Costume Designer. She received much acclaim as an American film costume designer in the first half of the 20th century. In 1924 she was hired to replace the retiring "Mother" of design, Lucia Coulter. Eventually, as the Head Costume Designer for Universal Studios, she produced mainly female lead roles costumes for nearly 400 movies from 1928 through 1947. Her debut film for Universal Studios, "The Man Who Laughs" was in 1928. First, she was noted for her costumes during the Golden Age of Horror movies, such as "The Bride of Frankenstein" in 1935 and "Dracula," with the leading lady wearing a suit or business dress in the first scene, then an evening gown in the next, and the last scene "something" white such as a bride's dress or a night gown. Not limited to horror movies, she designed costumes for dramas, mysteries, and even a few comedies. She became famous for her silky, form-fitting gowns with the movie credits and dress labels simply reading "Vera." Little is known about her early years; while one source states her birth state was New York, a couple of census records document Vera F. West's birth state as Pennsylvania. She trained at the Philadelphia School of Design and went to New York City where she was mentored by British couturier Lady Duff-Gordon under the label of "Lucile." She held one of the first runaway presentations to show her designs. After successfully designing clothes for a group of elite, wealthy clients just off 5th Avenue, she lost her position for some reason. There has been published speculations on the reason: a crime was committed, an illicit romance, or an illegitimate birth. At this point, she headed west for Hollywood where she found success for twenty years with Universal Studios. In 1946 she left the studio to open her own boutique in the Beverly Wilshire Hotel catering to the wives of those in the film industry. Her last film was "The Egg and I," which was released in March of 1947, but she was not listed in the credits. The circumstances of her death adds to her notoriety with the media coverage. According to her obituary and other newspaper articles, she drowned wearing only a nightgown in her swimming pool the day after her 47th birthday. She was found at 3 AM by a photographer who was renting her guest house. There were two notes left addressed to "Jack Chandler" stating that she had been blackmailed for twenty-three years and death was the only way to end it. She did not name the blackmailer or the reason. Even though her death was ruled a suicide, many believe that she may have been murdered. She was married to Jacques "Jack" West, a salesman for a cosmetic firm, who was out of town at the time of her death. Shortly, after her death, he demolished their custom-built home, sold the land, and then vanished. He also stated he knew of no money missing from their accounts that could have been used to pay a blackmailer. She was inducted to the Costume Designer Guild Hall of Fame in 2005.