“Yes, My Darling Daughter”

Northern Advocate, 24 February 1940, Page 10

“Yes, My Darling Daughter”

Any fashion sleuth can deduce that the man who designed the clothes for j Priscilla Lane, Fay Bainter, Genevieve Tobin and May Robson to wear in “Yes, My Darling Daughter,” the Warner Bros, comedy, is a Southern U.S.A. gentleman. He’s Howard Shoup, late of Dallas, Texas, but the Doum South part could be guessed even if studio biographies didn’t divulge it. Men from the land of colonels and cotton believe their girls of “flirting age” should be simple, girlish and wise, that mothers are earthly and sensible, aunts without children are frivolous, and grandmothers are the salt of the earth but can remember their belle days. Although Texan Shoup designed for a northern family I in “Yes, My Darling Daughter,” he didn’t miss one of these characterisations in his screen wardrobe. Priscilla Lane, as the daughter-in-love, is artlessly artful in one dress of oyster white silk pique which has pointed, fitted bodice snugly fastened down the front with dozens of tiny pearl buttons. The skirt fits over the nips, but has a suggestion of fullness in front. A narrow bow tied primly about her throat finishes off the hign neckline. Also well-tailored is a grey wool crepe suit having lapels and rounded opening of jacket edged in royal blue silk braid. Equally disarming but well-fitting is a navy flannel slack suit which is so becoming to Priscilla that it should bring about a revival of sailor collars. Fay Bainter, being a modern mother in the picture, not only wears accepted matronly prints and pin-striped fabrics, but deigns to put on slacks when she does her gardening. The slacks of dark blue linen are widelegged and are teamed with a loose matching jacket and tuck-in cotton shirt showing small dark figures against a tomato background. Genevieve Tobin is the carefree aunt who obviously considers clothes the best of fun. When she goes motoring she wears a crepe suit the colour of banana pulp and couples it with a high-crowned matching felt hat which has a brown chiffon streamer veil long enough to band the hat, make two trips around her throat and hang to the hem of her skirt. With a beautifully draped street dress of poudre blue silk jersey she wears a matching coat made with a full skirt and bloused bodice. Accessories are in reddish tan.

May Robson is not the kind of grandmother who sits idly by, but nevertheless Mr Shoup gives her clothes with befitting dignity. She is exactly right in rather full-skirted black crepe and ribbed navy silk set off with a softening white collar.