Style
Shortly after opening a lighting showroom in 1955 on Melrose Place in Los Angeles, Morris began adding her own furniture designs to round out the offerings. Initially these furniture collections drew upon the Spanish Colonial look with dark woods, large carved scrollwork and baroque elements as well as other Mediterranean-inspired styles. As the 1960s approached, Morris included more modern styles using lacquer and exotic finishes and materials and moved to a larger showroom on nearby Beverly Boulevard in 1961. The "swinging sixties" fueled by a youth culture fascinated with music, fashion and alternative arts and religions ushered in a freer social attitude towards lifestyles which gave Morris and others in the design profession an opportunity to shake up the interior design world (which still relied heavily on English and Colonial American influences) with her distinctive vision of how colorful and eclectic interiors could be.
A typical Morris room setting during the mid-1960s would find Asian, African and Pop Art accessories and objets d'art commingling with often large or over-scaled furniture. All together, this created a look that defined Morris' style which brought international attention to high-profile residential interiors and hotel projects where her pieces were used. Bright colors, large patterns and bold designs were devices favored by Morris to make a design statement wherever possible. "I'm a designer's designer," she told The Globe and Mail in 1961., alluding to her role as a source of furnishings to the top interior designers in the industry. Over the course of time, Morris developed a loyal following among interior designers and prominent figures on the Los Angeles arts and culture scene.
Becoming more entrenched in the social world of Los Angeles and Hollywood as her fame grew, Morris befriended many in the show business community and counted Joan Crawford, Lucille Ball, Gypsy Rose Lee, Liberace, Joan Collins, Regis Philbin and author Harold Robbins, to name a few, as part of her inner circle. And so impressive were Morris' parties at both her Beverly Hills home and her Los Angeles showroom that Town & Country magazine wrote "Certainly this was THE top party of the holiday season," referring to a 1966 soiree at Morris' 17-room manse. Many Hollywood film fans would have relished being at the Morris showroom in 1970 when Joan Crawford stopped in to look for artwork for her home. Morris offered the screen legend a Coca-Cola. The following day, 20 cases of Pepsi-Cola arrived at the Phyllis Morris showroom with a note from Crawford saying "Pour all those Cokes down the drain."
During personal appearances and media interviews, Morris would offer provocative quips or do something seemingly outrageous which provided never-ending material for the press and often made headlines around the globe. The Toronto Daily Star ran a photo of Morris wearing a mink coat backwards in public which "shocked the other women" of Toronto noted reporter Penny Longley on Morris' first-ever visit to the Canadian city. Morris casually referred to the coat as her "mink muu muu." Among her many eyebrow-raising quotes: "Twin beds have no place in a happy marriage, but separate bedrooms have and "Minimalism is for those without much to say." When it came to talking about herself, Morris was always forthcoming but with a sense of humor. "I don't think anyone in our family is hurt by the fact that I don't scrub floors or peel potatoes," she told Home Furnishings Daily. "As a matter of fact, they'd rather I wouldn't because I'm so bad at housekeeping.
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