"If nothing else, there's applause...like waves of love pouring over the footlights."

Anne Baxter was born in Michigan City, Indiana in 1923. Her maternal grandfather was Frank Lloyd Wright, famous and still revered architect. At the age of 11, her family moved to New York City and encouraged her to seek the spotlight of acting. She was acting on Broadway and other stage productions from the age of 13 until 16. It was then that Anne decided to give Hollywood another shot at hiring her. She signed  seven-year contract with Twentieth Century-Fox but made her first film with MGM. She was loaned to the other studio to make 20 Mule Team. The first film in which Anne made top billing was 1943's The North Star. It was a success.

"Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me."

Anna Maria Louisa Italiano was born September 17, 1931 in the Bronx. Anna graduated from Christopher Columbus High School and then attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and the Actors Studio. In her early television career, Anna adopted the stage name of Anne Marno before being told to take the name Anne Bancroft when she made her film debut. Her film debut was in 1954 in the film Don't Bother to Knock.

You'll Never See Me Again

Jane Wyatt was born to a Wall Street investment banker and a drama critic in New York City. She attended Chapin School, Barnard College, and was courted by John D. Rockafeller III. She chose to pursue a career in Broadway, television and film and began as the understudy in Trade Winds. A few more Broadway roles and Wyatt was under contract with Universal Studios.

"I am just too much."

Bette Davis made got her start in acting on Broadway at the age of 21. After a second Broadway role that same year, she decided to pursue her career in Hollywood with a screen test. Universal picked her up, but only for six films. She then moved on to Warner Bros. in 1932 and a seven year contract with them. In 1935 Bette won her first Oscar for the movie Dangerous. In 1939 Bette she won her second Oscar for the film Jezebel.

Pin Up Girl

Betty Grable was the youngest of three children. Unlike other profiled here, she entered into show business at her mother's prodding and not out of necessity of the income. She began working in a chorus line at age 13. Her age was not easily discerned because the chorus line performed in black face. (Yikes!) Grable eventually became a contract player at 20th Century Fox and went on to be one of their top stars in the 1940s.

Meet Me in St. Louis

Like other Beautiful Women I've shared, Myrna Loy entered acting at the age of 15 to help her family after the passing of her father. Supposedly, Rudolph Valentino's wife happened to be in the audience of one of Myrna's plays and facilitated her entry into films. Myrna's film career would include around 129 films, both silent and sound. Loy is probably best known for her role in The Thin Man with William Powell and the many sequels of that series.
(I apologize for the shortness of the post, but Blogger is being a douche.)

Gypsy

Natalie Wood began her acting career in Miracle on 34th Street at the age of nine. Beautiful, dark-haired, girl next door Natalie Wood went on to star in twenty films before being cast in Rebel Without a Cause at the age of 16. Wood earned her first Academy Award Nomination for her role as Judy opposite James Dean's Jim in Rebel.

"Off the job I'm a real pussycat."

Tamara Dobson is best known for her role in the 70s Blaxploitaion films Cleopatra Jones and Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold. The 6'2" stunner started out as a fashion model before making films. Sadly, I was unable to find the wealth of information that many of my other Beautiful Women have on the web.

"This is beautiful and very outspoken."

Perhaps you don't know this lovely lady. You should. She has an accomplishment that no one else in the world can claim. She is the only person of East Asian descent to win an Academy Award for acting. Miyoshi Umeki was born in Japan in 1929 where her father owned an iron factory. She was the youngest of nine children. She started her entertainment career as a nightclub singer in Japan after World War 2. Umeki also had a record deal with RCA Victor Japan in the early 1950s. In 1955 she came to the United States.

"I have worked like a dog all my life, honey."

Ann Miller was signed to a contract with RKO at the age of 13. She claimed to be 18 at the time and as there was no internet to check things like this in the 1930s and Miller was considered to be a dance prodigy, I think we can forgive them for not being more thorough. At 14 Ann appeared with Ginger Rogers and began working her way through more than 40 films in 20 years. The studios she worked for often boasted than Ann could tap 500 times a minute, though this was an exaggeration. She worked with James Stewart, the Marx Brothers, Gene Autry, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Mickey Rooney, Ethel Merman, Cab Calloway, Carol Channing, Della Reese, Van Miller, and more. Ann's last film role was in David Lynch's Mulholland Drive. She also appeared on television and stage during her career.

