Ruth Harriet Louise and Hollywood Glamour Photography

When Ruth Harriet Louise joined Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the studio with "more stars than there are in heaven," she was twenty-two years old and the only woman working as a portrait photographer for the Hollywood studios. In a career that lasted from 1925 until 1930, Louise (born Ruth Goldstein) photographed all the stars, contract players, and many of the hopefuls who passed through the studio's front gates, including Greta Garbo, Lon Chaney, John Gilbert, Joan Crawford, Marion Davies, and Norma Shearer. This book, which coincides with a major traveling retrospective of Louise's work organized by the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, is the first collection of her exquisite photographs. Containing over one hundred breathtaking images--reproduced from the original negatives--it attests to the talent and vision of a surprisingly unknown photographer who formed the images and helped create the popularity of some of our most enduring stars. Louise shot about one hundred thousand negatives that distilled the glamour, drama, and excitement of MGM's feature productions. Louise's original photographs were circulated to millions of moviegoers, magazine and newspaper readers, and fans. The movies and publicity machine that these photographs supported shaped the basic notions of stardom, glamour, and fashion in the 1920s and still affect our ideas today. Robert Dance and Bruce Robertson re-create the entire process--from the moment a performer sat in front of Louise's camera to the point at which a fan pasted a star's picture into a scrapbook. They provide insight into Louise's work habits in the studio and describe the personal dynamics between Louise and the actors she photographed. They include a condensed account of the methods of other photographers, a sharp analysis of fan culture in the period, and superb readings of Louise's photographs. With its combination of well-known and rare images, all magnificently reproduced, this book is a fitting tribute to one of the most gifted and underappreciated glamour photographers of Hollywood's golden period. Note: The hardcover edition of this book does have a dust jacket. (Some hardcovers of University of California Press books available in paperback do not.)

Arts & Photography

ROBERTSON, Bruce

Dance, Robert

Photography & Video

University of California Press

Individual Artists

Famously elusive, Greta Garbo only had her picture taken when a contract required it. She shunned publicity, kept her private life a secret, and rejected the spotlight. Though ambivalent about fame and her public image, Garbo saved all of her favorite portraits, carefully archiving original prints by Clarence Sinclair Bull, Arnold Genthe, Ruth Harriet Louise, Edward Steichen, and Cecil Beaton, among others. Published here for the first time are these portraits–impeccably reproduced in tritone, one more beautiful than the next. In addition, the book features family pictures, candid photographs, and letters previously viewed only by her closest friends and relatives. Scott Reisfield provides an intimate portrait of his great aunt, spanning well beyond her career in the public eye–from the earliest days in Sweden when she would sneak through the back door of the theater to see actors rehearse, to her later years in New York when she traveled exclusively through back entrances, side doors, and secret elevators. Co-author Robert Dance’s essay traces the evolution of the image of Garbo–from the ingénue of her first publicity shots to the icon that she became–while an illustrated film production history documents all the still photography and portraiture of her entire career. Long treasured by her immediate family alone, this collection of photographs, and the essays that accompany them, form a spectacular tribute to Garbo, the woman and the myth, on the eve of her centennial.

