Liza Minnelli's Oscar Dress

To talk about Liza Minnelli’s Oscar dress is to talk about friendship.

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Because Liza's Oscar look was designed by one of her nearest and dearest: Halston.

Halston was an American fashion designer whose designs are synonymous with the 1970s. If you picture any iconic look from that era—from Studio 54 to the discos and nightclubs and hip fashion, you’re probably thinking of a Halston look.

And Liza was one of his best friends. In 1990, after his death from AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma, Liza gave an interview to WWD where she spoke of their longstanding friendship: “I met him when I was 20. From that time, I never did a show or went to a party—or threw one—without him guiding me. Every show I did, I performed in his living room first. In him there was tastefulness, style and simplicity.”

And when she means that he guided her in everything, that also meant Cabaret, the 1972 musical film for which she won her only Oscar. Halston was her uncredited costumer on the shoot after she didn’t like any of the initial offerings.

So it made sense that when the Oscars ceremony came around Liza would wear something designed by Halston. I mean, that’d be like telling Cher that she couldn’t wear Bob Mackie; or splitting up Audrey Hepburn and Hubert de Givenchy. You don’t mess with perfection, and Liza and Halston were a perfect pair.

And on Oscar night, Liza sat in the audience with her father, Oscar-winning director Vincente Minnelli, wearing his favourite colour: yellow.

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 “It was like a t-shirt collar to the ground, straight down, and a sweater made of crepe, same as the dress,” Liza told Variety in 2020. “My father’s favorite color was yellow and I wore that and jewelry that Halston had picked for me that night. I said to my dad, ‘Do I look alright?’ he said, ‘You look perfect because you’re not overdressed and you’re not underdressed.’”

When her name was called, Vincente screamed his joy into her ear. She told Interview magazine in 2024: “He screamed so loud in my ear I had tinnitus that never went away.”

After the Oscars, Liza and Halston continued with their personal and professional friendship. At the fashion battle royale in Paris, where American designers ‘faced off’ against French designers for the ultimate fashion show, Liza joined Halston for the American side’s show, singing ‘Bonjour Paris’ to the crowd.

In 2018, Liza auctioned off many of her personal belongings—and some belonging to her famous parents—in a Heritage Auction sale called ‘Love, Liza’ and one of the many clothing pieces available for sale was her Oscar dress.

The “sunflower yellow ensemble by Halston” included the dress and buttonless jacket, though the skirt had been altered from its previous ankle-length to a shorter hem. Heritage Auctions said it was in fine condition, and it ultimately sold on July 30, 2018, for $6,332.90.