I owe a lot of my sewing ability to Nancy Zieman, of Sewing with Nancy fame. I’d religiously watch it on WHYY (Philadelphia’s public television station) every Saturday afternoon in the late 80′s and early 90′s (sadly, I had to give it up when grad school got in the way of my television viewing pleasure). Since we didn’t have cable television with the myriad of sewing experts, it was the only sewing show I could watch.
I wish I had started watching PBS during the 70′s. If I had, I would have discovered “Sew What’s New” with George Trippon. I just learned about him this week while reading the vintage board at Pattern Review. And the most disheartening aspect of just learning about him is that he had a design school just over the hill from where I grew up and had worked in the entertainment industry as a costumer designer before and after The War.
He wrote some sewing related books–Let’s Design, Cut, Sew, and Fit With George W. Trippon, Becoming a Dress Designer: What Every Designer Should Know, and Sewing Tricks ‘n’ Treats–that are hard to find and go for well over $100 if you can find them. He passed away in January so his books are even harder to come by right now.
I don’t know about you, but I always feel a little sad when I discover someone or something….just a little too late.
Did you know about him already?
Here is a promotional tape of “Sew What’s New:”
No, I had not heard of Mr. Trippon prior to this posting. I had never heard of the PBS program, Sew What’s New, but then, I live in Idaho / eastern Washington where PBS was in infancy in the ’70s — and still struggles today.
Why is it that we have not heard of Mr. Trippon? Did he impart true knowledge and show us skills — or was he just entertaining? Or perhaps he was ahead of his time. I don’t think it’s too late to be a fan. If there’s demand for his books and videos, perhaps someone will republish them so that more of us can afford them. I can understand your sadness, though. I felt as if dear friends had passed when when Henry Mancini and Jim Henson died.
You know, I try to watch instructional programming, but it makes me feel inferior. Maybe I need an attitude adjustment, but I have trouble relating. I’d rather do it myself than watch an expert whose work may or may not relate to my self-expression.
Many experts, some of them unknown and unsung, have passed from our scene. I think of Mary Brooks Picken, about whom little is known, who established the Woman’s Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences. I think it’s a fertile field and we have just scratched the surface. Adding one George Trippon to my list.
I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. Thank you for making my day a little brighter. I never heard of him – I wonder if it’s possible to get copies of his programs?
I hadn’t heard of George Trippon before – so thanks for sharing such a wonderful video. I’ve since watched all that’s available on Youtube. I miss your podcasts. Please come back soon.
Gosh, I’ve never heard of him, either. We must not have received his program here in TX. Sure loved the clip you provided. I’d love to see how much real sewing was involved each program… the laughs are great!