Clara Bow
Born	Clara Gordon Bow July 29, 1905(1905-07-29) Brooklyn, New York City, New York
Died	September 27, 1965 (aged 60) West Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
Spouse(s)	Rex Bell

Clara Gordon Bow (July 29, 1905 – September 27, 1965) was an American actress and sex symbol who rose to fame in the silent film era of the 1920s. Bow was renowned for her sexual magnetism and became known around the world as the It girl, where "It" was commonly understood to mean sex appeal. She was regarded as a quintessential flapper. is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1905 (disambiguation). ... This article is about the borough of New York City. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... This article is about the state. ... is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... West Los Angeles is a district in western Los Angeles, California. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... is the 210th day of the year (211th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see 1905 (disambiguation). ... is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic and famous female sex symbols of all time. ... A silent film is a film which has no accompanying soundtrack. ... The 1920s they were sexy referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... An It girl is a charming, sexy young woman, or one who has just broken into mainstream cinema. ... For other uses, see Flapper (disambiguation). ...

Early life

Bow was born in a tenement in Brooklyn, New York, the only surviving child of a dysfunctional family afflicted with mental illness, poverty, and physical and emotional abuse. She was the third child born to her parents; the first two children, also daughters, were short lived, one lived for 2 hours, the other lived for two days. Bow's mother, hoping that her third child would also die at birth, didn't bother with a birth certificate.^[1] For other meanings, see Brooklyn (disambiguation). ... A dysfunctional family is a family in which conflict, misbehavior and even abuse on the part of individual members of the family occur continually, leading other members to accommodate such actions. ... A mental illness or mental disorder refers to one of many mental health conditions characterized by distress, impaired cognitive functioning, atypical behavior, emotional dysregulation, and/or maladaptive behavior. ... Physical abuse is abuse involving contact intended to cause pain, injury, or other physical suffering or harm. ... Emotional abuse refers to a long-term situation in which one person uses his or her power or influence to adversely affect the mental well-being of another. ... Mary Elizabeth Winblad (1895-1987) birth certificate A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a child. ...

As a child, she was a tomboy and played games in the streets with the boys. Her clothes were ragged and dirty; other girls wouldn't play with her. Clara's friend Johnny was severely burned and died in her arms when she was eight or nine years old. Years later, she could make herself cry at will on a movie set by singing the lullaby "Rock-a-bye Baby". She said it reminded her of Johnny. For the film, see Rock-A-Bye Baby. ...

Bow's mother, Sarah Gordon, was an occasional prostitute who suffered from mental illness and epilepsy. She was noted for her frequent public affairs with local firemen. Bow's father, Robert Bow, was rarely present and may have had a mental impairment. Whenever he returned home, he was verbally and physically abusive to both wife and daughter. Bow's father reportedly raped her when she was between 15 and 16 years old.^[2] Prostitution is the sale of sexual services (typically manual stimulation, oral sex, sexual intercourse, or anal sex) for cash or other kind of return, generally indiscriminately with many persons. ... A mental illness or mental disorder refers to one of many mental health conditions characterized by distress, impaired cognitive functioning, atypical behavior, emotional dysregulation, and/or maladaptive behavior. ... Firefighter with an axe A firefighter, sometimes still called a fireman though women have increasingly joined firefighting units, is a person who is trained and equipped to put out fires, rescue people and in some areas provide emergency medical services. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ...

Early career

Always an avid movie fan, Bow entered and won the Motion Picture Magazine's Fame and Fortune contest in 1921, the grand prize being a part in a film. According to the articles in February, March, and April 1928 in Motion Picture Classic, in which she told her life story, she talked her father into giving her one dollar to have some pictures made that she could give to the contest's judges. Her father gave her the dollar, and she went to a Brooklyn photographer, who took two pictures of her, which she said "were terrible". Although she hated the pictures of her wearing a red tam and her only dress, the contest judges were impressed. After numerous screen tests, Bow was selected the winner. She won a part in Beyond the Rainbow (1922), but to her humiliation and disappointment, her scenes were cut from the final print and were not seen until the film was restored years later. Bow preferred playing poker with her cook, maid, and chauffeur over attending her movie premieres.^[3] Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... For other uses see film (disambiguation) Film refers to the celluliod media on which movies are printed Film — also called movies, the cinema, the silver screen, moving pictures, photoplays, picture shows, flicks, or motion pictures, — is a field that encompasses motion pictures as an art form or as part of... Beyond the Rainbow was a 1922 film and was the first film of actress Clara Bow. ... The film preservation movement is an ongoing project among filmmakers, historians, archivists, museums, and non-profit organizations to rescue aging film stock and preserve recorded images. ...

