eMoviePoster.com

What are the objects in the corners of some images? Learn More

Marlene Dietrich was a very popular German actress and singer from the 1920s through the 1950s! She started in German movies in the 1920s, and then got her big break in Josef von Sternberg's "The Blue Angel", which was made in both a German and an English version. That led to a series of wonderful movies with von Sternberg. Some of her other movies include: Destry Rides Again, Shanghai Express, The Scarlet Empress, A Foreign Affair, Morocco (nominated for the Best Actress Academy Award for this film), Blonde Venus, Touch of Evil, Witness for the Prosecution, and Judgment at Nuremberg. She passed away in 1992 at the age of 90 AND John Gilbert was an actor from the 1910s to the 1930s. Some of his movies include: The Big Parade, The Merry Widow, and many other major MGM movies of the 1920s and early 1930s. He co-starred with Greta Garbo in several memorable movies. There is an urban legend that his career was ruined because he had a squeaky high-pitched voice, but actually that was not the case! Gilbert refused to follow the studio head Louis B. Mayer's orders, and he essentially ruined his career, although Garbo insisted he be allowed to co-star with her in Queen Christina, but his career was basically over after that, and he died of a heart attack in 1936 at the age of 38.

Important Added Info: Note that while the caption on the back mentions he is visiting the set, a knowledgeable collector tells us that "Gilbert was actually cast in Desire at Dietrich's request. This still is from a Technicolor costume test, which still survives (the film was shot in black and white but was for a time slated to be in color as well). He was to play the role eventually played by John Halliday in the finished film. It was to be Gilbert's comeback role, but sadly before production began, he suffered a massive heart attack which led to his physical decline and premature death in 1936". Also, note that this still was consigned to us by legendary collector/dealer Marty Davis! Marty was hired in 1972 to evaluate the entire collection of W. Ward Marsh (1893-1971), who was the film critic for the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper from 1919, until his retirement in 1970. In 1919 Marsh wrote his first of 23,000 movie reviews for the Plain Dealer. Marsh died less than a year after his retirement in 1970. His library, and photographic and memorabilia archives were given to the proprietor of Cleveland's finest bookstore. Marty Davis was the first person with a background in film history and collectibles to examine the archives. He worked for three to four hours a day, for six months, and his compensation was his pick of the archives. This still is from the W. Ward Marsh archives, and it was stamped on the back by Marty Davis to indicate that it came from this legendary collection.

Our address for UPS or FedEx only is:
Bruce Hershenson,
306 Washington Avenue, West Plains, MO 65775