Garbo: Portraits from Her Private Collection

Reisfield, Scott

Robert Dance

Humor & Entertainment

Rizzoli

Product Description 
From the late 1920s through the thirties, Greta Garbo (1905–1990) was the biggest star in Hollywood. She stopped making films in 1941, at only thirty-six, and thereafter sought a discreet private life. Still, her fame only increased as the public and press clamored for news of the former actress. At the time of her death, forty-nine years later, photographers continued to stalk her, and her death was reported on the front pages of newspapers worldwide. In The Savvy Sphinx: How Garbo Conquered Hollywood, Robert Dance traces the strategy a working-class Swedish teenager employed to enter motion pictures, find her way to America, and ultimately become Hollywood’s most glorious product. Brilliant tactics allowed her to reach Hollywood’s upper-most echelon and made her one of the last century’s most famous people. Garbo was discovered by director Mauritz Stiller, who saw promise in her nascent talent and insisted that she accompany him when he was lured to America by an MGM contract. By twenty she was a movie star and the epitome of glamour. Soon Garbo was among the highest-paid performers, and in many years she occupied the number one position. Unique among studio players, she quickly insisted on and was granted final authority over her scripts, costars, and directors. But Garbo never played the Hollywood game, and by the late twenties her unwillingness to grant interviews, attend premieres, or meet visiting dignitaries won her the sobriquet the Swedish Sphinx. The Savvy Sphinx, which includes over a hundred beautiful images, charts her rise and her long self-imposed exile as the queen who abdicated her Hollywood throne. Garbo was the paramount star produced by the Hollywood studio system, and by the time of her death her legendary status was assured. 
 Review 
Film historian [Robert] Dance (The Lost World of DeMille) brings the glamour of old Hollywood to the page in this extensive look at the life and career of Greta Garbo. . . . This entertaining behind-the-scenes look at the making of an icon makes for a fascinating snapshot of the era. ― 
Publishers Weekly\nThe Savvy Sphinx: How Garbo Conquered Hollywood is an impressive offering that brings together the various aspects of the Garbo legend. Not only does Robert Dance have a sure command of Garbo’s films, but he also writes knowledgeably about Hollywood’s rich history. This comprehensive book will be welcomed by movie lovers as well as libraries and major film collections. Mr. Dance’s stated mission is to ‘chart the rise of Greta Garbo.’ He delivers. -- Marion Meade, biographer of Buster Keaton and Woody Allen\nThe Savvy Sphinx: How Garbo Conquered Hollywood is a fascinating and revealing look at the mystique that is Greta Garbo. Who was Garbo, and why does she remain important in our culture today? The author takes us on a journey of discovery through the mire of Hollywood fact and fiction and the intrinsic mechanisms of the film industry, and explains to us the conundrum that was Greta Garbo, who placed herself in an era ripe for her unique beauty and talent. An intriguingly rich look into the lore and legend of the actress, 
The Savvy Sphinx is touched with sound realism and impact, justifying the importance she brought to our cinematic and cultural history. Thanks to Garbo’s living presence on celluloid today, her beauty and her art on film remain for future generations to swoon over and quiver, to study, and to relish. And perchance to dream. -- Stephen Michael Shearer, author of Patricia Neal: An Unquiet Life, Beautiful: The Life of Hedy Lamarr, Gloria Swanson: The Ultimate Star, and Glamour and Style: The Beauty of Hedy Lamarr 
 About the Author 
Robert Dance 
 is author of 
Hollywood Icons and 
Glamour of the Gods and coauthor of 
Garbo: Portraits from Her Private Collection and 
Ruth Harriet Louise and Hollywood Glamour Photography.

The Savvy Sphinx: How Garbo Conquered Hollywood

UNIVERSITY PRESS OF MISSISSIPPI

Robert Dance’s new evaluation of Joan Crawford looks at her entire career and―while not ignoring her early years and tempestuous personal life―focuses squarely on her achievements as an actress, and as a woman who mastered the studio system with a rare combination of grit, determination, beauty, and talent.\nCrawford’s remarkable forty-five-year motion picture career is one of the industry’s longest. Signing her first contract in 1925, she was crowned an MGM star four years later and by the mid-1930s was the most popular actress in America. In the early 1940s, Crawford’s risky decision to move to Warner Bros. was rewarded with an Oscar for Mildred Pierce. This triumph launched a series of film noir classics. In her fourth decade she teamed with rival Bette Davis in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, proving that Crawford, whose career had begun by defining big-screen glamour, had matured into a superb dramatic actress.\nHer last film was released in 1970, and two years later she made a final television appearance, forty-seven years after walking through the MGM gate for the first time. Crawford made a successful transition into business during her later years, notably in her long association with Pepsi-Cola as a board member and the brand’s leading ambassador.\nOverlooked in previous biographies has been Crawford’s fierce resolve in creating and then maintaining her star persona. She let neither her age nor the passing of time block her unrivaled ambition, and she continually reimagined herself, noting once that, for the right part, she would play Wally Beery’s grandmother. But she was always the consummate star, and at the time of her death in 1977, she was a motion picture legend and a twentieth-century icon.

