Part Three - The Merch!

Hansford returned to the U.K. with the Estate's permission to begin marketing the Travilla name in various products, including greeting cards, craft supplies, and upscale ladies' watches. The Estate received more publicity when Suzie Kennedy, the London-based lookalike, borrowed the gold lame gown for her November 2009 Apollo Theater appearance in Bonnie Greer's Marilyn and Ella. That same month I returned to Palm Springs to photograph the remaining inventory of sketches. Unfortunately, nearly one thousand had water and mold damage due to improper storage in a closet, decreasing the income potential.

As 2009 moved into 2010, the goal of reviving the Travilla brand was coming to fruition. Quite good, Andrew relished being the "face of Travilla" and all that came with it while appearing at various venues, functions or with the media. We gabbed for hours on Skype, discussing his upcoming appearance on the British version of HSN or the adventures and clownery setting up the dresses at a pop-up shop in the closed Harrod's Department Store. I mainly concentrated on researching and acquiring items to fill in gaps for an expanded exhibition.

During my March birthday week, I met Suzie Kennedy and a friend at a Las Vegas Celebrity Look-a-Like convention at the Stratosphere. Giorgio and Greg Silva drove up from Palm Springs to hang out for a night, which was my opportunity to speak with Dimakis alone. We walked around the hotel and I explained how Travilla's talents were more than just Marilyn and needed to be shared with the world. He listened, but I also knew he had trust issues, having been burned many times before. I gave my word that I would never.

Greg Silva, Giorgio Dimakis and myself in Las Vegas March 2010.

Fully involved now, it soon became a struggle as relationships fell apart between Hansford and Silva, Dimakis and Hansford, and then Dimakis and Silva. Giorgio claimed that he and Bill didn't see any money from these projects or exhibits. It seems finances were tight for the couple. However, they'd soon sell their Rancho Mirage home for just over a million dollars, offering a brief reprise.

To my knowledge, these two projects were the only ones that came to fruition. Barely into 2010, Joshua Greene's enthusiasm for the Estate wained, killing the negotiations with the casinos, and he soon vanished back to the Oregon coast.