# Ralph Jester

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{{Short description|American costume designer (1901–1991)}}
{{Infobox person
| image        =
| image_size   = 
| name         = Ralph Jester
| birth_name   = 
| other_names  = 
| birth_date   = {{Birth date|1901|7|10}}
| birth_place  = [Tyler, Texas](/source/Tyler%2C_Texas), USA
| death_date   = {{Death date and age|1991|9|25|1901|7|10}}
| death_place  = [Los Angeles, California](/source/Los_Angeles%2C_California), USA
| occupation   = [Costume Designer](/source/Costume_Designer)
| years_active = 1934-1959
| spouse       = {{marriage |[Elizabeth Hawes](/source/Elizabeth_Hawes)|1930|1935|end=div}}
| children     =  
}}

'''Ralph Jester''' (July 10, 1901 – September 25, 1991) was an American costume designer, sculptor, and artist.

Born in Tyler, Texas, he graduated in 1919 from the Terrill School, the forerunner to [St. Mark's School of Texas](/source/St._Mark's_School_of_Texas).<ref>https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/214668?page=38 {{User-generated source|date=August 2022}}</ref> He was educated at Yale, where he was an editor of the campus humor magazine ''[The Yale Record](/source/The_Yale_Record)''.<ref>''Yale Banner and Pot Pourri''. New Haven: Yale University Press. 1926. p. 238.</ref>

After graduating from Yale and studying at the American Academy in Fontainebleau, France, Jester moved to Hollywood. By 1931, he was working as an [art director](/source/art_director) and [costume designer](/source/costume_designer) for [Cecil B. DeMille](/source/Cecil_B._DeMille) and [Paramount Pictures](/source/Paramount_Pictures). For much of his career, his closest collaborator was [Edith Head](/source/Edith_Head).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.askart.com/artist/Ralph_Jester/10027800/Ralph_Jester.aspx|title=Ralph Jester - Biography}}</ref>

For DeMille's epic ''[Cleopatra](/source/Cleopatra_(1934_film))'' (1934), Jester designed [Claudette Colbert](/source/Claudette_Colbert)’s marble throne, as well as the busts of Colbert and her co star, [Warren William](/source/Warren_William).

He is perhaps best known professionally as one of the costume designers of ''[The Ten Commandments](/source/The_Ten_Commandments_(1956_film))'' (1956). He also worked on such films as ''[Omar Khayyam](/source/Omar_Khayyam_(1957_film))'' (1957) and ''[The Buccaneer](/source/The_Buccaneer_(1958_film))'' (1958).

Earlier, in 1938, [Frank Lloyd Wright](/source/Frank_Lloyd_Wright) had designed a circular home for Jester in Santa Clara, California. Never built but considered a masterpiece of design, the house was Wright's first foray into using the circle in his buildings. Wright's [Guggenheim Museum](/source/Guggenheim_Museum) would not be built for another 20 years.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apointindesign.com/2016/03/29/unbuilt-masterpieces-wrights-ralph-jester-house/ |title=Unbuilt Masterpieces – Wright's Ralph Jester House – A Point in Design |access-date=2021-06-06 |archive-date=2021-06-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606230848/https://apointindesign.com/2016/03/29/unbuilt-masterpieces-wrights-ralph-jester-house/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Jester later employed Lloyd Wright, Jr. to design a modernist house for him in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.

==Oscar Nominations==
Both were for [Best Costumes](/source/Academy_Award_for_Best_Costume_Design).

*[29th Academy Awards](/source/29th_Academy_Awards) (color costumes category): Nominated for ''[The Ten Commandments](/source/The_Ten_Commandments_(1956_film))''. Nomination shared with [Arnold Friberg](/source/Arnold_Friberg), [Edith Head](/source/Edith_Head), [Dorothy Jeakins](/source/Dorothy_Jeakins) and [John Jensen](/source/John_Jensen_(costume_designer)). Lost to ''[The King and I](/source/The_King_and_I_(1956_film))''.<ref name="Oscars1957">{{Cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1957 |title=The 29th Academy Awards (1957) Nominees and Winners |accessdate=March 21, 2014|work=oscars.org}}</ref>
*[31st Academy Awards](/source/31st_Academy_Awards): Nominated for ''[The Buccaneer](/source/The_Buccaneer_(1958_film))''. Nomination shared with [Edith Head](/source/Edith_Head) and [John Jensen](/source/John_Jensen_(costume_designer)). Lost to ''[Gigi](/source/Gigi_(1958_film))''.<ref name="Oscars1959">{{Cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1959 |title=The 31st Academy Awards (1959) Nominees and Winners |accessdate=March 21, 2014|work=oscars.org}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|id=0422286|name=Ralph Jester}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jester, Ralph}}
Category:1901 births
Category:1991 deaths
Category:American costume designers
Category:People from Tyler, Texas
Category:20th-century American designers

{{US-film-bio-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ralph Jester](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Jester) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Jester?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.