“I have a different look every year,” says art deco collector Steve Starr. “If you go out in the world and even if you know everything and don’t have style, nobody will talk to you. Style is the culmination of everything inside of you.”
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Starr, owner of the vintage boutique Steve Starr Studios, has a personal collection of over 950 photos of icons of style, such as Rita Hayworth, Hedy Lamarr, and Greer Garson. They’re mounted in authentic deco frames and hung on the walls of his Lincoln Avenue store, but neither the photos nor the frames, which Starr has been collecting for years, are for sale. The store does, however, offer an abundance of jewelry and accessories from the golden age of glamour: rhinestone pins, bracelets, and necklaces; rings set with semiprecious stones; compacts encrusted with crystals. He’s got vanity mirrors, cocktail shakers, martini glasses, men’s watches, and a glittering array of perfume bottles. And while a few high-ticket items might cost several hundred dollars, many are priced between $45 and $55. “People who need to spend more to feel good are either stupid or naive,” Starr says. “It doesn’t mean it’s better if it costs more.”
Starr stopped producing in 1974, then in ’78 decided to try again with a bowling-themed extravaganza at the Auditorium Theatre. “Everything went wrong,” he says. “The photographer couldn’t come. The seats were messed up and oversold. I thought maybe I had a curse. There was a huge, monstrous snowstorm. The set or sound guy was in an accident and never made it….I was so depressed. Someone sent me roses sprayed black.”
Art accompanying story in printed newspaper (not available in this archive): photos/Cynthia Howe.
