raquel WelchRaquel WelchJo Raquel Tejada , better known as Raquel Welch, is an American actress, author and sex symbol. Welch came to attention as a "new-star" on the 20th Century-Fox lot in the mid-1960s. She posed iconically in a animal skin bikini for the British-release One Million Years B.C. , for which she may be...
wore them in her television variety specials.
- Television character Della StreetDella StreetDella Street was the fictional secretary of Perry Mason in the long-running series of novels, films, and radio and television programs featuring the fictional defense attorney created by Erle Stanley Gardner.-Description:...
(portrayed by Barbara HaleBarbara HaleBarbara Hale is an American actress best known for her role as legal secretary Della Street on more than 250 episodes of the long-running Perry Mason television series and later reprising the role in dozens of made-for-TV movies....
) in the popular Perry MasonPerry Mason (TV series)Perry Mason is an American legal drama produced by Paisano Productions that ran from September 1957 to May 1966 on CBS. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a fictional Los Angeles defense attorney who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner...
series often made Herbert Levine' Spring-o-Lators part of her trademark wardrobe.
- Elaine StritchElaine StritchElaine Stritch is an American actress and vocalist. She has appeared in numerous stage plays and musicals, feature films, and many television programs...
and all women wore Herbert Levines in CompanyCompany (musical)Company is a musical with a book by George Furth and music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. The original production was nominated for a record-setting fourteen Tony Awards and won six....
(1970).
- Lady Bird JohnsonLady Bird JohnsonClaudia Alta "Lady Bird" Taylor Johnson was First Lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969 during the presidency of her husband Lyndon B. Johnson. Throughout her life, she was an advocate for beautification of the nation's cities and highways and conservation of natural resources and made that...
, and her daughters, Lynda Bird and Lucy Baines, wore Herbert Levine shoes for Lyndon B. JohnsonLyndon B. JohnsonLyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
's 1965 inauguration.
- Patricia Nixon and her daughters, Tricia and Julie, wore Herbert Levine shoes for both Richard NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
's 1969 and 1973 inauguration balls.
Awards and Accolades
In 1954, Herbert and Beth Levine were awarded a Neiman Marcus Fashion AwardNeiman Marcus Fashion Award
The Neiman Marcus Award for Distinguished Service in the Field of Fashion was a yearly award created in 1938 by Stanley Marcus. Unlike the Coty Award, it was not limited to American-based fashion designers...
for their shoe designs. Stanley Marcus
Stanley Marcus
Harold Stanley Marcus was an early president and later chairman of the board of the luxury retailer Neiman Marcus in Dallas, Texas, which his father and aunt had founded in 1907...
, President and Chairman of Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus, formerly Neiman-Marcus, is a luxury specialty retail department store operated by the Neiman Marcus Group in the United States. The company is headquartered in the One Marcus Square building in Downtown Dallas, Texas, and competes with other department stores such as Saks Fifth...
, said: "Beth and Herbert Levine step into the fashion foreground with shoe designs of such architectural perfection that they might have come from Da Vinci's notebooks."
In 1967, a Coty Special Fashion Critics Award
Coty Award
The Coty American Fashion Critics' Awards were first announced in January 1942 by the cosmetics and perfume company Coty, Inc. to promote and celebrate American fashion, and encourage design during the Second World War. The first awards were presented in January 1943, with Norman Norell winning...
was voted to Beth and Herbert Levine for “the look of the leg.” In 1973, Beth and Herbert Levine received a second Coty Award
Coty Award
The Coty American Fashion Critics' Awards were first announced in January 1942 by the cosmetics and perfume company Coty, Inc. to promote and celebrate American fashion, and encourage design during the Second World War. The first awards were presented in January 1943, with Norman Norell winning...
; to this day they remain the only shoe designers ever to win it twice.
Manolo Blahnik
Manolo Blahnik
Manuel "Manolo" Blahnik Rodríguez CBE, , is a Spanish fashion designer and founder of the self-named, high-end shoe brand.-Biography:Born to a Czech father and a Spanish mother and born and raised in the Canary Islands , Blahnik graduated from the University of Geneva in 1965 and studied art in Paris...
: "Beth Levine
Beth Levine
Beth Levine was an American fashion designer most known for her designs from the 1940s through the 1970s....
is without a doubt the most influential American shoe designer of the 20th century. She is to shoes what Eames
Charles and Ray Eames
Charles Ormond Eames, Jr and Bernice Alexandra "Ray" Eames were American designers, who worked in and made major contributions to modern architecture and furniture. They also worked in the fields of industrial and graphic design, fine art and film.-Charles Eames:Charles Eames, Jr was born in...
is to furniture."
Christian Louboutin
Christian Louboutin
Christian Louboutin is a French footwear designer whose father is cabinetmaker Roger Louboutin and homemaker mother Irene. His siblings include three sisters, no brothers. Landscape architect Louis Benech has been his partner since 1997. Louboutin launched his line of high-end women's shoes in...
: "Beth Levine
Beth Levine
Beth Levine was an American fashion designer most known for her designs from the 1940s through the 1970s....
was an influential free spirit. There is nothing that I like more than seeing a creation coming from pure fun and pleasure, and this is always the case with Levine's refreshing work. God bless her for that!"
Herbert Levine in Museums
Herbert Levine shoes are collected by more than 20 museums around the world including the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
(which owns around 140 pair), the Fashion Institute of Technology
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York, the Bata Shoe Museum
Bata Shoe Museum
The Bata Shoe Museum is a museum in downtown Toronto, Canada that collects, researches, preserves, and exhibits footwear from around the world. It offers four exhibitions, three of which are time-limited, as well as lectures, performances and family events....
in Toronto, and the Kyoto Costume Institute in Japan.
Retrospectives on Beth and Herbert Levine
- "Herbert Levine," The Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of ArtThe Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, New York, 1976.
- "Herbert and Beth Levine: An American Pair," The Bata Shoe MuseumBata Shoe MuseumThe Bata Shoe Museum is a museum in downtown Toronto, Canada that collects, researches, preserves, and exhibits footwear from around the world. It offers four exhibitions, three of which are time-limited, as well as lectures, performances and family events....
, Toronto, 1999 and Headley-Whitney Museum, Lexington, Kentucky, 2000.
- "Beth Levine: From Farm to Fashion," Bellport-Brookhaven Historical Society, New York, 2007.
- "Beth Levine: First Lady of Shoes," Dutch Leather and Shoe Museum, Netherlands, 2009 and Bellevue Arts MuseumBellevue Arts MuseumThe Bellevue Arts Museum traces its roots back to street fair art in 1947. After several temporary locations, it moved to the third floor of Bellevue Square, a large shopping center in the center of downtown Bellevue, Washington in 1983...
, Seattle, 2010.