Bow also had to deal with her mother, Sarah Gordon, who told Bow that acting was for prostitutes. Gordon had also taken to sneaking up behind Bow and threatening to kill her because she felt her daughter would be better off dead. One night, she awoke to find her mother holding a butcher knife to her throat. Clara ran and locked herself in a closet until her grandmother came home. Bow suffered insomnia for the rest of her life.

Fame and fortune

Publicity photo for Down to the Sea in Ships (1922)

Bow's screen introduction wasn't until her next film, Down to the Sea in Ships. This was a silent film, as were all of Bow's early films until the advent of sound in the late 1920s. Down to the Sea in Ships is a 1923 American silent movie about a devout Quaker captain of a fleet of whaling ships, William W. Morgan (William Walcott). ... A silent film is a film which has no accompanying soundtrack. ... The 1920s they were sexy referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ...

She began to appear in numerous small movie roles. All the while, she suffered guilty feelings over her mother's disapproval. In 1923, Bow was on the set when she learned that her mother had died. She was devastated, feeling that her acting was somehow responsible for her mother's death.

With her earliest films being all East Coast productions, Bow got her big break when an officer of Preferred Pictures approached her on the set. He offered her free train fare to make a screen test in Hollywood, and Bow agreed to make the trip. The first time Preferred Pictures head B.P. Schulberg saw disheveled Clara Bow in her one ragged dress, he was dismayed. He was reluctant even to give her a screen test, but when he finally did, the results astounded him. Bow was already adept at pantomime, and she could cry on command. B.P. Schulberg (January 19, 1892 - February 25, 1957) was a pioneer film producer and movie studio executive. ... Look up mime in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Starting with Maytime (1923), Schulberg cast Bow in a series of small roles. She nearly always stole her scenes. However, instead of creating projects for her, he loaned her out to other studios for easy money. Nevertheless, Bow started to make a name for herself through these many small roles and was selected as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1924. The WAMPAS Baby Stars of 1932. ... For the rap album, see 1924 (album). ...

As soon as Bow started to make money, she brought her father to live with her in Hollywood. For the next few years, she funded numerous business ventures for him, including a restaurant and a dry cleaners, all of which failed. He soon became a drunken nuisance on her sets, where he would try to pick up young girls by telling them his daughter was Clara Bow. Despite the behavior of her unwanted relative, Bow was adored during this time of her career. Crew members always seemed to fall in love with her. She was friendly, generous, and so grateful for her success that she always remained humble.

In 1925, Schulberg cast Bow in The Plastic Age. The movie was a huge hit, and Bow was suddenly the studio's most popular star. She also began to date her co-star Gilbert Roland, who would become the first of many engagements for her. Bow followed her first big success with Mantrap (1926), directed by Victor Fleming. Though he was twice her age, Bow quickly fell in love with her director. She began seeing both Roland and Fleming at the same time. The Plastic Age is a novel by Percy Marks, which tells the story of co-eds at a fictional college called Sanford. ... Gilbert Roland (December 11, 1905 – May 15, 1994) was an American actor. ... Victor Fleming (February 23, 1883 - January 6, 1949) (sometimes Vic Fleming) was an American film director. ...

