Tuesday, 28 August 2007

Mr DeMille, I'm Ready For My Close-Up

What an intriguing personality is this week's star Gloria Swanson, a genuine archetype of the Hollywood diva from beginning to end.

Like Elizabeth Taylor, she had a fine collection of husbands (seven in all).

Like Marilyn Monroe, she had a torrid affair with a Kennedy (in Swanson's case it was ole patriarch Joe).

Like the Talmadge sisters and Colleen Moore, she didn't successfully manage the transition to talkies

Like Donna Reed, Swanson had a career in television.

But unlikely those other fine actresses Swanson took the biggest personal and professional risk of her career in the classic Hollywood film noir Sunset Boulevard.

Playing the obsessive and delusional faded silent star Nora Desmond, Swanson was nominated for an Oscar in a scene chewing performance that has become a film classic.

Despite the fact that Mae West, Pola Negri and Mary Pickford all rejected the role, it hard to imagine anyone else with the part.

Here's a taste:

No comments: