Remembering Marilyn

"When I think of the future, I think, I'm thirty-six years old.

I'm just getting started...But as long as one is alive, one

can be vital. But you don't give up until you stop breathing."

I've been a big fan of Marilyn Monroe since I was in high school and wrote a research paper on her. At the time, I knew little about her, but by the time I finished my paper, I was enamored. The first Marilyn movie I saw was Some Like It Hot and to this day, it remains one of my favorite Old Hollywood movies. My other Marilyn favorites are The Seven Year Itch where she plays The Girl, the upstairs neighbor who Tom Ewell's character falls for while his wife and son are away for the summer, How To Marry A Millionaire, a comedy based around three women (Marilyn, Lauren Bacall, and Betty Grable) trying to land rich husbands, Niagara, a drama about jealous lovers, and Don't Bother To Knock, the first film where I believe Marilyn really got to showcase her acting abilities, playing a deranged babysitter trying to seduce a man.

The Seven Year Itch with Tom Ewell (1955)

As Sugar Cane Kowalcyzk in Some Like It Hot (1959)

The damsel in distress in Niagara (1953)

The ditzy but lovable blonde in How To Marry A

Millionaire (1953)

Alongside Richard Widmark in Don't Bother To Knock (1952) 

I love to watch old movies, of course, but I enjoy learning about the actors even more. I love a good autobiography or biography written by someone who knew the star well. Marilyn lived such a sad life, full of tragedies and downfalls, though she was also blessed in many ways. She carried the sadness with her all her life. 

I think Marilyn is terribly misunderstood by the general public. Behind the glamour and beauty was a real woman, down to earth, extremely kind and nurturing, someone who just wanted to be loved. Marilyn was intelligent and well-read with an affinity for literature. However, she was plagued by her inability to become a mother and by the lack of love in her personal life, and unfortunately, her grief far outweighed all the positives in her life in her eyes. 

"When I was a little girl I would pretend I was Alice in Wonderland

looking into a mirror, wondering what I would see. Was that really me? 

Who was that staring back at me? Could it be someone pretending to be me? 

I would dance around, make faces, just to see if that little

girl in the mirror would do the same."

"You know, children when they become adults are still at heart children.

Sometimes I watch adult men. They act like little boys who have never

grown up. I suppose it depends on the mood you are in. Our emotions play 

an important part in our lives. We cannot hide from them. My mother,

bless her, used to say, "Norma Jeane, make the most of it,

because that's all you've got."

I wish you peace, Norma Jeane. You are a truly beautiful soul.

June 1, 1926 - August 4, 1962

Until next time,

You Read It In Winchell...

It was a gathering of celebrities to celebrate Walter Winchell's 56th birthday in May of 1953! 

Winchell was a popular gossip columnist and radio show host in Hollywood at the time. His radio show was the first time people, including Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, it seems, would hear that Lucille was expecting a baby. Lucille wrote in her posthumously published autobiography, Love, Lucy:

"Desi was fast asleep and I was knitting, listening to the radio. Walter Winchell came on the air and announced: 'After ten childless years of marriage, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz are infanticipating.' I dropped my knitting, ran into Desi's dressing room, and woke him up. 'We're going to have a baby!

Desi sat up, rubbing his eyes. 'How d'ya know? We aren't supposed to hear until tomorrow!' 

I said, 'Winchell just told me.'

 'How d'ya like dat!' was my Cuban's reaction."

Desi's Ricky Ricardo would sing a song he wrote on I Love Lucy, "You read it in Winchell that we're adding a limb to our family tree!"

The point here is: he was the TMZ of his day.

On May 13, 1953, the stars came out for Winchell's birthday at Ciro's, a Hollywood nightclub located on Sunset Boulevard. I never ever thought I'd see a photo of Marilyn Monroe and Lucille together, but at last, I came across these randomly one day and my little Old Hollywood heart began to flutter. 

Standing: Darryl Zanuck, Betty Grable, Marilyn Monroe, Walter Winchell, Jane Russell

Seated: Lucille Ball, Jimmy McHugh, and Louella Parsons

Betty Grable's face makes me giggle.