The It girl

In 1927, Bow reached the heights of her popularity with the film It; the film was based on a story written by Elinor Glyn, and upon the film's release and popularity, Clara Bow became known as the "It Girl". In Glynn's story, It, a character explains what "It" really is: "It...that strange magnetism which attracts both sexes...entirely unself-conscious...full of self-confidence...indifferent to the effect...she is producing and uninfluenced by others.") More commonly, "It" was taken to mean sex appeal. "It, hell," quipped Dorothy Parker, "She had those."^[4] It is a 1927 romantic film which tells the story of a shop girl who sets her sights on the handsome owner of the store where she works, only to find her plan endangered when a reporter writes a story claiming she is an unwed mother. ... Elinor Glyn (October 17, 1864 - September 23, 1943), born Nellie Sutherland in Jersey, was the author of It, Three Weeks, Beyond the Rocks, and other novels in a similarly softcore vein. ... An It girl is a charming, sexy young woman, or one who has just broken into mainstream cinema. ... Dorothy Parker (August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American writer and poet, best known for her caustic wit, wisecracks, and sharp eye for 20th century urban foibles. ...

This image was enhanced by various off-screen love affairs publicized by the tabloid press. However, some Hollywood insiders considered her socially undesirable, especially in light of rumored sexual escapades with many famous men of the time. Bela Lugosi, Gary Cooper, Gilbert Roland, John Wayne, director Victor Fleming, and John Gilbert were reputed to have been among her many lovers. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Bela Lugosi as Dracula United States stamp. ... Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper May 7, 1901 – May 13, 1961) was a two-time Academy Award-winning American film actor of English heritage. ... Gilbert Roland (December 11, 1905 – May 15, 1994) was an American actor. ... For other persons named John Wayne, see John Wayne (disambiguation). ... Victor Fleming (February 23, 1883 - January 6, 1949) (sometimes Vic Fleming) was an American film director. ... John Gilbert John Gilbert (July 10, 1899 - January 9, 1936) was an actor and major star of the silent film era. ...

Bow's alleged alcoholism, drug abuse, and mental illness were also becoming problems for the studios. Budd Schulberg, the producer's son, wrote in his memoir Moving Pictures, "There was one subject on which the staid old Hollywood establishment would agree: Clara Bow, no matter how great her popularity, was a low life and a disgrace to the community." Alcoholism is the consumption of, or preoccupation with, alcoholic beverages to the extent that this behavior interferes with the drinkers normal personal, family, social, or work life, and may lead to physical or mental harm. ... Comparison of the perceived harm for various psychoactive drugs from a poll among medical psychiatrists specialized in addiction treatment[1] This article is an overview of the nontherapeutic use of alcohol and drugs of abuse. ... A mental illness or mental disorder refers to one of many mental health conditions characterized by distress, impaired cognitive functioning, atypical behavior, emotional dysregulation, and/or maladaptive behavior. ... Picture of writer Budd Schulberg (born March 27, 1914 in New York City, New York) is an American screenwriter and novelist. ... A film producer creates the conditions for making movies. ...

However, Bow was praised for her vitality and enthusiasm — Adolph Zukor once said that "She danced even when her feet weren't moving"^{[citation needed]} — though her roles rarely allowed her to show much range. In the early 1930s, Motion Picture magazine complained that the studio never gave her film plots any thought beyond "Hey, let's put Clara in a sailor suit!"^{[citation needed]} At least one important film writer, Adela Rogers St. Johns, felt Bow had enormous promise that was never tapped by the studios. Cukor Adolf (Adolph Zukor) (January 7, 1873–June 10, 1976) was the founder of Paramount Pictures Studios, and one of the greatest film moguls of all time. ... Adela Rogers St. ...

Documentation indicates that as Bow developed a reputation as "Crisis-a-Day Clara".^{[citation needed]} Paramount went out of its way to humiliate the increasingly emotionally frail actress by canceling her films, docking her pay, charging her for unreturned costumes, and insisting that she pay for her publicity photographs. Her contract also included a morality clause offering her a bonus of $500,000 for behaving like a lady and staying out of the newspapers.^{[citation needed]} Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American motion picture production and distribution company, based in Hollywood, California. ...

from the trailer for Wings (1927)

In 1927, Bow starred in Wings, a war picture largely rewritten to accommodate her, as she was Paramount's biggest star at the time. The film went on to win the first Academy Award for Best Picture. Afterwards, Bow's career continued with limited success into the early sound film era. She worried (correctly) that her strong Brooklyn accent would destroy much of her mystique. Bow began experiencing microphone fright on the sets of her sound films. A visibly nervous Bow had to do a number of retakes in The Wild Party, her first talkie, because her eyes kept wandering up to the microphone overhead.^[3] Year 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Wings is a 1927 silent movie about fighter pilots during World War I (Charles Buddy Rogers and Richard Arlen), who vie for the same girl (Clara Bow). ... ©A.M.P.A.S.® The Academy Award for Best Motion Picture is one of the Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to artists working in the motion picture industry. ... This article is about the borough of New York City. ... // Original Text The Wild Party, a classic epic poem, is Joseph Moncure Marchs first published work. ...

