Hughes connection to the late Mr. Blackwell

There's almost always a Hughes connection. I'm a little tardy in posting this one, but it's worth noting anyway.

The famous Mr. Blackwell, critic of celebrity fashion, died last month in Los Angeles at age 86. Blackwell became famous in the 1960s for his annual "worst dressed" lists that skewered some of the world's great stars, including, in the early days, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren and Elizabeth Taylor, and more recently, Paris Hilton and Britney Spears.

Mr. Blackwell was born Richard Selzer in 1922 in Brooklyn, N.Y. He started out as an actor on Broadway, then moved to Los Angeles to break into the movies. In 1949, he was cast by Howard Hughes for a role in the movie "Vendetta." According to the Los Angeles Times, referencing Blackwell's autobiography:

"He credited aviation entrepreneur and movie producer Howard Hughes with changing his name to Richard Blackwell. Hughes cast him in ‘Vendetta' and chose the new name to sound ‘theatrical, polished, memorable,' Blackwell wrote."

Ironically, Blackwell's scenes didn't make it into the movie. But while the movie was being made, Blackwell met Robert Spencer, a hairdresser, and they became business partners. They formed a talent agency and Blackwell designed dresses for the female singers they handled. The dress designs were so well received that Spencer and Blackwell, who also had a personal relationship, closed the talent agency and opened a fashion firm called Mr. Blackwell that operated until the mid-1970s. Blackwell also designed costumes for Las Vegas entertainers.

The name change prompted by Hughes played a significant role in the future career of Mr. Blackwell. It's another case of Hughes doing something, inadvertent or otherwise, that had unintended consequences, in this case positive.