Charles Rhodes
[Los Angeles]: Fawcett Publications, 1950. Vintage original 8 x 10" (20 x 25 cm.) black-and-white glossy silver gelatin photo. Ink stamp on verso from Fawcett Publications and credited to photographer Charles Rhodes, ink stamp date of April 1950. About fine. Original attached paper blurb claims that Burt Lancaster is ordering Robert Mitchum to keep his hands off Erroll Flynn, at the Friars' Frolic at the Shrine Auditorium. Flynn was one of the masters of ceremonies for this all-male fundraising event. Mitchum and Lancaster were part of a musical number and were two of six Floradora Girls. The 3rd Annual Friars' Frolic was held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 22, 1950, in which Hollywood's big-name male actors starred. Proceeds were for the Motion Picture Relief Fund and various Friars charities. Famous figures like Jack Benny, Burt Lancaster, Robert Mitchum, Red Skelton and Keenan Wynn played girls. Dan Dailey and Mario Lanza did solo acts. George Burns and Broderick Crawford performed together, as well as famous duo Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Other comedians included Phil Silvers, George Jessel, Harpo Marx, etc. Many other actors, including well-known Ricardo Montalban, Edward G. Robinson, James Stewart, Errol Flynn, Al Jolson and violinist Isaac Stern played in the sketches and specialty acts. A rather flamboyant evening!
Universal
[Los Angeles: Universal Pictures, 1946]. Set of eight (8) Vintage original 8 x 10" (20 x 25 cm.) black-and-white glossy silver gelatin photos. NSS blind stamp on two photos. Minor edge tears on several photos, one with right blank white margin creases. Very good. Dan Duryea, Peter Lorre, June Vincent, Constance Dowling, Broderick Crawford and Wallace Ford are featured in photos from this noir tale directed by Roy William Neil and based on a Cornell Woolrich story. Irish-born director Neil started his career with Thomas Ince and worked his way up to director, proving himself adept at a number of genres while working at Universal including horror, mystery (the Sherlock Holmes series) and noir. This would be his last film. Photos coded: 1501-2, 21, 23, 35, 43, 45, 47, 54
RKO Radio Pictures
[Los Angeles: RKO, 1953]. Set of thirteen (13) vintage original black-and-white photos, of which eleven are 8 x 10" (20 x 25 cm.) and two are 7 1/2 x 9 1/2" (18 x 23 cm.) glossy silver gelatin photos. One 8 x 10" is a keybook photo on linen. A few have handwritten notations on verso, some have original attached paper blurbs, and two are ink stamped "Cleveland Press, May 1 1953, Reference Dept". Overall nice condition, a few pinholes and edge creases. About fine. The only female director of the time, Ida Lupino directed and co-wrote this tense noir crime thriller about two fishermen who pick up a psychotic prison escapee who promises to kill them at the end of the ride. Lupino made a series of low budget, quickly made dramas with former husband Collier Young in the early-1950s in a variety of genres. Lupino proved to be a most brilliant filmmaker. Some very tense story moments are present in this group with cast members Edmond O'Brien, Frank Lovejoy and William Talman. Photos are coded: TD-3, 5, 9, 11, 12, 13, 16, 18, 22, 25, 31, 39, 45.
Paramount
[Los Angeles]: Paramount Pictures, 1938. Set of four (4) Vintage original 8 x 10" (20 x 25 cm.) black-and-white glossy silver gelatin photos. Minor corner creases and wear to all. One has chip at top right corner, another has chip at bottom left corner. Overall very good. Four photos in a series called "How To Swim in Nine Easy Lessons". The series included nine photos as indicated; present are numbers 1, 6, 8 and 9. Each has a blurb printed on the verso explaining the swim technique which Buster is demonstrating. They were used to publicize his appearance in the Paramount film Tip Off Girls. The Olympic swim champ was popular and utilized in film for his physique more so than his acting talents, but he did make for an iconic Flash Gordon. From the Kenneth Anger collection, but not stamped. Anger may have been planning a beefcake storyline for one of his books, or just liked collecting beefcake photos of the stars. Coded P1498-240, 241, 243, 248.
James J. Kriegsmann
New York: General Artists Corporation, [ca. late 1940s]. Vintage original 10 x 8" (25 x 20 cm.) black-and-white photo, minor marginal stain in blank bottom right margin, photo credit for James J. Kriegsmann, N.Y., in lower left of image, near fine. A portrait of Louis Jordan, a seminal figure in the history of rhythm and blues. Known as "the King of the Jukebox", he earned his highest profile towards the end of the Swing era. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an "early influence" in 1987. Jordan ranks fifth in the list of the most successful African American recording artists according to Joel Whitburn's analysis of Billboard magazine's R&B chart, and was the most popular rhythm and blues artist with his "jump blues" recordings of the pre-rock n' roll era. Though comprehensive sales figures are not available, he had at least four million-selling hits during his career. Jordan regularly topped the R&B "race" charts, achieving the Number 1 slot eighteen times, with 113 weeks in that spot over the years. He was also one of the first Black recording artists to achieve significant crossover in popularity with the predominantly white mainstream American audience, having simultaneous Top Ten hits on the pop charts on several occasions. (Wikipedia)
Irving Lippman
[Los Angeles: Columbia, 1954]. Set of fifteen (15) vintage original 8 x 10" (20 x 25 cm.) black-and-white single and double weight glossy silver gelatin photos. There are variations on the versos as illustrated such as Columbia studio stamps, [Irving] Lippman photographer stamps, attached paper blurbs, NSA number stamps, and cast, credit and synopsis for release in London. The group shows normal use with minor creases, about fine. Fritz Lang directed this murder noir based on the novel La Bête humaine by Ãmile Zola. The photos include stars Gloria Grahame, Glenn Ford and Broderick Crawford and illustrate the tense relationships between the characters. Grahame gives a particularly haunted and affecting performance in this dark film noir. Photos are coded: 1281-10, 17, 28,56, 66, 68, 74, 82, 89, 116, 118, 146, 150, 161, and one with still number cut off (for release in England).