Alice Estes Davis, an American costume designer best known for her work with Walt Disney, who employed her to develop costumes for films, television, and theme parks has died at age 93.
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Born on March 26, 1929, Alice was a talented artist in high school and received a scholarship from the Long Beach Art Association to study at the prestigious Chouinard Art Institute.
After graduation, Alice ventured into entrepreneurship, designing women’s lingerie for the Beverly Vogue & Lingerie House in Los Angeles.
Due to her excellence and creativity, she quickly rose through the ranks to head designer.
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She earned a reputation within the fashion community for her pattern-making skills and her expertise with different types of exotic fabrics.
In the mid-1950s, she received a call from Marc Davis, her future husband who at the time, needed a costume for dancer Helene Stanley to wear as she performed live-action reference footage for the animation of Princess Aurora in Sleeping Beauty.
Marc wanted to see how the skirt flowed and bunched as Stanley moved about in order to draft accurate animation.
During this project, she and Marc Davis grew closer and eventually tied the knot in June 1956.
Walt Disney saw the two newlyweds at a Los Angeles restaurant one night and immediately took a liking to her and her work.
She died on Nov. 2, 2022.
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