Isaac Mizrahi

Isaac Mizrahi (born October 14, 1961) is an American fashion designer, TV presenter, and creative director of Xcel Brands. He is best known for his eponymous fashion lines.

Early life

Mizrahi was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Sarah, a homemaker, and Zeke Mizrahi, who worked in the clothing business.^[1] He is from an observant Egyptian Jewish family.^[2][3] His father gave him a sewing machine at the age of ten. At 15, he launched his own label, IS New York, with the help of a family friend. He attended Yeshivah of Flatbush, High School of Performing Arts, and the Parsons School of Design.^[4]

Fashion career

Mizrahi presented his first collection in 1987 at a trunk show held by famed New York department store Bergdorf Goodman. The line immediately earned praise from fashion editors, prompting several top retailers to place orders.^[5] In 1989, he discussed his designs in an interview with Elizabeth Cannon. He described them as “controlled and glamorous”, “elegant”, “distilled, refined”, inspired by decadence, and by the diversity of New York City. He also expressed his interest in appealing to a refined and exclusive clientele.^[6] In 1992, the French fashion house Chanel bought a stake in the company and began to bankroll its operations.^[5] Despite continued critical acclaim, sales were inconsistent; Bloomingdale's executive Kal Ruttenstein stated that Mizrahi had "good years and bad years."^[7] This volatility is mainly attributed to the designer's failure to establish a defined aesthetic or "Mizrahi Look," as the frenetic designer was famed for changing gears each season. Though the company grossed between $10–20 million a year, it never made a profit, and in fact lost substantial amounts in its final four years of operation. Chanel eventually tired of the mounting losses and pulled financing in October 1998, forcing the closure of the company after the Fall 1998 collection.^[8] Among Mizrahi's fans and clients were Hollywood stars Nicole Kidman, Selma Blair, Julia Roberts, Sarah Jessica Parker, Debra Messing and Natalie Portman, to name a few.^[9]

From 1995 to 1997, Mizrahi also designed a diffusion line, named "IS**C" in an act of "name effacement" intended to prevent dilution of the designer's full name (cf. the use of "G-d" by some members of the observant-Jewish community in which Mizrahi was raised). This lower-priced line (in the $275 to $850 range) was meant to diversify the label from the very expensive Isaac Mizrahi collection, but it failed to gain traction and was shuttered in 1997.^[8]

Mizrahi returned to fashion in 2002 when he began designing another diffusion collection, Isaac Mizrahi for Target. The line was an enormous hit, and soon spread to cover accessories, bedding, housewares, and pet products. Sales volume tripled over five years to over $300 million and introduced the designer to mainstream America.^[10] The line was discontinued in 2008 as Mizrahi left for Liz Claiborne.

Mizrahi designed for Claiborne for only one year, 2009. Although advertising campaigns for his Claiborne work—featuring Mizrahi and women of all sizes, races, and ages—were found in major fashion magazines, the line was a disaster almost from launch. The clothes and accessories were very difficult to find, as only a few minor departments stores, which were not found in major cities, carried Claiborne clothes. Gottschalks carried only a few pieces before declaring bankruptcy and liquidating, only weeks after Mizrahi's launch. Furthermore, the few Liz Claiborne outlets that existed were also far from major cities and were found at outlet malls that were too remote for most customers to visit. As a result, on December 2009, the Liz Claiborne website was closed and rumors abounded that the company was bankrupt and in serious debt. As of Fall 2010, Liz Claiborne clothes are sold at J.C. Penney, and are not designed by Mizrahi.

In 2010, Mizrahi launched a label called IsaacMizrahiLIVE! exclusively on QVC.^[11]

In 2011, Mizrahi sold his brand to Xcel Brands, Inc.^[12] In addition to continuing the IsaacMizrahiLIVE! business on QVC, Xcel Brands is launching various categories under the Isaac Mizrahi New York, Isaac Mizrahi Jeans, and Isaac Mizrahi brands. As of August 2012, footwear and denim have launched in Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom, and Mizrahi's first ever fragrance, Fabulous, is set to debut September 6 on QVC, and in Bloomingdale's in October. Mizrahi remains a shareholder, creative director, and media personality for his namesake brand under Xcel.

Media

Mizrahi has made appearances in numerous television shows and movies since the 1990s. In 1995, a movie was released about the development of his Fall 1994 collection called Unzipped. In Fall 2005, the Isaac show debuted on Style Network. He previously had a show on the Oxygen network.

Mizrahi often appears on many of E!'s programs and has become well known for being flamboyant. He also appeared as himself in the episode "Plus One is the Loneliest Number" of the fifth season of Sex and the City, and in an episode of Spin City. He guest starred on the American dramedy series Ugly Betty, in which he played a reporter for the cable channel Fashion TV in the episode "Lose the Boss." He appeared as himself in The Apprentice season 1 (episode 6) as one of the celebrities supporting an auction for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. He also appeared on the public radio game show, Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me in 2006, saying that "Fat is the new black."^[13] He also was in an episode of Gossip Girl season 4.

