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PARIS — Spotlights lit up the catwalk Wednesday at Jean Paul Gaultier's haute couture show, steeped in old-fashioned Hollywood glamour and paying tribute to screen sirens like Jane Russell and Ava Gardner.
Gaultier sent out glamazon variations on his signature pieces — trench coats, second-skin dresses with sheer paneling and menswear suits.
A model in a sharp-shouldered pantsuit in black wool was channeling Katherine Hepburn between takes. A gold sequin-covered hourglass halterdress was screaming Jane Russell's name.
Actor Mickey Rourke said it was a treat to see the kind of Hollywood glamour that "went out the door 30 years ago."
"They're making a different kind of movie now, unfortunately," said Rourke, an '80s superstar who made his comeback with "The Wrestler."
Gaultier, the one-time enfant terrible of French fashion, gave some of the looks his signature humorous twist.
Reams of film were wrapped around one model's shoulders like a shawl. A bodysuit looked like the offspring of a trenchcoat and a swimsuit.
And the bride — the look that traditionally closes the wildly expensive made-to-measure couture shows — was just plain bizarre. In a mini dress made from what looked like plastic bags filled with gold sequins, she wore a veil draped over a cone on top of her head. Black and white close-ups of '50s-era movie stars were projected onto the veil.
