14 April 2015

Greetings from Utrecht, Part 1

This weekend we visited the International Collectors Fair in Utrecht. It was fun! In three posts we will share 36 of our new acquisitions.

Ursula Andress
Italian postcard, no. 100/111.

Stunning Swiss sex symbol, starlet and jet-setter Ursula Andress (1936) will always be remembered as the first and quintessential Bond girl. In Dr. No (1962) she made film history when she spectacularly rises out of the Caribbean Sea in a white bikini. Though she won a Golden Globe Ursula's looks generally outweighed her acting talent and she never took her film career very seriously.

Catherine Demongeot in Zazie dans le metro (1960)
French card. Photo: René Mansat. Publicity still for Zazie dans le métro/Zazie in the Metro (1960).

Catherine Demongeot (1950) made her film debut in the lead role of Zazie dans le metro/Zazie in the Metro (Louis Malle, 1960), based on the novel by Raymond Queneau. She only made two more films. Later on, Demongeot went on to become a teacher.

Edith Piaf
French postcard by S.E.R.P., Paris, no. 62. Photo: Studio Harcourt, Paris.

Édith Piaf (1915–1963) is a cultural icon and is universally regarded as France's greatest popular singer. Her ballads, like La Vie en rose (1946) and Non, je ne regrette rien (1960), reflected her life. She appeared sporadically in films.

Gabriel Signoret by Cabrol
French postcard by Publications J.P., Paris, no. 311. Illustration: Cabrol.

Gabriel Signoret aka Signoret (1878-1937) was a French actor and director who played in some 85 films, mostly silent ones. Raoul Cabrol (1895–1956) was a French caricaturist.

Pierre Cour as Régisseur Albert
French postcard by Editions P.I., Paris. Photo: Star, Paris.

For French baby boomers, Régisseur Albert is a radio hero from their youth. The radio show he appeared in was called Silence... Antenne , broadcast on Monday evenings at Radio-Inter. Régisseur Albert was played by Pierre Lemaire, who also appeared in some films as Pierre Cour.

Sacha Guitry
French postcard by F.A., no. 9. Photo: H. Manuel.

French actor, dramatist and director Sacha Guitry (1885-1957) was known for his stage performances, often in the more than 120 plays he wrote. Guitry's plays range from historical dramas to contemporary light comedies. From the 1930s to the end of his life he enthusiastically embraced the cinema, making as many as five films in a single year. After his death, 12,000 people filed past his coffin before his burial in Paris. On 18 May, there will be a special post on Sacha Guitry at EFSP.

Albert Préjean for Clacquesin
French promotion postcard for Clacquesin, Extrait de Pins. Caption: "For your pleasure, for your health, drink Clacquesin every season. The healthiest Appetizer."

French actor and singer Albert Préjean (1894-1979) was a former WWI flying ace. He is best known for playing heroes in the silent films of René Clair, and for playing George Simenon's detective Maigret.

Anna Pavlova in The Dying Swan
German postcard.

Anna Pavlovna (1881–1931) was a Russian prima ballerina of the late 19th and the early 20th centuries. She was a principal artist of the Imperial Russian Ballet and the Ballets Russes of Sergei Diaghilev. Pavlova is most recognized for the creation of the role The Dying Swan and, with her own company, became the first ballerina to tour ballet around the world.

Patachon
French postcard by Cinémagazine-Edition, Paris, no. 428.

Patachon a.k.a. Harald Madsen (1890-1949) became very popular in the 1920’s as the short half of Danish double-act Fy og Bi (Fyrtårnet og Bivognen or Pat & Patachon). With long Carl Schenstrom, he formed the most famous comedy couple of the European silent cinema. In Europe, their short slapstick films were as popular as the Laurel & Hardy comedies.

Armand Bernard in Michel Strogoff
French postcard by Tobis. Photo: Les productions J.N. Ermolieff. Publicity still for Michel Strogoff (Jacques de Baroncelli, Richard Eichberg, 1936).

Armand Bernard (1893-1968) was a French actor, composer and band leader. With his heavy diction and his air of dignity he brought a comical note to many French comedies.

Jean Gabin
French collectors card by Massilia.

French actor and war hero Jean Gabin (1904-1976) was one of the great stars of the European cinema. In the 1930s he became the personification of the tragic romantic hero of the poetic realist film. Whether he played a legionnaire in Gueule d'amour , a deserter in Le Quai des brumes or the head gangster in Pépé le Moko, Gabin was impeccable, bringing a tragic humanity to each of his appearances which the public adored. After the war Gabin was reborn as a tough anti-hero, set in his beliefs, feared and respected by all, the Godfather of French cinema.

Raquel Welch
Spanish postcard, no. 11.

American actress Raquel Welch (1940) is one of the icons of the 1960s and 1970s. She first won attention for her role in Fantastic Voyage (1966). In Great Britain, she then made One Million Years B.C. (1966). Although she had only three lines in the film, a poster of Welch in a furry prehistoric bikini became an amazing bestseller and catapulted her to stardom.

Next thursday, 12 more postcards we found at the International Collectors Fair in Utrecht.

1 comment:

Bunched Undies said...

A great haul Bob! Looking forward to seeing the rest.