Ferocious Ambition: Joan Crawford’s March to Stardom

Robert Dance. Norwich, Impermanent Press, and New York, The Grolier Club, 2015. 9.5 x 7; 160, [2] pp.; numerous illustrations in color and black and white. Preface and introductory essay by Robert Dance, followed by a complete "Bibliography of the Book Illustrations of Lynd Ward." Includes bibliography and index. Published to accompany the exhibition "Illustrated by Lynd Ward, From the Collection of Robert Dance," on view at the Grolier Club November 19 2015-January 16 2016. "Considering the fame Lynd Ward achieved during the 1930s and his role as a book illustrator for five decades, it is surprising that a comprehensive study of his life and career has not appeared. This book does not promise to be either. Rather it is an introduction to his position as one of America's foremost book illustrators and the first attempt to compile a checklist of his published work." - Preface.

ILLUSTRATED BY LYND WARD (deluxe limited edition)

Lynd Ward

Impermanent Press & The Grolier Club

* Long-buried, little-seen portraits of some of Hollywood's favorite movie stars * Over 200 full-page images from the archives of the John Kobal Foundation * Surprises in store for even the most sophisticated movie fans * The perfect present for fans of Hollywood's motion-picture industry's golden years Fabulous Faces of Classic Hollywood brings some of the greatest portraits taken by leading Hollywood portrait photographers during the motion picture industry's golden years of 1920 to 1960. Little-seen negatives, long buried in the remarkable and internationally renowned archives of the John Kobal Foundation, have been unearthed and printed to reveal some of Hollywood's favorite stars at the height of their careers. Full-page images of Joan Crawford, Marlene Dietrich, Cary Grant, Gary Cooper, Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, as well as lesser lights including Anna May Wong, Lon Chaney, Lupe Velez and Ramon Novarro, will remind long-time movie fans why these important 20th-century icons will forever remain the fabulous faces of the movie world. Selected by best-selling author Robert Dance and writer and award-winning film producer Simon Crocker, over 200 photographs are presented alongside an essay by Dance, describing what it takes to become a fabulous face and an international icon.

Fabulous Faces of Classic Hollywood

Crocker, Simon

Acc Art Books

<ul><li>147 images of classic Hollywood film stars, photographed with dogs of all shapes and sizes</li></ul>
 <ul><li>Many photographs rarely seen before now</li></ul>
 <ul><li>A companion volume to the bestselling Hollywood Unseen ISBN 9781851496808</li></ul>
 <ul><li>A perfect gift for film buffs, and for anyone that loves dogs</li></ul>
 Hollywood Dogs showcases a fine selection of photographs from the famous John Kobal Foundation. Taken between 1920 and 1960 during the ‘Golden Age’ of Hollywood, they feature stars including Humphrey Bogart, Buster Keaton and Audrey Hepburn posing with dogs of every stature and breed. In almost every case, these stunning photographs have never been seen before now. As much as the Hollywood studio system tried to control every aspect of their stars’ lives, there was nothing the bosses could do to manipulate their illustrious employees’ responses when photographed with their dogs. Hollywood Dogs celebrates this special relationship between these famous owners and their animals. Often caught off-guard, and almost always relaxed and natural, these are photographs of the Hollywood stars as real people. Amongst the images are some of the most famous dogs in Hollywood films: Lassie; Asta; Rin Tin Tin and Toto from the Wizard of Oz. There are also a few carefully-set-up publicity shots, such as Frank Sinatra on the set of Pal Joey, and Jean Harlow accessorized with a large hat and two Old English sheepdogs. Each image has been researched to identify the breed and wherever possible, the name of the dog, and author Catherine Britton has included intriguing details about the location and background to the photograph.