It's always difficult trying to get everyone to smile 

at the same time, isn't it?!

Until next time, 

Vintage Adverts

Advertisements from decades ago are extremely interesting to me. The colors, the use of words to tell the consumer why they should invest in the product, and even the products that used to frequent the pages of magazines on adverts are all so much different than what we see today in magazines or on TV. Sure, we obviously still see car ads, makeup ads, and soda ads. But how often do we see advertising for cigarettes anymore? Also, compared to 60+ years ago, we see more ads directed towards both genders instead of just females! 

1930s

Advertising in the 1930s seemed to be heavy in cigarettes and Coca Cola. The United States was in the midst of the Great Depression, so ads for big ticket items such as automobiles or radios seemed to be few and far between, and advertising for luxury items such as makeup were also sparse. Even in the '30s, advertisers knew that the use of movie stars would help promote a product big time! 

Actress Claudette Colbert (It Happened One Night, 1934) for 

Lucky Strike cigarettes

Claudette Colbert tells how the throat-strain of emotional acting led her to Luckies.

Miss Colbert says: "After experimenting, I'm convinced that my throat is safest with Luckies." 

Jean Harlow (Hell's Angels, 1930) for Coca Cola

This drink just naturally fits into a pause from work or play....Tastes good when

nothing else does....Leaves you cool and refreshed.

1937 Chevrolet

You get all the newest things of 1937 in Chevrolet

"The Complete Car - Completely New!"

Irresistible Talc

Easily, quickly, you can dust your body odor away with this dainty deodorant talc. Apply it generously all over your body. No matter how great your body warmth....the exquisite perfume of Irresistible Talc keeps its exotic delicacy....keeps you irresistible.

Westinghouse World Cruiser

Just taste the thrill of World Cruising with Westinghouse - of choosing your radio entertainment from the best the whole world affords.

1940s

With the Great Depression behind them, advertisers in the 1940s shifted focus to the glamour of Hollywood movie starlets and how to look like them. The war effort and how those at home could help were also prevalent in advertising. With the men fighting overseas, ads were still aimed at mostly women. After the war, more women could now afford the little things such as lipstick and other beauty items and families could spend money on a new car.

Rita Hayworth (Gilda, 1946) for Max Factor Tru-Color Lipstick

The color stays on through every lipstick test.

Martha O'Driscoll (Carnegie Hall, 1947) for Cashmere Bouquet Beau Cake

And, as beautiful Martha O'Driscoll says: "Such a time-saver! When I open my Beau Cake, the sponge is always ready for use."

General Electric appliances

Hers is the bloom of youth. She's taken advantage of the age she lives in - the age of modern electrical servants that lighten household tasks. No wonder she looks younger than women to whom home-making is a daily round of drudgery! 

1949 Ford

We think you'll agree the '49 Ford has "the look of the year!" 

Nestle chocolate

Delicious, nutritious and compact - chocolate is everybody's favorite, whether on the fighting front as an energy food, or on the home front as a quick pick-me-up.

1950s

The '50s brought about Marilyn Monroe and women everywhere were trying to attain that perfect figure. With the end of World War II came (mostly) the end of the working woman. More women were able to be housewives, and advertisers took note of that and household products to make running a family easier became a focus.

Marilyn Monroe (Niagara, 1953) for Westmore Hollywood Cosmetics

Even more important, it imparts a radiant natural glow that brings out your true beauty!

Perma-Lift Brassiere

"The Lift that never lets you down!"

7-Up

Crystal-clear, sparkling 7-Up is so pure, so good, so wholesome that folks of all ages can "fresh up" often!

DuPont Cellophane

Good things are twice as good in Cellophane.

Crisco 

Crisco-fried foods are so digestible you can eat them 7 days a week!

Now, I'm no advertising expert and I certainly don't keep up with today's adverts, but I know we would never see babies in cellophane in an ad today! It's fun for me to see old ads. They all have so much wording, really trying to sell their product! I really love the ones featuring the most beautiful movie stars, but that brassiere one really speaks to me!

