Old Hollywood Film Stars by Edward Steichen

Edward Jean Steichen (1879 – 1973) was an American photographer, painter, and art gallery and museum curator.

Steichen was the most frequently featured photographer in Alfred Stieglitz’ groundbreaking magazine Camera Work during its run from 1903 to 1917. Together Stieglitz and Steichen opened the Little Galleries of the Photo-Secession, which eventually became known as 291 after its address.

His photos of gowns for the magazine Art et Décoration in 1911 are regarded as the first modern fashion photographs ever published. From 1923 to 1938, Steichen was a photographer for the Condé Nast magazines Vogue and Vanity Fair while also working for many advertising agencies includingJ. Walter Thompson. During these years, Steichen was regarded as the best known and highest paid photographer in the world. In 1944, he directed the war documentary The Fighting Lady, which won the 1945 Academy Award for Best Documentary.

After World War II, Steichen was Director of the Department of Photography at New York’s Museum of Modern Art until 1962. While at MoMA, he curated and assembled the exhibit The Family of Man, which was seen by nine million people

Gloria Swanson by Edward Steichen, 1924 via

Anna Mae Wong by Edward Steichen, 1931 via

Marlene Dietrich by Edward Steichen, 1932 via

Joan Crawford by Edward Steichen via

Lillian Gish by Edward Steichen, 1934 via

Greta Garbo by Edward Steichen, 1928 via

Old Hollywood Photos by Irving “Lippy” Lippman

Irving Isadore Lippman (1906 – 2006) was born in Edendale, California to Samuel and Celia Lippman, who emigrated from Russia in the late 1800’s. “Lippy,” as he was affectionately called spent 60 years in the film industry beginning as a sixteen-year old assistant camerman on a silent era comedy directed by Fatty Arbuckle in 1922 for $25 per week.

Lippman held various jobs and titles during his tenure in the business from still photographer and film director to cinematographer. He photographed and caught on film such beauties as Mae West, Rita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe, Joan Crawford, Ginger Rogers, Jean Arthur, Claudette Colbert and Barbara Stanwyck

His last service to the industry was as cinematographer on Love Boat in 1982. He died on November 15, 2006 in Woodland Hills, California.

Rita Hayworth (Photo by Irving Lippman, 1938) via

Bette Davis  (Photo by Irving Lippman) via

Miriam Hopkins (Photo by Irving Lippman, 1933) via

Tallulah Bankhead (Photo by irving lippman) via

Fay Wray (Photo by Irving Lippman, 1936) via

 Claudette Colbert (Photo By Irving Lippman, 1933) via

Elsa Schiaparelli in Tunisia by Horst P. Horst (1936)

Elsa Schiaparelli, with a Bedouin dressmaker in Tunisia,1936 by Horst P.Horst via

Stylish & Elegant Vintage Madeleine Vionnet Fashion Photography

Madeleine Vionnet (1876 – 1975) was a French fashion designer. Called the “Queen of the bias cut” and “the architect among dressmakers”. With her bias cut clothes, Vionnet dominated haute couture in the 1930s setting trends with her sensual gowns worn by such stars as Marlene Dietrich, Katharine Hepburn and Greta Garbo.

Vionnet’s vision of the female form revolutionized modern clothing and the success of her unique cuts assured her reputation. She fought for copyright laws in fashion and employed what were considered revolutionary labor practices at the time – paid holidays and maternity leave, day-care, a dining hall, a resident doctor and dentist.

Vionnet was also the first designer to introduce a prêt-à-porter (ready to wear) line based on her couture pieces, which she sold in the United States. Today, Madeleine Vionnet is considered one of the most influential fashion designers of the 20th century.

Madeleine Vionnet

Edward Steichen. Marion Morehouse and unidentified model wearing dresses by Vionnet. 1930 Courtesy Condé Nast Archive © 1930 Condé Nast Publications

Cecil Beaton, Madeleine Vionnet

Madeleine Vionnet, 1935

Vionnet hound’s tooth coat with three buttons and a transformable collar, 1930

A Collection of Vintage Photos of 1930s Schiaparelli

Elsa Schiaparelli couldn’t sew and she didn’t sketch, yet she stormed Paris fashion in the 1920s and 1930s.  Along with Coco Chanel, her greatest rival, she is regarded as one of the most prominent figures in fashion between the two World Wars.

