Happy 100th Birthday, Jean Harlow!

Jean Harlow, the Original Platinum Blonde

Jean Harlow was the original blonde bombshell.  She was smart, funny and stunningly gorgeous. Jean Harlow is the platinum blonde from which all other platinum blondes have evolved (myself included!). Many people who hear "platinum blonde" think of Marilyn Monroe.  But what they don't realize is that Marilyn idolized Jean Harlow, and modeled much of what became known as "the Monroe" look after Jean. One thing is certain: before Marilyn, or Madonna or Gwen...there was Jean.

Born March 3, 1911 as Harlean Carpenter in Kansas City, Missouri, she later changed her name to Jean Harlow (Harlow being her mother's maiden name) and would be the first to popularize those brilliant-white locks.  As a child, Jean suffered from bouts of meningitis and scarlet fever (which would later be the cause of her tragic, untimely death at the tender age of 26). 

Professionally, Jean is most noted for her roles in films such as Platinum Blonde, Dinner at Eight, Libeled Lady and Bombshell.  But it seems she has come to be most frequently remembered for her sometimes-eccentric personality, and particularly referenced for her signature look: curvaceous woman with platinum hair in a clingy, white-satin, bias-cut gown, shining like a star in the night. (Just look at the pictures, and you will see why!)



The Original Blonde Bombshell

 Now, this blog is dedicated to the legacy of Lucille Ball, so you may be wondering, "What does Jean Harlow have to do with Lucille Ball?"  Well, there are a couple of notable connections: the first being that both Jean and Lucille were born in 1911, (Jean on March 3, and Lucille on August 6) making this year their would-be 100th birthdays; the other connection has to do with the films Libeled Lady and
Easy to Wed.

Jean starred in the 1936 screwball comedy Libeled Lady as Gladys Benton, who is a tough, but funny broad.  It was ten years later, in 1946, that MGM remade the film as Easy to Wed, in which Lucille Ball also played the part of Gladys Benton.  Both films are excellent productions of the same screenplay and carry strong comical performances by major actors (William Powell, Myrna Loy, Jean Harlow--and later--Van Johnson, Esther Williams and Lucille Ball.)  It is the role of Gladys Benton that really steals the show, and both Jean and Lucille played her wonderfully.

About Lucille,  The Los Angeles Times wrote, "Comedy provided by Miss Ball is really the most compensating feature of this production. She is at her super best..." And a review by Film Daily read, "...very special honors go to Lucille Ball for her topnotch comedy scenes which highlight the film."

Lucille gave much credit to director Eddie Buzzell for the success of her comedy sequences, saying that he allowed her to use her own instincts and helped encourage her uniqueness by not forcing a performance.  Regardless of which version you prefer, both Jean Harlow and Lucille Ball give two of their finest film performances as quirky, scene-stealing Gladys Benton.  So here's to Jean, and Lucille, and to all the ways they continue to inspire us, even 100 years after their birth! 

Check out these links for resources pertaining to the amazing life of Jean Harlow.