Joan Crawford in Mannequin, 1937 via
Joan Crawford in Mannequin, 1937 via
Witzel Studios was founded in Los Angeles by photographer Albert Walter Witzel (1879–1929) in 1909 and within a few years had become one of the city’s foremost portrait studios.
The rise of the business paralleled the emergence of the film industry following its relocation from the east coast, and Witzel was soon in demand from Hollywood studios seeking to create interest in movies by circulating promo shots of their stars. Distinguished by moody lighting and dramatic poses and settings, Witzel’s photos soon set the tone for Hollywood studio photography and from the mid-1910s they featured frequently in fan magazines like Photoplay, becoming an important promotional and publicity tool.
Witzel occasionally worked on assignment for the big picture studios, photographing many silent film luminaries including Theda Bara and Charlie Chaplin (source).
Portrait of American actress Clara Bow by American photographer Albert Witzel (1879-1929) via
Portrait of American actress & showgirl Blanche Mehaffey Witzel, 1920s by Albert Witzel (1879-1929) via
Portrait of Bebe Daniels by photographer Albert Witzel (1879-1929), 1920 via
Portrait of American actress Natalie Kingston by Albert Witzel (1879-1929) via
Portrait of American actress Melva Cornell by Albert Witzel (1879-1929), 1920s via
Portrait of American actress Bessie Love by Albert Witzel (1879-1929), 1920 via
Portrait of American actress Doris May by Albert Witzel (1879-1929) , 1920 via
Hollywood actress Virginia Bruce, 1937
Elizabeth Taylor for A Place in the Sun, 1951. Dress by Edith Head via
Laugh, Clown, Laugh is a 1928 American silent drama film starring Lon Chaney and Loretta Young. The movie was directed by Herbert Brenon and produced and released through MGM Studios.
The film is based on the 1923 Broadway stage production Laugh, Clown, Laugh, by David Belasco and Tom Cushing, based on a 1919 play Ridi, Pagliaccio by Fausto Maria Martini
Ruth Harriet Louise, Loretta Young in “Laugh, Clown, Laugh” directed by Herbert Brenon, 1928 via
Portrait of Loretta Young and Lon Chaney in Laugh, Clown, Laugh directed by Herbert Brenon, 1928 via
Lon Chaney and Loretta Young in Laugh, Clown, Laugh directed by Herbert Brenon, 1928 via
Ruth Harriet Louise, Loretta Young and Nils Asther in “Laugh, Clown, Laugh” directed by Herbert Brenon, 1928 via
The Lady from Shanghai is a 1947 film noir directed by Orson Welles and starring Welles, his estranged wife Rita Hayworth and Everett Sloane. It is based on the novel If I Die Before I Wake by Sherwood King.
Robert Coburn, Rita Hayworth in “The Lady from Shanghai” directed by Orson Welles, 1947 via
Robert Coburn, Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth in “The Lady from Shanghai” directed by Orson Welles, 1947 via
Aloma of the South Seas is a 1926 American silent comedy drama film. A young South Seas native boy is sent to the U.S. for his education. After his father dies, he returns to his island to try to stop a revolution. Gilda Gray starres as the exotic dancer Aloma. The films setting was in Puerto Rico and Bermuda. It was based on a 1925 play of the same title by John B. Hymer and LeRoy Clemens. ‘
Grossing $3 million in the U.S. alone, this was the most successful film of 1926 and the fourth most successful film of the 1920s. The film is now considered to be a lost film.
Gilda Gray in Aloma of the South Seas, 1926 via
Gilda Gray in Aloma of the South Seas, 1926 via