Morgan Fairchild's 1985 Golden Globes Look Is One Of Her Most Underrated Red Carpet Moments

Depending on your age, you might know Morgan Fairchild for different reasons. The actor, who turned 76 in 2026, may be on your radar for her turns in "Dallas" and "Falcon Crest" in the late '70s and early '80s. Or as Chandler's mom on "Friends." Or any of her numerous soap opera stints, Hallmark Christmas movies, or guest roles on sitcoms in more recent years. If you didn't know her from the 1980s, it's worth a look back at some of her style choices, because they are peak '80s ultra-glam fashion, with elements that could still work today. One such outfit is the dress she wore to the 1985 Golden Globe Awards, where she was a presenter alongside Elliott Gould. We think this glamour-meets-Western gown is one of her most underrated looks.

Mediapunch/Getty

The dress in question was a one-shoulder design that featured beaded fringe at the bust and along the asymmetrical hemline. While some Western style trends are firmly outdated in 2026, others, like subtle fringe, are as hot now as they were back in the '80s when Fairchild rocked it on her Globes gown. She liked this white creation so much, she wore it to the Princess Grace Foundation Awards later that year, making her one of the OG celebrities who re-wore outfits on multiple red carpets. 

Although fashion historians define the style trends of an era after the fact, it isn't as if the calendar flips over to a new decade and there's a sudden shift. For example, the relaxed minimalism of the 1990s, characterized by slip dresses and low-rise jeans, gradually progressed beyond things people actually found attractive in the '80s — big, colorful, maximalism at its best. And if actor Morgan Fairchild is anything to go by, that loud vibe was still going strong in the early part of the decade.

At a party in L.A. in 1990, the actor went bold in her black-and-gold 'fit. The mixing of stripes and a bow pattern went together because they were done with coordinated colors. And the shoulder pads worked with the high, nipped-in waistline to give her an hourglass silhouette. The following year, at the AFI Lifetime Achievement Awards in Beverly Hills, she again went dramatic with her emerald-green shift dress loaded with layered necklaces.

Like her underrated moment from the 1985 Globes, these are two more examples of fashion elements that can translate to today. Would we wear these exact outfits? No. But we love the idea of mixing patterns, which is easily achieved by working within the same color family, and we love the layered necklaces, a look that feels very current.