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Black dress worn by Rachel Brosnahan in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

American History Museum

Costume worn by Rachel Brosnahan in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
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Object Details

wearer

Brosnahan, Rachel

producer

Sherman-Palladino, Amy

maker

Eric Winterling, Inc.

designer

Zakowska, Donna

Description

Black cocktail dress worn by Rachel Brosnahan in the Amazon series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. The coat was designed by Donna Zakowska and made by Eric Winterling, Inc. The dress has a pleated skirt with a fitted waist and black leather belt with a rectangular buckle. The straps are thick with rectangular bows positioned at the shoulders and the back has a shallow "V" neck.
This dress was worn in a scene in the season one finale of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in which Midge Maisel performs her first professional comedy set, at New York's Gaslight Cafe. Capping a season of marital problems and struggle to create a life for herself as an individual, Midge experiences a triumphant moment. Midge’s estranged husband Joel finally watches her perform and defends her after men heckle her with sexist remarks. Midge ends the performance by proclaiming “My name is Mrs. Maisel. Thank you and Goodnight!”
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was one of the most acclaimed streaming series of the 2010s, winning numerous Emmy Awards and critical praise for its nuanced portrayal of mid-20th century women’s life, urban Jewish identity, and the 1960s comedy scene. Showrunner and creator Amy Sherman-Palladino was lauded for the series’ exploration of women's lives in mid-20th century America, including marriage and separation, societal expectations, beauty, systemic gender inequality, motherhood, and the struggle to navigate male-dominated workplaces. Sherman-Palladino is one of the most active and celebrated female writers and producers in the entertainment industry today, having also created The Gilmore Girls and becoming the first woman in history to win in the comedy writing and directing categories at the Primetime Emmy Awards.
Mrs. Maisel costume designer Donna Zakowska earned critical acclaim for creating beautiful and historically-accurate clothing that helped to advance and support the series’ narrative. Zakowska, who won an Emmy for her work outfitting Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney in the 2008 HBO miniseries John Adams, also won an Emmy for Outstanding Period Costumes for Maisel’s second season.

Location

Currently not on view

date made

around 2016

ID Number

2019.0313.01.01

accession number

2019.0313

catalog number

2019.0313.01.01

Object Name

dress

Physical Description

fabric (overall material)

Measurements

overall: 38 in x 18 in x 3 in; 96.52 cm x 45.72 cm x 7.62 cm

place made

United States: New York, New York City

See more items in

Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
Popular Entertainment

Data Source

National Museum of American History

Subject

Television

Metadata Usage

CC0

Link to Original Record

https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49e52a93a-6e8e-2deb-e053-15f76fa0d9fe

Record ID

nmah_1973652

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