Oral history interview with Gladys L. Randall

Collection

Identifier: SR 9300

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This oral history with Gladys L. Randall was conducted by Emily Renfrow in 1980; in addition to the audio recording, a transcript is available. In this interview, Randall discusses her early life in Portland, Oregon. She talks about her early career as a milliner in Portland, including the training she received as an apprentice. She speaks about working as a milliner in Hollywood, California, during the 1920s and 1930s, and talks about some of the celebrities she made hats for, including Shirley Temple. She then speaks at length about making and selling hats in Portland on the label Olga & Louise with Olga Lanphier, from the 1930s through the 1950s. She discusses the effect of World War II on her business, and talks about changes in the fashionability of wearing hats. She closes the interview by talking about her early interest in millinery, and about making hats for Mae West.

Dates

1980

Creator

Randall, Gladys L. (Gladys Louise), 1901-1992 (Interviewee, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright for this interview is held by the estates of Emily Renfrow and Gladys L. Randall. In Copyright - https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Biographical note

Gladys Louise Randall, nee Wilson, was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1901. She began working as a milliner as a teenager. In the 1920s, she moved to the Hollywood, California, area, and continued to work as a milliner. She returned to Portland in 1936, and in the 1940s she began working with Olga Lanphier, creating hats on their label, Olga & Louise. In 1947, she and Richard H. Randall were married. In the 1950s, she ceded the label to Olga Lanphier, and continued a millinery business from her home. She died in 1992.

Extent

0.1 Cubic Feet (1 audiocassette (35 min., 24 sec.) + transcript (18 pages))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Oral history interview with Gladys L. Randall conducted by Emily Renfrow in 1980. Randall was a hatmaker in Portland, Oregon, and in Hollywood, California, in the early 20th century.