The hardships which were caused by a world at war dictated the fashions of the 1940s. Once again Hollwood had a major influence of the style of everyday women who were encoraged to look good despite rationing and shortages to keep up morale.
Brooklyn-born Tierney was a leading actress in 1940s Hollywood. She started out her adult life as a socialite, before becoming bored with the social scene and pursuing a career as a stage actress (her family thought being a ‘proper’ actress was more respectable than being in the movies). Her Broadway career started in a pretty(…)
I’ve had a lot of interest in the photographs I posted yesterday of the female Nazi concentration camp guards of Bergen-Belsen* and the sentences they all received. *Bergen-Belsen is the concentration camp where Anne Frank died – I didn’t realize that until today. A few of you wondered about the back-stories of these women and(…)
These are photos of the female prison camp guards which were taken after the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen Nazi concentration camp.while they were awaiting trail in 1945. Their sentences ranged from a few short years imprisonment to the death sentence. Here’s an interesting challenge, see if you can guess just by looking at the photos(…)
When you think of 1940s fashion, you probably think of tailored looks, tea dresses, victory rolls and red lipstick (even after makeup the had run out), but fashions were very different in Nazi Germany. Hitler had a very specific idea of how women should look. He even created a German Fashion Board, the Deutsches Modeamt(…)
Judy Garland is one of those movie stars that everyone is aware of, even if it’s just becaue they watch The Wizard of Oz every Christmas (surely everyone has seen that movie, haven’t they?). Everyone remembers the happy, talented girl on screen, but not so many are aware of the tragedy of her life which was filled(…)
I came across this photo of Marilyn doing her lipstick from 1948 while I was looking for a photo of her to use in my Paper Doll post yesterday, and I thought it was just charming! I love all the little drawings of lip shapes on the wall behind her too! The caption that goes(…)
I hope you don’t think these photos are too macabre, but there’s something terribly poignant about seeing these ordinary domestic scenes which have been turned upside down by a tragedy or a moment of rage. Somehow the fact that the pictures are in black and white makes them more interesting, perhaps it gives them a(…)
An actor or actress dying suddenly during the filming of a movie can either make it a huge success of cause enormous problems (like Oliver Reed dying during the filming of Gladiator). Here are 9 classic Hollywood movies which either the star died suddenly on-set or was murdered/committed suicide during production. Marilyn Monroe: “Something’s Got(…)
This week I once again stuck with my Thriller / Film Noir theme and watched The Dark Mirror, a dark psychological drama about the rivalry between two twins: one good and one evil and murderous. When a man is murdered a girl was identified leaving the scene. The girl turns out to be one of(…)
I took a break from Hitchcock movies and delved into the world of 1940s Film Noir this week. ‘Caught‘ is ‘The Story of a Desperate Girl’ who gets herself trapped in a marriage to a controlling sadistic husband but then ultimately falls for James Mason (who wouldn’t?). It’s the first movie James Mason made in(…)
Gable started out in Hollywood playing bit-parts in silent movies in the mid 1920s and starred in his first starring role in 1931 in The Painted Desert opposite leading lady Helen Twelvetrees. The movie that really catapulted him to fame was Red Dust (which I reviewed last week)Â where his rough and ready sex appeal(…)
There’s little more fascinating than looking at stars back when they were ‘normal people’. Even Marilyn Monroe looked like any other girl before she dyed her hair, had plastic surgery and changed her name. The other transformation as equally interesting. Who do you think has changed the most? Marilyn before she was famous (above) and(…)
During World War 2, the American Magazine for GI’s (called YANK would you believe?) featured a number of fabulous pin-ups to help boost morale of the troops. Many were big cinema stars like Rita Hayworth, Betty Grable and Ingrid Bergman (waving below) but, however famous, all of them were fabulous.
It’s spring, and so of course my thoughts have returned to Paris, the beautiful city of blossom and boulevards, baguettes and bicyclette *sigh*. But Paris has always had a certain charm it was a very different place when Zeppelins were in the sky or there were German soldiers on the streets. Take a look at(…)
Adrian Adolph Greenberg, better known as just ‘Adrian’ was one of the most amazing costume designers ever seen in Hollywood. He was MGM’s head costume designer from 1928 and 1941 and designed the costumes for over 250 movies during the 1930s and 40s. Remember Dorothy’s iconic glittering ruby slippers in the Wizard of Oz? Well(…)
There were some great movie actors around in the 1940s, it truly was the golden age of cinema! Here are my top 10 leading men of that decade – have I missed anyone crucial out? 1. Humphrey Bogart Bogart was ranked the greatest male movie star in history by the American Film Institute, and he(…)
Stars were having nips, tucks and predominantly nose-jobs from as early as the 1930s. It’s not well-documented as the stars who had succesful surgery rarely owned up to it, and those who had less successful surgery (like Mary Pickford who was rumoured to have damaged facial muscles after an early facelift) just faded from public(…)
Italian fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli was one of the most influential designers of the early 20th Century. Along with her great rival Coco Chanel, she transformed womens fashions during the 1920s and 30s and is famous for her ‘fashion-as-art’ dresses. She collaborated with artists and surrealists including Jean Cocteau and Salvador Dali to create amazing(…)