Femmes Fatales | Oct 3 2019 |

She captures your attention from the first sentence of the first paragraph.
She was born Donna Mae Tjaden, but launched her show business career as Janis Paige, and under that name appeared in films like Of Human Bondage and Fugitive Lady, before transitioning almost exclusively to television around 1953. The above photo is credited as being from the “1950s,” which seems a bit broad to us. We can do better. The back tells us it's a Warner Brothers promo, and as we mentioned, Paige moved into television in 1953. We think the photo is most likely from 1950. Paige starred in the Warner crime drama This Side of the Law that year.
Femmes Fatales | May 21 2019 |

Don't let the smile fool you—that's just acting. This is painful as hell.
This unusual balancing act on a pommel horse shows U.S. actress Margaret Lee, and we can't help but wonder how many times she toppled off this thing. Well, they say if you fall off just get right back on, and presumably she did. This is the first Margaret Lee, by the way. There have been other—presumably far less flexible—actresses with the same name. Her career consisted almost entirely of short features and uncredited roles, with her finale coming in 1946's Of Human Bondage. The shot is from Universal International Pictures and was photographed by famed lensman Ray Jones. Though it's undated we'll take a guess when it was made—call it 1930.
Femmes Fatales | Jan 28 2015 |

It was a wonderful Life.
An ethereal Gloria Grahame poses for a promo photo during a session that would produce a famous cover for Life. Grahame was a true great of acting who starred in the classics It’s a Wonderful Life, The Bad and the Beautiful, Human Bondage, and Oklahoma!, but who we prefer to remember for her film noir roles—among them: In a Lonely Place, The Big Heat, Crossfire, Sudden Fear, and Naked Alibi. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she took the town by storm and made an indelible mark in film. The above photo and cover below are from 1946.

Femmes Fatales | Oct 15 2014 |

Undercover but not inconspicuous.
Above, Canadian actress Alexis Smith, née Gladys Smith, in a Universal International Pictures promo shot made in 1950 for her cop thriller Undercover Girl. She also appeared in Conflict, Of Human Bondage, The Two Mrs. Carrolls, and more than fifty other films.