Hollywood Dogs: Pictures from the John Kobal Foundation

Antique Collectors Club Dist

Foreword by Joan Collins Hollywood Unseen is a tribute to the incredible inventiveness and ingenuity of the great Hollywood film studios: Columbia, Paramount, MGM, Universal, Warner Brothers, RKO and Twentieth Century Fox. From the late 1920s to the early 1950s these studios presided over the 'Golden Age of Cinema', and their publicity departments created some of the most stunning and iconic images of Hollywood's stars ever taken. Here, for the first time, are photographs showing the 'ordinary lives' of the stars, including Rita Hayworth, Gary Cooper, Humphrey Bogart and Marilyn Monroe. In reality, these photographs were as carefully constructed and prepared as any classic portrait or scene, and they depicted the actors and actresses exactly as the studios wanted them to be seen. The publicity departments cleverly formed an idealised view of the husbands, wives, children, pets, parties, premieres and hobbies of the stars. Ironically, many of the images were only used once or twice, and were then never seen again. Drawn from the extensive archive of the John Kobal Foundation, this book showcases an extraordinary collection of these hidden photographic gems. John Kobal was an authority on Hollywood portrait photography, who established a preeminent collection of works featuring iconic stars of the day. The Getty Image Library in London will be hosting an exhibition of these images to coincide with the publication of this book.

Hollywood Unseen: Photographs from the John Kobal Foundation

History & Criticism

<ul><li>Hollywood Icons will accompany an international traveling exhibition featuring masterworks of photography taken during the golden age of motion pictures. Venues for the exhibition will be in North and South America, Europe and Asia</li></ul>
Hollywood Icons features approximately 200 photographs focusing on the great faces that drew moviegoers around the world into movie theaters by the tens of millions. Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Gloria Swanson and other luminaries of early silent film are depicted in splendid photographs revealing the potency of their allure that is obvious even today. Later silent stars such as Garbo and Crawford, who rose to even greater cinematic heights when the movies began to speak, are featured in series of images showing how those two star faces were magically transformed into thrilling exemplars of 1930s glamour. Better known are the great players from the 1930s whose names today form the bedrock of Hollywood history. All-American men such as Gary Cooper and Clark Gable shared the screen with sirens such as Marlene Dietrich and Hedy Lamarr, two among many who began acting in Europe and found lasting fame in southern California. They were soon joined by Vivien Leigh and Charles Boyer. Legends such as Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall ware prominent among the stars, along with Marlon Brando, Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly. All the great Hollywood photographers whose careers were resurrected by John Kobal in dozens of books are included. The exhibition will be arranged to show both the sweep of glamour photography as well as to focus on the unique style of each of the leading camera artists. Also available: Hollywood Cats ISBN 9781851497577 Hollywood Dogs ISBN 9781851496785 Hollywood Unseen ISBN 9781851496808 I Used to be in Pictures ISBN 9781851497539

Hollywood Icons: Photographs from the John Kobal Foundation

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Dance, Robert. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Dance, Robert

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Dance, Robert. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Ruth Harriet Louise and Hollywood Glamour Photography

Ruth Harriet Louise and Hollywood Glamour Photography

Garbo: Portraits from Her Private Collection

The Savvy Sphinx: How Garbo Conquered Hollywood

Ferocious Ambition: Joan Crawford’s March to Stardom

ILLUSTRATED BY LYND WARD (deluxe limited edition)

Fabulous Faces of Classic Hollywood

Hollywood Dogs: Pictures from the John Kobal Foundation

Hollywood Unseen: Photographs from the John Kobal Foundation

Hollywood Icons: Photographs from the John Kobal Foundation