Day Three of the Jean Harlow Blogathon!
Day three of the Blogathon is here and Jean’s 100th is one day away!
Tomorrow the Pictorial will be celebrating in high style, along with countless fans around the world, to commemorate the life of this unforgettable legend. Things are kicking into high gear around here, and if I haven’t replied to any requests to participate: I WILL! So keep those posts coming!
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Ann Dvorak: Hollywood’s Forgotten Rebel
Christina runs Ann Dvorak: Hollywood’s Forgotten Rebel which is a real labor of love, dedicated to a neglected Hollywood actress. She’s joined the Blogathon with “Harlow & Dvorak at 100: An Appreciation,” and compares the difference between two women’s careers:
At first glance it seems that Jean Harlow and Ann Dvorak were worlds apart. Harlow was the wise-cracking platinum blonde who was able to use overt sexuality as a comedic weapon. Dvorak was the brooding brunette whose high-wire intensity played out best in dramatic form. Harlow landed at M-G-M, a studio who carefully crafted an on screen persona that film fans loved and sent her skyrocketing to the top of the box-office. Dvorak was at Warner Bros., a studio focused more on making movies than movie stars and who let Ann languish in mostly supporting roles unworthy of her talent …
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Freewheelin’ Pilgrim
Mark at Freewheelin Pilgrim has penned a love letter to a screen goddess. “The Boy Who Loved the Bombshell” is a sweet, sentimental and honest account of just why this 21st Century young’un just can’t get enough of an early 20th Century actress:
Jean Harlow is my celebrity crush. Sounds a bit strange doesn’t it? I mean, I’m 20 years old and she’s been dead for nearly 74 years. But it’s true. Whenever my friends sit around discussing who is “the hottest actress”, I always say “Jean Harlow”. This, naturally, gets a chorus of “huh?”s and “who’s she?”s. I simply tell them to look her up
My love for “Baby Jean” (my nickname for her) began at the tender age of 16. I was in Big W (a department store like K-Mart) for their quarterly DVD sale. I had my eyes set on the “Warner Brothers Gangster” DVDs I’d seen in the catalogue and, thankfully, I managed to get all 6. So I went home and put The Public Enemy on…
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Evangeline Holland
Evangeline Holland joins the Blogathon today with “The Platinum Blonde Goes Red.” In it she tackles the topic of the highly risky decision by MGM to cast the most famous blonde in movies as a red-head….
Jean was under contract to Howard Hughes at the time and his publicity director, Lincoln Quarberg, ran with the new phrase by organizing 3,000 Platinum Blonde Clubs and offering $10,000 to anyone who could replicate the “secret” forumla used to keep Miss Harlow’s hair its celebrated shade. Quarberg planted stories in the popular movie magazines to feed the fictional origins of Jean’s hair, claiming her luminous white tresses were the result of an accident at the beauty parlor…
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Harlean’s Heyday
Quickly becoming a favorite around here, Harlean’s Heyday is back today with a second installment in a series discussing they style that made Harlow a fashion icon. “Harlow’s Casual Style” is a treat because it undresses the image to uncover the real girl beneath it all:
Jean’s casual looks are quite a departure from the dramatic, curve hugging bias-cut gowns that largely mark her formal and on-screen style. It is actually her everyday style that I personally find the most inspiring.
In her own home you’d most frequently find a make-up free Jean Harlow wearing a pair of shorts, a polo shirt and tennis shoes. She didn’t wear stockings, not even during the winter months. Jean was an athletic lady, who played golf and tennis, rode horses and enjoyed swimming. Her flair for sports is certainly evident in her casual style….
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Platinum Page
Lisa Burks, the grand dame of Harlow blogging is back today with a great plug for the new Jean Harlow exhibit at The Max Factor Museum in Hollywood, which finally opens tomorrow:
The new Jean Harlow Exhibit, guest curated by Darrell Rooney, opens this Thursday (Jean’s 100th Birthday) at The Hollywood Museum in the Historic Max Factor Building. Back in the day, long before it was even a make-up museum, Jean often visited this building to be treated by Mr. Factor himself when it was his salon.
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Sinamatic Salve-Ation
A highly literary entry comes from Ariel at Sinamatic Salve-Ation and the Blogathon is very proud to present it to you readers. “Jean Harlow and the Magnetic Fields Get Lost” takes its inspiration from a modern rock album and effectively paints Harlow’s portrait in what is a most beautiful piece:
This is my first blog for the Jean Harlow blogathon, which is being done to celebrate what would have been her 100th birthday (March 3rd). In a way, I felt compelled to write for this because Harlean Harlow Carpenter née Jean Harlow was only 26 years old when she died. She deserves a little more recognition. We all know about Marilyn, but without the original Platinum Blonde, Ms. Monroe wouldn’t’ve had a high heel to stand on…
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Via Margutta 51
We’re so pleased to Via Margutta along for the Blogathon! Clara’s blog is a thorough delight as is her entry for the Blogathon: “Red-Headed Woman Meets Twitter.” You read that right, and you gotta see this—it’s just a real kick and the icing on the cake for a day of stellar Harlow blogging!
My favorite tweet so far in the Lil Andrews/Bill Legendre affair:
@Lil: OMG!
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The Kitty Packard Pictorial 
Please….include my blog to your round-up! Thanks!
http://snapped-garters.blogspot.com/2011/03/happy-100th-birthday-to-jean-harlow.html
Perfume Shrine did a coverage of Jean Harlow’s favourite fragrance, Mitsouko, a scent that was implicated in her first husband’s suicide no less.
The link is below:
http://perfumeshrine.blogspot.com/2011/03/guerlain-mitsouko-fragrance-review.html