 Until next time,

Tuesday Teaser: Niagara Falls

Part two of our "babymoon" is coming up for this week's Throwback Thursday blog post!! 

It was an exciting, once-in-a-lifetime kind of trip for my husband & I (and our furbabies!!) 

And what do you know? One of my favorite old movies is based in Niagara Falls! 'Niagara' stars Joseph Cotten and Marilyn Monroe and is about deception and murder. Oh, my!! 

See you Thursday!! 

♥Rachel

Marvelous Monday, dahhling.

I hope you all had the most divine Monday! 

Until next time, 

♥Rachel 

*Photo courtesy of a Google image search. If it is yours & you wish for me to remove it, please email me!*

Fashion Throwback: 1950s

If you haven't figured it out yet, I have a sick obsession with pretty vintage things. I'm interested with the 1920s-1960s, but I have a soft spot for the '50s. I can't figure out what it is about that decade that I adore so much, but whatever it is has grabbed a hold of me and won't let go. And I'm okay with that.

Last weekend, I finally pulled the trigger and purchased a couple vintage 1950s day dresses from two different shops on Etsy. Some days, I just feel like wearing a pretty dress when we go out, and I only have a few things I can wear. Once I receive both dresses and get a chance to wear them, I will write a review and give the shops a shout out so you can check them out too. 

My absolute favorite thing about 1950s fashion are shirt dresses. The medium heavy cotton fabric, the circle skirt with a crinoline underneath, the fab collars... ahh!! They can be fancy and worn for a night on the town. Accessorized with pretty white or lacy gloves, a diamond necklace, stilettos, and a clutch, a girl could dress to the nines! They can also be dressed down, casual, lighter weight fabric, no crinoline, some cute flats and a handbag, and a girl could be ready for a day of shopping or a day at the park. I prefer my dresses to be about knee length since I have a toddler son. I can still reasonably play with him and not have to worry about what my dress is doing.

I would definitely wear each of these styles.

That square neckline on the right!! 

This one!! I wonder if she still has it? I'll find it.

I would LOVE to have this beauty in my closet!

I'm loving that collar/sleeve combo on pattern number 2.

I'm obsessed with the skirt on this one! 

Lucy Ricardo frequently wore a shirt dress. That's probably why

we get along so well. Yes, we're friends.

Yes, you can run away now.

I'd understand.

I also enjoy a good circle skirt. They are about the same style as a shirt dress, the same shape and flow, but you can mix and match tops! 

Audrey Hepburn in a circle skirt minus crinoline. Simply lovely.

This pattern is amazing!! The perfect length.

The bottom right is a perfect example of what a light

slip can do for a circle skirt.

Girls of all ages can easily pull of a circle skirt! This catalog is so cute!

I also have a love of 1950s style one-piece swim suits. As a mom taking a toddler to the pool, I have more to worry about and focus on than wondering if the appropriate body parts are staying covered.  While the bikini was invented in the 1940s, still pretty much the only women to wear them were some movie stars in the 1950s like Rita Hayworth and Ava Gardner to gain publicity, and they weren't really widely accepted until the '60s. The one-piece style is classic. Esther Williams, a swimming prodigy turned movie star, made the one-piece style famous. 

Three bathing beauties.

Aren't they just precious??

Obsessed with the glamour in this photo! 

The million dollar mermaid, Esther Williams. So cute, right?

Yep, even Marilyn wore this style of bathing suit. 

These are just a few of my favorite things. I have so many other vintage styles that I love, but these 3 are absolutely at the top of my list.  My dream closet is full of pretty vintage dresses! My real closet is not, however. Please tweet me, email me, or comment on this blog post and tell me what your favorite vintage fashions are! Or you can request a topic!! I'd love to hear from you! (All of my information is at the top of the page under 'Contact') 

♥Rachel

**All photos used on this blog post were found on Google Image search. If they belong to you and you do not wish for me to use them, please email me!**