Posted by 
vp19 on 2015.09.21 at 21:54
Current mood: 
contemplative
I know this is Paramount p1202-652, but who are the men flanking Carole Lombard? That may be George Raft she’s looking away from — this was taken at about the time “Bolero” was released — but is she looking at Ray Milland, who had a supporting role in the film? I can’t answer one way or the other, because this is taken from an original Paramount negative, one of three from an upcoming Hyee auction on Sept. 30. Here are the other two.
First, p1202-732, a pic we’ve run before, but without any kind of coding. It’s from “We’re Not Dressing,” her 1934 teaming with Bing Crosby:
Charming pic with a bear, you might think to yourself — but there’s another part of the story that largely was suppressed at the time. In Milland’s autobiography, “Wide-Eyed In Babylon” (Milland also had a supporting role in this film), he wrote the trainer of the bear, named Droopy, told cast and crew that any females whose time of the month it was should not report to the set that day, because Droopy would be hormonally affected. Alas, one female disobeyed instructions, and the trainer was severely injured and later died.
Thankfully, p1202-736 has a more benevolent story behind it, as Carole pays homage to Lillian and Dorothy Gish by using camera trickery to duplicate herself in this tribute to the sisters’ 1922 silent classic, “Orphans of the Storm”:
Bidding begins at 99 cents for all three negatives, and as of this writing one bid on each has been made. All are from Irving Klaw’s Movie Star News collection. (Klaw was the photographer who helped make Bettie Page a pinup legend.) The auctions close between 11:39 and 11:41 p.m. (Eastern) Sept. 30.
Carole & Co. 