Mizrahi has stated that he sees himself as an entertainer who can sing and act. On his Oxygen show, he sang jazz in a nightclub. He has also acted in films, appearing in Woody Allen's Small Time Crooks, Hollywood Ending and Celebrity.

Mizrahi was a contestant in the Jeopardy! Million Dollar Celebrity Invitational. While initially finishing second in a quarter-final game to Jane Curtin, as the highest scoring non-qualifier, he replaced semi-finalist Andy Richter, who had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts. He eventually lost to Michael McKean.

In 2006, Mizrahi designed pro bono the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery's conservators' denim work aprons.^[14][15][16]

In 2009, Mizrahi began co-hosting the first season of The Fashion Show on Bravo TV with singer Kelly Rowland. Bravo launched the series to replace its former hit Project Runway, which now moved to the Lifetime network.^[17][18] Mizrahi returned as co-host in November 2010 for the show's second season, opposite close friend and colleague, supermodel Iman, who previously hosted the Canadian version of Project Runway. A representative of the network indicated that Bravo believed Mizrahi's exciting presenting style would work well with newcomer Iman and the credibility that she brings to the table as a genuine pioneer in the fashion world.^[19]

In 2012, Isaac Mizrahi participated in the debut season of "Project Runway: All Stars" as a head judge, alongside Marchesa designer Georgina Chapman, which aired on the Lifetime TV Network.

In February 2012, Mizrahi served as red carpet correspondent for "Live! With Kelly" during the 84th Annual Academy Awards. The segment included interviews with Brad Pitt, Emma Stone, Rooney Mara, and Gwyneth Paltrow. It aired the morning after the Oscars, during a special episode of "Live! With Kelly."

In 2013, Mizrahi played himself in the final season of Showtime's The Big C.

In January 2015, Mizrahi made national news headlines while appearing on QVC with co-host Shawn Killinger. Killinger and Mizrahi publicly argued over the planetary status of the moon. Neither host could identify that the moon is not, in fact, a planet or star.^[20]

2006 Golden Globes

Mizrahi was an interviewer for The Red Carpet Show on E! for the Golden Globes in 2006. He took liberties with many female actresses, including looking down Teri Hatcher's dress, and feeling Scarlett Johansson's breast, over which she later expressed discomfort.^[21] He drew attention to Hilary Swank about being single given that she recently separated from her husband, Chad Lowe. He also asked many celebrities whether they were wearing underwear.

Costume design

Mizrahi has worked as the costume designer for three Broadway revivals, including two plays (The Women (2001) and Barefoot in the Park (2006)), and one operetta (Threepenny Opera (2006)).

For his work on The Women, Mizrahi won the 2002 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design.

Mizrahi was the costume designer for the Metropolitan Opera production of Orfeo ed Euridice (2008), directed by Mark Morris. Mizrahi has been a longtime collaborator with Morris in a partnership dating from 1997, when Mizrahi created costumes for a Morris film project with Yo-Yo Ma, Falling Down Stairs, from Ma's Inspired By Bach series.

Other projects

• He made a series of comic books called Isaac Mizrahi Presents the Adventures of Sandee the Supermodel, published by Simon & Schuster
• He co-wrote the historical documentary Kingdom of David: The Saga of the Israelites for PBS.^[22]
• He also narrated the children's classic, Peter and the Wolf, at the Guggenheim Museum's Works & Process performing arts series in December 2007 and in 2010
• In 2010, he designed the sets and costumes and directed Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music for Opera Theatre of St. Louis.^[23][24] It has been announced that in 2014, he will design and direct Mozart's The Magic Flute for Opera Theatre of St. Louis.^[25]
• Mizrahi is developing, for the CW network, a one-hour scripted project called "The Collection," which draws on his experiences as a designer
• In 2013 Johnson & Johnson released a series of Band-Aid adhesive bandages with an Isaac Mizrahi theme.^[26]

Personal life

Mizrahi married his partner of six years, Arnold Germer, in a civil ceremony in New York City Hall on November 30, 2011.^[27]

In popular culture

He appears briefly in the film Men in Black (1997) as one of the "celebrity aliens" granted asylum in Earth.^[28]

See also

• List of Jewish Americans

References

External links

• Isaac Mizrahi's International Online Store
• Isaac Mizrahi's New York Store
• Isaac, Isaac Mizrahi's talk show on Style Network
• Isaac Mizrahi at TED
  
• Isaac Mizrahi at the Internet Movie Database
• Isaac Mizrahi at the Fashion Model Directory