George Trippon, 93, Designer to stars
Matthew Kruk
Designer to stars
GEORGE TRIPPON | 1916-2010 | Also hosted TV show, had role with sister
in Astaire film
January 11, 2010
BY ANDRE SALLES Beacon News
Some people leave their hometowns and never look back, chasing fame and
fortune wherever it leads.
Given the extraordinary life that George Trippon led -- he was a dancer,
fashion designer to the stars, TV show host, war veteran and author --
you might think he'd be one of those people.
But Mr. Trippon, who died New Year's Day at age 93, never forgot his
roots in Aurora. His family moved to California after he graduated from
high school, and Mr. Trippon spent the rest of his life there, but he
would often visit Aurora and stayed in touch with people there. And in
2002, he even published a book about his old stomping grounds.
"What an interesting character," said John Jaros, head of the Aurora
Historical Society, with whom Mr. Trippon kept in contact until last
year. "He was quite a creative fellow, in his era."
Mr. Trippon was born Feb. 22, 1916, to Romanian immigrants George
Trippon Sr. and Mary Szilagyi. His father worked for the Chicago,
Burlington and Quincy RR for a time, but in the 1920s, his parents
opened the Trippon Grocery Store in Aurora. The store was in the front,
the family's living quarters in the back.
Dan Trippon, Mr. Trippon's cousin, grew up with him and still lives in
Aurora. Dan remembers Mr. Trippon as a great dancer and said he was in
all of the East Aurora High School plays. But he also remembers Mr.
Trippon having a tough time as a young gay man.
"He got a lot of criticism growing up," Dan Trippon said.
Mr. Trippon and his sister Florence formed a dancing team, and on one of
their trips to Los Angeles, they landed a small role in the Fred
Astaire-Ginger Rogers movie "Flying Down to Rio." After Mr. Trippon
graduated from high school, the family moved to California for good, and
after serving two years in the Army during World War II, he started his
career as a costume designer.
He studied in Paris, at the Chambre de Couture, according to a 1975
newspaper article, and in the late '40s began working as a costume
designer for MGM Studios. He went on to design clothes for celebrities
like Jackie Onassis and Red Skelton, and in 1951, he opened the Trippon
Fashion Center on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood.
And somewhere in there, he met the love of his life, James Price. The
two were together for 64 years, until Price died in 2006. Dan Trippon
remembers it well -- he and his wife were married about the time Mr.
Trippon and Price got together.
Dan Trippon and his wife even went to California to celebrate their 63rd
anniversary with them in 2005.
Mr. Trippon operated his school until 1977, but by the time that career
was over, he'd already launched another. In 1975, he kicked off a local
television show about clothing and design called "Sew What's New." The
show was eventually picked up by the Learning Channel, and ran until the
early 1990s.
After that, Mr. Trippon retired, but he wasn't done. In 2002, he
published Pigeon Hill: Growing Up Romanian, reminisces about his family
life in Aurora. He'd been donating memorabilia his family had saved to
the Aurora Historical Society since 1977, Jaros said, and the book was
the culmination of a lifelong love of his hometown.
He even returned to Aurora in November 2002 to sign copies.
Dan Trippon remembers taking his cousin to the Historical Society
whenever he'd come back to Aurora.
Dan Trippon said Mr. Trippon had spent the past couple of years in a
nursing home, falling further into illness. The last time they spoke,
Dan said, his cousin didn't remember him.
But his legacy remains. In addition to clips of "Sew What's New" on
YouTube, Mr. Trippon wrote several books and donated countless photos
and memorabilia from his time in Aurora to the Aurora Historical
Society.
"Aurora was really his roots, his hometown, and he did have it close to
heart all the time," Jaros said.
He also is survived by nieces.
Sun-Times Media
Brigid Nelson
show in 1990, the clothes he was sewing were hopelessly out-of-date, and
the way he talked about his age you would have thought he was a million
years old back in 1975.
I learned to sew as a child, but Mr Trippon taught me industrial
techniques like railroading a zipper, and using infrequent pins while
stitching. He also had a lot to say about measuring and proper fitting,
and he was funnier than Hell. I was a new mom with a very sick baby, but
for 1/2 an hour a day I was learning something useful and having a giggle.
Watching his hands, with their giant rings, guiding the fabric beneath
the presser foot while he told an amusing story about Talulah Bankhead
or sang an impromptu song about setting in godets was mesmerizing. He
was whimsical and practical, having serious skills and a playful nature.
Some of the things he said have stuck with me since, and I occasionally
even quote George's wisdom, though I'm the only one who knows who
"George" is. I must live in hope that one day I'll find a fellow fan.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6haGx1raydY
Thank you George,
brigid
Matthew Kruk
news:7r22vo...@mid.individual.net...
> ...
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6haGx1raydY
Cool!