This is wonderful news: on this Friday, May 16th, Jeopardy will be devoting a full category to my friend William Ivey Long, the brilliant and now clearly legendary costume designer. It’s the first time Jeopardy has ever allotted a costume designer his own category, and the honor is well deserved. Even if I hadn’t known William since I was in college, I’d still adore both the man and his work. William’s designed well over fifty Broadway shows – I know this because a few years back, I co-hosted, along with Susan Stroman and Wendy Wasserstein, a party to honor William’s fiftieth show. The party was held at Central Park’s boathouse, which William and his completely amazing team decorated for the occasion: in one corner there was a bevy of showgirl mannequins, dripping with pearls and very little else, from The Producers, and over by the windows you’d find a mannequin wearing the daring yet somehow elegant black lace bodysuit which Anita Morris wore in Nine. There were costumes from Guys & Dolls, Hairspray, Chicago, Crazy For You, and so many other glorious shows. William’s just been nominated for yet another Tony Award (I think he’s won six so far) for his breathtaking work on Bullets Over Broadway. He also somehow manages to be an exceedingly kind and generous man, and to never lose his Carolina accent.
William’s also designed ballets, movies, and wedding gowns, and I especially remember his bold designs for a massive Siegfried and Roy spectacular in Las Vegas; these costumes needed to be both gorgeous and durable, since the white tigers in Siegfried and Roy’s show would occasionally pee on them. I’ve written about my friendship with William in my book I Shudder, which now demands to be updated. Bravo, William!
