This post originally appears on the website of Happily Ever After
Doug James – JDJ International, Inc.
Doug James is the owner and creator of the C.E.D. and “S” Series lines of 19-inch fashion dolls and the 16 inch Somers and Field line including Willow and Daisy and Violett and Gabby fashion dolls now in resin.
Doug’s entry into the fashion doll world was completely unexpected. . .
He graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a degree in Theatre Arts; the study of acting, directing, costume and set design. At the time he assumed any design work would be in a larger scale rather than smaller.
Moving to Manhattan after graduation Doug used a variety of his many talents. He worked at the Julliard School of the Arts in the costume department as well as for the Brooks-Van Horn Costume Co. He spent two seasons as Artistic Director for the Shady Lane Playhouse, a professional theatre company outside of Chicago.
Back in New York Doug created millinery (and still does) for the Broadway stage for such plays as: Phantom of the Opera, Will Roger’s Follies, Guys and Dolls, Nine, Candida, Streetcar Named Desire, St. Joan, Beauty and the Beast, and recently for Aladdin.
For several years Doug worked with John Noble at the Museum of the City of New York restoring antique French fashion doll clothing. He made four one-of-a-kind dolls that were exhibited there. He taught theatrical millinery for graduate and undergraduate students at Rutgers University for over ten years.
Doug works on film as a costumer and milliner. Among his movies are Mona Lisa Smile with Julia Roberts, Kevin Costner’s Wyatt Earp, Wolf with Jack Nickolson, Guarding Tess with Shirley Maclaine, Sabrina, A Muppet Christmas Carol, Muppet Treasure Island, Muppets from Space, The Good Shepherd with Angelina Jolie and Matt Damon, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty with Ben Stiller, The Muppets with Jason Segel, and the recently released Muppets Most Wanted with Tina Fey.
Doug is an Assistant Wardrobe Director on Saturday Night Live and regularly works on PBS’s Sesame Street, plus the Late Night show with Seth Meyers, and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. He is a two-time Emmy award winner for his work in television.
In the fashion doll and collectible doll world, Doug has produced award-winning designs for the Gene doll for the Ashton-Drake Company. He has also designed for the Madam Alexander, Knickerbocker, Horsman, and Integrity doll companies.
Doug’s company is called JDJ International, Inc. JDJ International came into being over 14 years ago. It has a rich, prolific and award-winning history. JDJ International has two divisions. Learn more about the beginnings of the Fashion Doll Division. Learn more about our Theatrical Millinery Division.
At this point, Doug has created over a dozen fashion doll characters in well over sixty different “editions” in four different fashion doll lines accompanied by a vast assortment of costumes and accessories plus a variety of fashion doll one-of-a-kinds.
Along with solid U.S. sales, he has also developed an active international market. Some dolls have been award-winning. Both C.E.D. and “S” Series fashion dolls have appeared in unique venues like the Bloomingdale Holiday Windows in New York. C.E.D. doll Claire graced a CD album cover for a popular techno-rock musical group.
