Patricia Norris (March 22, 1931 – February 20, 2015) was an American

costume designer A costume designer is a person who designs costumes for a film, stage production or television show. The role of the costume designer is to create the characters' outfits or costumes and balance the scenes with texture and colour, etc. The costume ...

and

production designer In film and television, the production designer is the individual responsible for the overall aesthetic of the story. The production design gives the viewers a sense of the time period, the plot location, and character actions and feelings. Wo ...

, who worked on many significant American films and was nominated for six

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

in her career.

Career

Norris's first credit as

was for ''The Late Liz'' (1971). She went on to design costumes for several iconic films of the 1970s and 1980s, including ''

Capricorn One ''Capricorn One'' is a 1978 British-produced American thriller film in which a reporter discovers that a supposed Mars landing by a crewed mission to the planet has been faked via a conspiracy involving the government and—under duress—the c ...

'' (1977), ''

Days of Heaven ''Days of Heaven'' is a 1978 American romantic period drama film written and directed by Terrence Malick, and starring Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, Sam Shepard and Linda Manz. Set in 1916, it tells the story of Bill and Abby, lovers who travel ...

'' (1978), ''

Victor/Victoria ''Victor/Victoria'' is a 1982 musical comedy film written and directed by Blake Edwards and starring Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren, Alex Karras, and John Rhys-Davies. The film was produced by Tony Adams and sco ...

'' (1982) and '' Scarface'' (1983). In 1980, she designed the costumes for ''

The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), often erroneously called John Merrick, was an English man known for having severe deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "the Elephant Man" and then we ...

'', the first of many collaborations with director David Lynch. For her next project with Lynch, '' Blue Velvet'', she received her first credit as

, taking responsibility for the entirety of the film's decor, not just the costumes. Norris continued to work on all of Lynch's films, up to ''

The Straight Story ''The Straight Story'' is a 1999 biographical road drama film directed by David Lynch. It was edited and produced by Mary Sweeney, Lynch's longtime partner and collaborator, who also co-wrote the script with John E. Roach. It is based on the tru ...

'' (1999). In later years, Norris collaborated with

Plan B Entertainment Plan B Entertainment, Inc., more commonly known as Plan B, is an American production company founded in November in 2001 by Brad Grey, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston and Kristin Hahn. In 2005, after Pitt and Aniston divorced, Grey became the CEO o ...

on ''

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford ''The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' is a 2007 American epic revisionist Western film written and directed by Andrew Dominik and starring Brad Pitt as Jesse James. Adapted from Ron Hansen's 1983 novel of the same ti ...

'' (2007), ''

Killing Them Softly ''Killing Them Softly'' (stylized in marketing as ''killing them softly'') is a 2012 American neo-noir crime film written and directed by Andrew Dominik and stars Brad Pitt. Based on George V. Higgins' 1974 novel '' Cogan's Trade'', the stor ...

'' (2012), and ''

12 Years a Slave ''Twelve Years a Slave'' is an 1853 memoir and slave narrative by American Solomon Northup as told to and written by David Wilson. Northup, a black man who was born free in New York state, details himself being tricked to go to Washington, D.C. ...

'' (2013).

Awards

She was nominated six times for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design: for ''

'', ''

'', '' 2010: The Year We Make Contact'', '' Sunset'' and ''

''. She won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Costume Design for a Series for the pilot episode of ''Twin Peaks''. Norris won the Costume Designers Guild Period Film Award for

(2013)."Patricia Norris Courted Oscar Six Times Over." Variety. March 10, 2015. In 2010, she received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the

Art Directors Guild The Art Directors Guild (ADG; IATSE Local 800) is a labor union and local of the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) representing 2,979 motion picture and television professionals in the United States and Canada. T ...

. She was the only person to receive Lifetime Achievement Awards from both the Costume Designers Guild and the Art Directors Guild.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norris, Patricia 1931 births 2015 deaths Emmy Award winners American costume designers Women costume designers American production designers Place of birth missing Women production designers