Chanel (Gabrielle Coco Chanel) Art Deco Celeste brooch in white gold, diamonds and pearls, 1932.
Harold Lloyd’s famous clock scene in Safety Last! (1923)
Judy Garland
Paul Newman as Brick Pollitt CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (1958), dir. Richard Brooks
JEAN HARLOW & MARIE DRESSLER in DINNER AT EIGHT — 1933, dir. George Cukor
they need to let me make movies
very late 50s early 60s movies are some of the most fascinating historical texts on earth i stg. like they can finally talk almost explicitly about sex, and they’ve finally thrown out the pair of twin beds for a normal queen or whatever, and they can talk about heterosexuality (inherently implies homosexuality)(like in auntie mame). they’re ALMOST there. you can literally feel the film industry grasping and clawing it’s way out of the hays era with every successive movie. it’s pretty incredible actually. and if you really want to feel that exertion just pick a couple of movies from various points in the decade and watch them in chronological order and the change is so astounding. can you imagine being there for that. can you imagine living through 40s movies and suddenly after wwii, the studios start collapsing and a huge tonal shift happens, and things get darker and grimmer and suddenly movies are talking about racism and women’s postwar discontent. and then oh my god it’s 1952 and censorship is suddenly kind of up in the air for the first time but you can’t even focus on that because marlon brando just swaggered onto your silver screen in his sweaty tee, chewing with his mouth open, and you see blanche get raped. and then immediately after that, deborah kerr is lying on top of burt lancaster and really really making out with him like they might as well have been having real sex up there. and don’t look now but dorothy dandridge was just nominated for an leading oscar!!!! what!!!! and all the girls are crazy for sidney poitier and harry belafonte ETC ETC ETC ETC until like the mid 60s when the whole everything is just completely utterly unrecognizable
JEAN HARLOW in DINNER AT EIGHT — 1933, dir. George Cukor
Orson Welles.
Propaganda
Elizabeth Taylor (Cleopatra, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof)—iconic actress with purple eyes and a double row of eyelashes, the real ebony dementia ravenway of old hollywood. known for her stunning tastes when it comes to jewelry and her incredible, incredible advocacy during the AIDS crisis.
Clara Bow (Wings, It)—The original It Girl (literally), Clara was the epitome of a flapper film star. She was obviously a looker, but it was her acting that won over hearts. Watch the movie It (no clowns) to get a sense of her charms. And while she's most known for her silents, (including Wings, the winner of the first ever Best Picture Academy award) she did make some talkies! Contrary to popular belief, sound films didn't ruin her career; she reportedly just hated the process of making them. She had a really interesting background and it's a shame she's not as well remembered as others of her time.
This is round 3 of the tournament. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. Please reblog with further support of your beloved hot sexy vintage woman.
[additional propaganda submitted under the cut.]
Elizabeth Taylor:
I've been trying to steer clear of the absurdly-big names, but damnit, those violet eyes got me. The *talent*, the *presence*, the string of marriages and (temporally out-of-bounds) work in combating AIDS and pioneering in the concept of the celebrity fragrance line.
Not only did she have gorgeous violet eyes and lashes for days and one of the hottest voices ever, she was also a big supporter of the gay community
Child actress turned starlet, Liz dominated films as one of the greatest screen legends of classic hollywood. If your protagonist has violet eyes, they're imitating hers.
A Legend. She was serving milf rage in Whos Afraid Of Virginia Woolf. A Star in every sense of the word.
She was renowned for the beauty of her eyes; they were a dark blue but could look violet in certain lighting, something that photographers would actually touch up to look even more so in pictures. But even more striking was a genetic mutation that gave her a double row of eyelashes. She was also famed for her string of husbands -- 8 marriages to 7 men. Two-time hubby Richard Burton once said she was “a wildly exciting love-mistress… beautiful beyond the dreams of pornography.”
Her EYES. Early and loud support for gay rights and AIDS victims. Married a bunch of hot dudes, Burton twice!
just look at her. she's gorgeous. there's a video somewhere of her applying her eyeliner in the mirror and I think about it all the time
THE Hollywood actress of all time. Not only was she known for her long dark locks and blue-violet eyes, she also had one of the wildest life stories ever….. She’s Carrie Fisher’s stepmother because her father Eddie Fisher cheated on Debbie Reynolds with Liz. She was knighted as a dame of England. She was married to seven different men, one of them twice. She was also very kindhearted and did a lot of charity activism.
Asides from being an iconic actor, she did a lot of philanthropy and co founded the American Foundation for AIDS research. She’s sometimes considered one of the last great stars of old hollywood
Clara Bow:
The original it girl! Flapper icon! She's sooo fun and charming and confident, it just shines through any film or picture you see of her.
I love love love her genderbendy boy style and her cute twinkly performances!! watch wings i s2g she absolutely brings it
She has gorgeous doe eyes, how can you not love her?
She's literally THE It Girl. Like actually, she's the term's namesake. She was an extremely prolific silent film actress with a reputation for wild behavior who defined the 20s flapper era. Her boyish frame, androgynous style, and red curly hair were widely emulated.