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Greenan used a small clothing manufacturer whose partner was a master leather worker. She would source materials, supervise the fittings and arrange bill payments. The costs of redesigning a band's look from sketch to concert stage would range between $ 15,000 to $ 20,000 in the early 1980s. Greenan
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Born in New York City, Greenan's early childhood was spent traveling across the United States with her father, a journeyman printer, and her mother, a secretary who was a highly skilled seamstress. Throughout these years
Greenan developed her sewing skills, making her own clothes from the age of 12.
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Greenan's work was better known behind the scenes than by the fans of the bands she worked with. As is the case with most production staff in the music industry at the time her name appears in thank you lists on album sleeves. The moniker of "Queen of Heavy Metal" is attributed to Judas Priest in
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from 1976 to the late 1980s creating stage clothing for a series of rock musicians. She was described as "a Gloria
Vanderbilt of heavy metal haute couture" or more simply "Queen of Heavy Metal" as a sought-after professional with a track record in dressing male performers. Greenan established her
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was to make him appear more aggressive within the established Heavy Metal look of the group, and her research included being flown to Paris to watch the band perform. She introduced widened shoulders and a sharper line to
Halford's costume, retaining the use of real leather loaded with extensive
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to travel with the group. From wardrobe maintenance her role developed to coordinating make-up and contributing design work, in addition to tailoring the band members' wardrobe such as brocade jackets and velvet patchwork jeans. Her design work for the stage extended the band's leather-clad look
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various internationally known musicians sought her out to explore new looks and create costumes that promoted their developing stage personas. This work varied between designing for groups as a whole or focusing on the individual. Examples of working with groups include designs influenced by
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that were marketed at this time featured the costumes worn on tour between 1977 and 1978. As a member of the crew, Greenan's original work went uncredited, and the obstacle this presented to claiming royalties on the merchandise sales led to
Greenan's departure from Kiss in 1983.
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was estimated by
Greenan in an interview of 1985 at between $ 3,000 and $ 5,000. Customized boots reached $ 1,000 a pair. The demands of a tour schedule which included laundering, photo sessions and theft meant that two of everything needed to be produced and maintained.
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You can't approach this stuff like stage costumes, where you can substitute, say, corduroy for velvet. Those guys stand up close, or they're being photographed, or they're running through a crowd to get to the stage. It can't look fake. No short
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Greenan's work demanded that she create garments that could withstand the physical demands of live performance, create a strong visual impact from a distance, as well as retain a detailed finish equal to the scrutiny of photographic close-ups.
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working as their sole wardrobe mistress. At 18 she was, according to the artistic director, the youngest wardrobe mistress working in a government funded repertory company in the U.S. Her formal education continued at
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I spent a lot of time studying S&M clothing, because it uses so much metal, silver and studs. I just tried to tone it down by removing some of the sexual aspects. S&M was heavy metal long before heavy metal
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Greenan's freelance work in the rock music industry moved from stage production and tours to costume design, with a break from design in the summer of 1980 when she acted as personal assistant and dresser to
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album cover in 1977, and subsequently featured throughout the Alive II tour of Japan in 1978. Her first costume designs for the band appeared on the cover of the
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insisted on the use of real leather and hand stitched studs. A single outfit could weigh up to 30 lbs. The cost of dressing members of rock groups in this
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245:. From 1984 she pursued her interest in traditional American needlecraft establishing a business in Florida, Kiloran American Design, now KiloranDesigns.
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132:. This enabled her to progress into working as a commercial photographer's stylist on advertising campaigns for major corporations such as
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Her first work in film was as a researcher and associate art director for "American Years" (1976, 48min) directed by
Francis Thompson and
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Greenan's career in the rock music business began in 1976 when she was hired by the rock band Kiss following an interview with manager
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The family returned to New York City, where
Greenan completed high school. She began her career the summer of her graduation in
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Grant, Janet "The quiet life suits Mount Dora's 'Queen of Heavy Metal'", South
Florida Sun, Orlando Sentinel, 8 December 1985
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whose hybrid costumes in the film influenced rock performances and street fashion throughout the early 1980s. Her brief from
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Photograph of design work by Laurie
Greenan for stage costume for Ace Frehley of the rock band KISS worn 1981-1982
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industry with its more casual employment practices that
Greenan secured membership to the trade union IATSE -
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recognition of her experience in the production of performance costumes that epitomized Heavy Metal fashion.
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Scott, Kelly "Raggedy Ann meets Kiss - one shop's split personality", St. Petersburg Times, 17 October 1984
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celebrating the US Bicentennial. At 48 minutes long, this was one of the earliest features produced in the
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267:. Another are the designs produced for the group Manowar, inspired by the comic book and film character,
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album in 1977. Greenan also produced the costumes worn by the band and their stuntmen for the NBC film "
120:. Becoming costume historian at the Brooks-Van Horn Costume Company in New York City led to work as a
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Bolles, Marie "Hand-crafted homeworks are Kiloran's trademark" Leesburg Commercial, January 7–8, 1984
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reputation as a designer over a seven-year period working as wardrobe manager for the rock band
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to introduce a "Road Warrior" look to his stage persona inspired by the 1981 film
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Jones, Mablen, Getting it on : the clothing of rock'n'roll, Abbeville, 1987
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and prop buyer for commercial photographers and filmmakers. It was through the
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credited to Larry LeGaspi as the first designer to work with Kiss until 1978.
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144:. By 1973 she was freelancing as an art director working on brands including
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584:"SEALED KISS Album - GENE SIMMONS from Ace Frehley Coll. - auction details"
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as an art major followed by courses at the Traphagen School of Fashion for
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where she worked for the next few years. This included a season with the
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Young, Jon "Mean Duds: A Heavy Metal Must" Musician, no71 September 1984
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during their 'Egyptian' phase following the recording of the album
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Photograph of stage costume design by Laurie Greenan for Billy Idol
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to devise costumes that recharged their stage image.
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International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees
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253:traditional Middle eastern costume produced for
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51:specializing but not exclusively working with
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414:S.E.G."Promptbook", Dramatics, Jan/Feb 1978
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248:Despite her relocation to the town of
215:Her costume work first appears on the
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164:including the Bicentennial issue of
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631:Traphagen School of Fashion alumni
225:Kiss Meets the Phantom of the Park
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504:"Archives - OrlandoSentinel.com"
368:"Rock Costumer Likes Her Escape"
101:Trinity Square Repertory Company
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405:email interview November 2009
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641:Artists from New York City
616:American costume designers
372:South Florida Sun Sentinel
162:United States Bicentennial
40:costume maker and designer
105:Providence, Rhode Island
439:. Giantscreencinema.com
34:; November 20, 1947 in
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621:Hunter College alumni
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274:Greenan worked with
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626:Heavy metal fashion
529:"KISS : Retro"
324:Heavy Metal fashion
269:Conan the Barbarian
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611:1947 births
290:Rob Halford
201:Bill Aucoin
81:Rob Halford
53:heavy metal
605:Categories
590:2014-05-19
535:2014-05-19
514:2014-05-19
486:2014-05-19
443:2014-05-19
378:2024-01-02
335:References
276:Billy Idol
243:Diana Ross
77:Billy Idol
281:Mad Max 2
236:Freelance
209:road crew
173:Jan Kadar
87:Biography
69:Tom Waits
49:rock acts
221:Love Gun
154:Clorets
138:Seagram
118:grading
61:Manowar
259:Utopia
158:Lipton
150:Purina
79:, and
30:(born
317:cuts.
307:was.
187:Kiss
181:IMAX
146:Tide
140:and
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