John Mollo

John Mollo (18 March 1931 – 25 October 2017) was a British costume designer and writer on the history of the military uniform. He created the costumes for the first two installments of the Star Wars original film trilogy. Mollo was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design twice, for Star Wars (1977) and Gandhi (1982), winning both times.

Mollo was born in London on 18 March 1931. His father was Eugene Simonovitch Mollo, a Russian immigrant who had escaped Russia in the 1920s, and his mother was Ella Clara Mollo (née Cockell). Eugene Mollo had started his own company that specialised in spraying cement. He was a collector of tin soldiers and military insignia and he wrote a book, Russian Military Swords, 1801–1917. Eugene was also a noted illustrator, and some of his drawings are now held in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. John Mollo followed his father's interest in military history and developed a particular interest in military uniforms from a very young age. He recalled being especially inspired when he saw the 1935 film Clive of India as a child and returned home from the cinema to draw the costume of King George II. John Mollo was educated at Charterhouse School and then went on to study at the Farnham School of Art in Surrey. After World War II, he was conscripted to do his national service in the King's Shropshire Light Infantry in Hong Kong.

Mollo subsequently moved into costume design. For his first film, Mollo unexpectedly found himself wo…