In the series "They were doing fashion tech ahead of their time",  Robby is the first smart dispenser of turnkey outfits in the history of sci-fi cinema. A Swiss army knife for vintage fashion & beauty tech, in short.

By Ludmilla Intravaia

“Robby, I must have a new dress. Right away !" One may live on Altaïr V, light years from the earth, but still want to be elegant. And the pretty Altaïra, star of the movie Forbidden Planet, knows what she wants: "The loviest, softest thing you ever made, with lots and lots of star sapphires." 

“I will run the dress up for you in time for breakfast”, promises her faithful servant, Robby, the robot. And in fact, the American actress Anne Francis was never in shortage of outfits as futuristic as they are delectable, in the famous science fiction film, released in the USA on March 15, 1956 (images below : ©MGM)

No doubt, the diligent android can do it all: synthesizing dresses set with precious stones for galactic evenings, cooking, cleaning, grabbing heavy loads as well as delicately arranging flowers, according to the strict rules of ikebana. Best of all, he's programmed to adhere to Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics, which is to say he's highly frequentable. Completly dedicated to its work, Robby takes on the roles of butler, hairdresser, personal shopper, secretary (non exhaustive list), for his mistress, let's face it, a bit demanding (images below: ©MGM).

Thanks to him, Altaïra never goes out without her little wool, as we say in French. 

Quite simply, his Swiss army knife qualities have made Robby go down in history as the real iconic character of this Forbidden Planet by Fred Wilcox and for Le Boudoir Numérique as the first smart couturier of the fashion tech imaginary. Below, Robby in his works, in the extract of the movie when Altaïra asks him a “eye proof” dress.

* Continue reading in this new section "Old school fashion tech" from Le Boudoir Numérique:

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- The gabardine-gadget of Louis de Funès in Fantômas

- Catherine Deneuve’s colour of the weather dress in the movie Donkey Skin

- Who signed the luminous outfit of Claude François in the song Reste?

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