1955 Comedy Ranked No. 1 for Most Iconic Movie Dress
A beautiful dress in a film can be a feast for the eyes. An iconic dress helps tell the story of the character's journey. Or it's used in an unexpected way that stays in our culture's memory for years to come. There is one movie dress that was crowned the most iconic for a very good reason.
Marilyn Monroe's Dress in 'The Seven Year Itch'
People who have never seen Gentlemen Prefer Blondes know this iconic scene.Marilyn Monroe plays gold-digging showgirl Lorelei Lee beside Jane Russell as Dorothy Shaw.
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Monroe's pink dress for "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" has been referenced throughout the years. But it's the ivory flowy dress that Monroe wears over a subway grate in The Seven Year Itch that made film history and was ranked number one by Ms Mojo.
William Travilla was the costume designer of the Billy Wilder movie. The white dress has a cinched waist, a pleated skirt, and a halter top.
Photographer Sam Shaw came up with the idea after he already shot a sailor and a girl playing in a Coney Island wind tunnel in 1940, according to Biography. The photographer's granddaughter, Melissa Stevens revealed how the scene was captured.
"Most people also don't know there were two separate shoots," she said. "One was a publicity event in New York where a large crowd of bystanders and the press were invited to create hype." This probably helped promote the movie, but wasn't usable.
"The noise of the crowd rendered the film footage unusable and Billy Wilder reshot the scene on a closed soundstage in Los Angeles," Stevens continued. "Only my grandfather, the set photographer, was allowed into the studio."
Debbie Reynolds bought the dress in hopes of opening a museum. It was later sold to a private collector.
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This story was originally published April 21, 2026 at 2:17 PM.