(HARLOW, Jean) (1911-37)
Price: $175.00
Description:American actor known for her portrayal of “bad girl” characters. She was the leading sex symbol of the 1930s and one of the defining figures of the pre-Code era of American cinema.
EPH – Ephemera – First edition book Harlow In Hollywood, The Blonde Bombshell in the Glamour Capital, 1928-37. Published by Angel City Press, 2011. Full color and black and white photographer. Hardcover, near mint. Signed by photographer Mark A. Viera and editor Darrell Rooney. Numerous
It has long been rumored that actress Harlow died due to failure of her mother to seek proper medical intervention. Mama Jean was a lifelong Christian Scientist and opposed most professional medical advice. Nevertheless, in her final few weeks of life, Harlow was attended to by several physicians which contradicts the conspiracy theories. One thing is certain, Mama Jean was overly protective of her daughter and managed much of her affairs.
Her first major role was in Howard Hughes’ Hell’s Angels. After a series of critically failed films, and Hughes’ loss of interest in Harlow’s career, MGM bought out Harlow’s contract in 1932 and cast her in leading roles in a string of hits built on her comedic talent. Harlow’s popularity rivaled and then surpassed that of MGM’s top leading ladies Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo and Norma Shearer. She died at the age of 26 of kidney failure while filming Saratoga. MGM completed the film with the use of body doubles and released it less than two months after her death. It became MGM’s most successful film of 1937 as well as the highest-grossing film of Harlow’s career.