Biography
Ruth Morley was an Austrian-born American costume designer. Born Ruth Miriam Birnholz on 19 November 1925 in Vienna, she fled Austria as a child on a Kindertransport and later settled in New York. She began her career in theatre and opera, working on Broadway productions from 1951, including Billy Budd, and serving as costume director for the New York City Opera.
Morley moved into film and television, designing costumes for The Hustler (1961), The Miracle Worker (1962), Taxi Driver (1976), Annie Hall (1977), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), Tootsie (1982) and Ghost (1990). She received an Academy Award nomination for The Miracle Worker and a BAFTA nomination for Tootsie. She also designed for several stage and television productions starring Dustin Hoffman.
She died on 12 February 1991 in the Bronx, New York, aged 65. Morley was posthumously inducted into the Costume Designers Guild Hall of Fame in 2005.
