Kendra Bean's Blog, page 6
July 7, 2014
A Bird of Paradise
Vivien Leigh’s death certificate officially lists her date of death as July 8, 1967 (it wasn’t filed until July 10). However, some people (myself included) observe the date on July 7. The discrepancy comes from Vivien’s partner Jack Merivale, who told several Vivien Leigh biographers about returning home from the theatre late on the night of July 7. ...
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier -
May 7, 2014
Vivien Leigh: Stardom and Screen Image
Back in February I was invited to give a lecture on Vivien Leigh for a symposium highlighting the recently acquired Vivien Leigh Archive at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Curators Keith Lodwick and Kate Dorney spoke about censorship and A Streetcar Named Desire, and scholar/author Helen Taylor gave a [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
March 30, 2014
#AskTheCurator: Starring Vivien Leigh
Vivien Leigh by Bertram Park, 1935 © NPG
Last week, Twitter launched an initiative called #MuseumWeek wherein the denizens of the social media network got virtual tours behind the scenes at some of Europe’s hallowed cultural institutions. I have had the good fortune to [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
March 16, 2014
Clarence Sinclair Bull: The man who shot Gable and Leigh
Clarence Bull (center, to right of camera) photographing Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh for Gone With the Wind. Notice the famous red ostrich feather dress designed by Walter Plunkett being used as a backdrop.
A couple of years ago, London’s [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
January 23, 2014
Vivien Leigh: A star in wartime
I was honored to be asked to do a recent blog post for the National Portrait Gallery about Vivien Leigh’s wartime contributions. Take a look. Comments welcome and encouraged on the NPG website:
One of my favourite items on display in Starring Vivien Leigh: A Centenary Celebration is the eye-catching issue of LOOK magazine from 17 December [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
January 3, 2014
Gertrude Hartley: Making a career of glamour
Gertrude Hartley photographed in 1958
While helping a good friend sort through some of the vintage magazines in his collection recently, I spotted this unique article in a 1958 issue of the The Tatler & Bystander, a weekly magazine catering mostly to upper-middle class and wealthy British women. It profiles Gertrude [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
December 29, 2013
Year-end wrap-up 2013
Another year over, but what a year it was! 2013 was definitely the Year of Vivien Leigh – at least around here. The events that occurred this autumn to celebrate Vivien’s centenary proved that her legacy hasn’t been forgotten. She was brought back out into the much-deserved spotlight as people from around the [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
December 6, 2013
Secrets of the Vivien Leigh archive
Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh watching rushes for Powell and Pressburger’s The 49th Parallel
It was pouring down rain when I arrived at the Victoria and Albert Museum on the morning of November 5. One of the museum’s press officers met me in [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
December 1, 2013
Vivien Leigh: An Intimate Portrait at the National Portrait Gallery
Last Thursday I had the opportunity to give a lecture about Vivien Leigh at the National Portrait Gallery here in London to kick off the opening of the “Starring Vivien Leigh: A Centenary Celebration” exhibit, which I was also invited to co-curate. Vivien proved to [...]
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
November 19, 2013
Vivien Leigh on the Radio4 Film Programme
Last week, I was invited to go into the BBC to talk about Vivien Leigh for the Film Programme on Radio4. It was a bit surreal because I never imagined I’d be doing this sort of thing! I was interviewed by Film Programme host Francine Stock, who had recently seen
Original content © Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier - Your online source for Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier and classic cinema
