The biggest fashion influence on America’s young women in 1977 was neither a New York designer like Halston or Calvin Klein nor a European couturier like Yves St Lauren or Valentino, but the title character in Woody Allen’s latest movie, Annie Hall, played by Diane Keaton.
Young trendies were gearing up in men’s vests, comfy sweaters, slouchy brimmed hats, men’s tweeds, baggy trousers and trailing scarves, piling the pieces one on top of the other for a madcap kooky look.
Costume designer Ruth Morley, who evolved the style for the movie, said she wanted Annie to project an eclectic spirit. “She’s creative, unsure of where she’s going but has a great desire to learn and is someone just beginning to understand herself. So I just put clothes together, bought some things new, some in antique stores”.
Explaining how to put the look together, Morley said: “Just go to your closet for things you haven’t worn in years and make a few trips to a gentleman’s closet. Army surplus and second-hand clothing shops would also be useful”.
Although the movie Annie Hall was released in 1977, this menswear-inspired fashion endured and was arguably at its strongest in the early 80s.
New Romantic girls adorned themselves with men’s shirts and skinny leather ties, topped men’s vests with shiny brooches, and paired canvas sneakers with fedora hats.
Amy Linker, who played eternal outcast Lauren Hutchinson on the 80s TV hit Square Pegs, had a penchant for suspenders (braces) to create her own unique sense of style.
Tons of high school girls copied her lead and paired the look with tons of Cyndi Lauper-esque bangle bracelets as a reminder that yes, they were still girls.