In 1928, Bow wrote the foreword for a novelization of her film The Fleet's In. Between the years 1927 and 1930, Bow was also one Hollywood's top five box office attractions as well.^[5] The Fleets In is a 1942 movie musical directed by Victor Schertzinger and starring Dorothy Lamour and William Holden. ...

Later life

The 1930 U.S. Census lists Bow's residence as 512 North Bedford Drive in Beverly Hills, California. Her home's value was listed as $25,000, higher than most others on her block at the time. The Fifteenth United States Census was taken in 1930. ... Beverly Hills redirects here. ...

Bow and cowboy actor Rex Bell (actually George F. Beldon), later a Lieutenant Governor of Nevada, married in 1932 and had two sons, Tony Beldon (born 1934, changed name to Rex Anthony Bell, Jr.) and George Beldon, Jr. (born 1938). Bow retired from acting in 1933. Her last public exposure, albeit fleeting, was a guest appearance on the radio show Truth or Consequences in 1947; Clara provided the voice of "Mrs. Hush". This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A Lieutenant Governor is a government official who is the subordinate or deputy of a Governor or Governor-General. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Nevada. ... Year 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1932 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Action Comics #127 (December 1948), featuring Superman appearing on the show with Ralph Edwards Truth or Consequences was an American quiz show, originally hosted on radio by Ralph Edwards from 1940 to 1957, and later on television by Edwards himself from 1950 to 1951, Jack Bailey from 1954 to 1955...

In 1944 while her husband was running for the U.S. House of Representatives Bow tried to commit suicide.^[6] After being diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1949, Bow entered a treatment regimen that included shock treatments. Later, her husband sent her to one of the top mental institutions in the nation. Doctors found out that Bow had been raped by her father at a young age. The House of Representatives is the larger of two houses that make up the U.S. Congress, the other being the United States Senate. ... This article is about the 1981 musical comedy film. ...

Bow spent her last years living in a modest house, living off an estate worth about $500,000 at the time of her death.^[1] She died on September 27, 1965 of a heart attack and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. is the 270th day of the year (271st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... Heart attack redirects here. ... Gates of Forest Lawn Forest Lawn Memorial Park is a cemetery in Glendale, Los Angeles County, California. ... Nickname: Location of Glendale within Los Angeles County and the State of California. ...

Honors

For her contributions to the motion picture industry, Clara Bow was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1994, she was honored with an image on a United States postage stamp designed by caricaturist Al Hirschfeld. Buskers perform on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... This article lists people who have been featured on United States postage stamps. ... Al Hirschfeld photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1955 Albert Hirschfeld (June 21, 1903 – January 20, 2003) was an American caricaturist, best known for his simple black and white satirical portraits of celebrities and Broadway stars. ...

Bow in popular culture

• In Tennessee Williams' play The Night of the Iguana, Hannah Jelkes explains to Reverend Shannon that when she was 16, a young man made advances toward her in a movie theatre and was arrested. To get him off the hook, she says, "I told the police it was a Clara Bow picture—well, it was a Clara Bow picture—and I was just over-excited."
• The alternative rock band 50 Foot Wave entitled a song "Clara Bow" on their CD Golden Ocean.
• Bow is mentioned in the song "Condition of the Heart" by Prince on his album Around the World in a Day.
• Max Fleischer's cartoon character Betty Boop was modeled after Bow and entertainer Helen Kane (the "boop-boop-a-doop-girl").
• Bow's mass of tangled red hair was one of her most famous features. When fans of the new star found out she put henna in her hair, sales of the dye tripled.^[3]
• Bow applied her red lipstick in the shape of a heart. Women who imitated this shape were said to be putting a "Clara Bow" on their mouths.^[3]
• She is Effy's idol in the E4 popular show Skins.^[7]

Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), better known by the nickname Tennessee Williams, was a major American playwright of the twentieth century who received many of the top theatrical awards for his work. ... The Casa Iguana hotel in Mismaloya The Night of the Iguana is a play by Tennessee Williams about American tourists in Mexico. ... 50 Foot Wave: Ahlers, Georges, Hersh Photo: Steve Gullick 50 Foot Wave is an American alternative rock band, formed in 2003. ... The Artist redirects here. ... Around The World In A Day was Princes 1985 follow-up to Purple Rain. ... Max Fleischer (July 19, 1883–September 11, 1972) was an important pioneer in the development of the animated cartoon. ... Betty Boop from the opening title sequence of the earliest entries in the Betty Boop Cartoons Betty Boop is an animated cartoon character appearing in the Talkartoon and Betty Boop series of films produced by Max Fleischer and released by Paramount Pictures. ... Helen Kane (b. ... Look up henna in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Skins redirects here. ...

Filmography

Beyond the Rainbow was a 1922 film and was the first film of actress Clara Bow. ... Down to the Sea in Ships is a 1923 American silent movie about a devout Quaker captain of a fleet of whaling ships, William W. Morgan (William Walcott). ... Enemies of Women is a film directed by Alan Crosland in 1923, starring Lionel Barrymore, Alma Reubens, Gladys Hulette, Pedro de Cordoba and Paul Panzer. ... The Daring Years is the title of a 1923 independently released American silent motion picture melodrama. ... The Plastic Age is a black-and-white, silent film made in 1925, in which Clara Bow and Gilbert Roland appeared. ... It is a 1927 romantic film which tells the story of a shop girl who sets her sights on the handsome owner of the store where she works, only to find her plan endangered when a reporter writes a story claiming she is an unwed mother. ... Children of Divorce is a 1927 Frank Lloyd silent film, from an adaptation of Owen Johnsons novel, written by Adela Rogers St. ... Wings is a 1927 silent movie about World War I fighter pilots produced and released by Paramount Pictures. ... Motion picture The Wild Party (1975) directed by James Ivory and starring James Coco as Jolly Grimm and Raquel Welch as Queenie. ... No Limit was a 1931 film musical starring Dixie Lee, as Dotty Dodo Potter. ... Hoop-La is a 1933 film which is notable as the final film appearance of actress Clara Bow. ...

Footnotes

1. ^ ^{a b} Stenn, David. Running Wild, Cooper Square Press, New Ed Edition 2000. ISBN
2. ^ Glaze, Violet (2006-01-06). SHH... IT'S STARTING: Ain't 'IT' a Shame. PopMatters Media, Inc..
3. ^ ^{a b c d} TCM Film Guide, 31
4. ^ Everson, William K. [1978] (September 1998). American Silent Film, 1st Da Capo Press ed., New York: Da Capo Press, Inc.. ISBN. 
5. ^ http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,842186,00.html
6. ^ Politics '99 | Human Events | Find Articles at BNET.com
7. ^ [1]

Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 6th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... William K. Everson (b. ...

Further reading

• Basinger, Jeanine. "Flappers: Colleen Moore and Clara Bow", Silent Stars, 1ST edition (in English), Hanover, NH: Wesleyan University Press. ISBN. 
• TCM Film Guide, "Leading Ladies: The 50 Most Unforgettable Actresses of the Studio Era", Chronicle Books, San Francisco, California, 2006.
• Ball, Christina (March/April 2001). The Silencing of Clara Bow. Gadfly Online.

The Gadfly Online was a periodical, printed between January 1998 and April 2001. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Clara Bow

• Clara Bow at the Internet Movie Database
• Clara Bow at the TCM Movie Database
• Photographs of Clara Bow
• The Clara Bow Page
• Clara Bow at Find A Grave
• Clara Bow's death certificate
• Photographs and bibliography
• Clara Bow My Life Story

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ... Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is a cable television channel featuring commercial-free classic movies, mostly from the Turner Entertainment and Warner Bros. ... Find A Grave is an online database of seventeen million cemeteries and burial records. ...