While her contemporaries Chanel and Vionnet set the period’s standards of taste and beauty in fashion design, Schiaparelli flouted convention in the pursuit of a more idiosyncratic style. Her designs were heavily influenced by Surrealists and she Invented the power shoulders, the wedge shoes, the jumpsuit, and the color shocking pink and inspired a generation of unconventional couturiers. Of her contemporaries she described Chanel as “that milliner”, while Chanel once dismissed her rival as ‘that Italian artist who makes clothes”.

Elsa Schiaparelli, 1930’s via

Comtesse de Zoppola in Elsa Schiaparelli, photographed by Edward Steichen, 1931 via

Elsa Schiaparelli & Salvador Dali, Shoe-Hat, 1937/ 1938, wearing by Gala. Photo by André Caillet Fils, c. 1930s via

A model in a Schiaparelli design, 1934 via

The actress Ginger Rogers wearing Schiaparelli’s black velvet “Galyak” coat, 1937 via

Marlène Dietrich in Elsa Schiaparelli evening dress, 1930s via

Mae West in ‘Everyday’s a Holiday’, Elsa Schiaparelli designed her outfit, 1938 via

Elsa Schiaparelli, dress and silver gloves, 1939 via

Sylvia Sidney by Edward Steichen (1931)

Sylvia Sidney by Edward Steichen, 1931

Gelatin silver print

Bequest of Edward Steichen by direction of Joanna T. Steichen and George Eastman House, 1982.365 © 2015 The Estate of Edward Steichen/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York via artic.edu

Mae West Love Qoutes

“Love thy neighbor – and if he happens to be tall, debonair and devastating, it will be that much easier.”

“A woman in love can’t be reasonable – or she probably wouldn’t be in love.”

“I never loved another person the way I loved myself.”

“Love conquers all things except poverty and toothache.”

“Love isn’t an emotion or an instinct – it’s an art.”

“Look your best – who said love is blind?”

Mae West, American actress (1893-1980)

A Collection of Glamorous Vintage Photos of Mae West

Mae West (1893-1980)  American actress, singer, playwright, screenwriter and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned seven decades.

Known for her bawdy double entendres, West made a name for herself in vaudeville and on the stage in New York before moving to Hollywood to become a comedienne, actress, and writer in the motion picture industry.

In consideration of her contributions to American cinema, the American Film Institute named West 15th among the greatest female stars of all time. One of the more controversial movie stars of her day, West encountered many problems, including censorship. When her cinematic career ended, she continued to perform in Las Vegas, in the United Kingdom, and on radio and television, and to record rock and roll albums. Asked about the various efforts to impede her career, West replied: “I believe in censorship. I made a fortune out of it.

Mae West

Mae West in She Done Him Wrong, 1933

Mae West in I’m No Angel, 1933

Mae West  in I’m No Angel, 1933

‘

Publicity portrait of Mae West, 1936

“Mae West will break up her celebrated collection of diamonds, estimated to be worth half a million dollars, and turn over a selection of them to the War Production Board for use in precision instruments and cutting drills in defense factories.” June, 1943

Schiaparelli’s Perfume, Salut, by Ilse Bing (1934)

Study for the lily-scented perfume ‘Salut de Schiaparelli’ by Ilse Bing, 1934 via

Advertising shot for the lily-scented perfume ‘Salut de Schiaparelli’ by Ilse Bing, 1934 via

Romeo and Juliet directed by George Cukor (1936)

Romeo and Juliet is a 1936 American film adapted from the play by Shakespeare, directed by George Cukor from a screenplay by Talbot Jennings.

The film stars Leslie Howard as Romeo and Norma Shearer as Juliet.

The New York Times selected the film as one of the “Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made”, calling it “a lavish production” which “is extremely well-produced and acted.

Portrait of Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer in Romeo and Juliet directed by George Cukor, 1936 via

Portrait of Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer in Romeo and Juliet directed by George Cukor, 1936 via