"I can be smart when I need to be."

Just as beautiful all glammed up and she was with minimum makeup, Marilyn Monroe is an enduring icon of sexuality and beauty. Born Norma Jeane Baker in 1926, the girl bounced from orphanages to foster homes until her marriage at the age of 16. After her husband was shipped off in the war, Norma Jeane was discovered by a photographer capturing images of women's efforts during the war. Within 2 years, Norma Jeane was a popular model. When her husband returned home in 1946, Norma Jeane divorced him and chose to pursue her dream of a film career. Shortly after her divorce, she was signed to a contract with Twentieth Century Fox, changed her name to Marilyn Monroe, and dyed her hair blonde.

" A wed wose. How womantic."

Madeline Kahn is gorgeous, talented, and she's in some of the funniest and most beloved films of our time. Surprisingly, Kahn graduated from Hofstra University in 1964 with a degree in....speech therapy. She began teaching at public school in New York and auditioning for stage roles. 1968 saw her finally making a splash on the stage and her feature film debut in What's Up, Doc? came in 1972. She continued to make memorable films in the 70s, most notably those with director Mel Brooks. Kahn appeared in Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, and High Anxiety. Her role as Lili von Shtupp in Blazing Saddles earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination.

"Oh, I just sing like I hurt inside."

I remember watching the movie Sweet Dreams starring Jessica Lange as Patsy Cline and Ed Harris as her husband Charlie Dick. I was way, way too young to be watching this movie when I did, but I was intrigued by the tumultuous life and jarring death of the woman with the rich, gorgeous voice.

Patsy was born Virginia Patterson Hensley in 1932. Like some of our other beautiful women, Patsy dropped out of high school and began working to supplement the family income. She was working regular jobs during the day and then singing at night in her iconic fringed cowgirl outfits. Her first hit song wouldn't come until she was 25 years old; "Walkin' After Midnight" was number 2 on the country chart and number 12 on the pop charts. Cline was one of the first to have a crossover hit.

Blonde Venus

Marlene Dietrich was born in Berlin-Schoneberg in 1901. She began acting at the age of 21 with her first lead role seven years later. She didn't move to America until she was 28 and made her first American film that same year.

Unpleasant Dreams

Do you recognize this woman?

One In A Million

Taken from us far too soon, Aaliyah was only 22 years old when a tragic plane crash took her life. She had just finished filming a new music video and decided to come home early. Unfortunately, the plane that she and her entourage boarded was overloaded with passengers and equipment. I remember that day and how I felt knowing that someone my age had been cut short in such an unexpected and possibly avoidable way. Mortality slapped me in the face.
But what of her talents? Her contributions to the musical world? Aaliyah signed a record deal at the age of twelve and began recording her debut Age Ain't Nothing But A Number with her mentor R. Kelly. This was followed by One In A Million and the soundtrack to her first feature film Romeo Must Die. She began work on Queen of the Damned and released the album Aaliyah.

The Barefoot Contessa

Ava Gardner started her Hollywood career after her brother-in-law posted a photograph of her in his store window. MGM signed the 18 year old to a seven year contract in 1941. Between her signing and her breakthrough performance in The Killers, Ava marries and divorces Mickey Rooney and Artie Shaw. In 1951 Ava marries her third and final husband, Frank Sinatra. She receives an Oscar nomination in 1953 for her work in Mogambo.

Stormy Weather

As well known for her acting and singing as for her fight for civil rights, the lovely Lena Horne left us just this year. Horne started her career in Harlem's Cotton Club after leaving school at 16 to help provide for her mother. She became the first African-American to sign a long term contract with a studio and was the highest paid black actor in the 1940s. She was one of the many actors to be persecuted by the anti-Communist hysteria in the 50s because of her activities in civil rights. Not one to be bullied, Horne marched on Washington in 1963.

"I'm not a bad witch! I'm a good witch!"

Elizabeth Montgomery was best known for her role as Samantha Stephens on "Bewitched". The 5'6.5" beauty also made many, many television movies like "The Legend of Lizzie Borden" and "Act of Violence". I've never seen them either. Ahem. She also married four times and had three children. She ranked number 52 in FHM's list of the 100 sexiest women of all time.

An American Dream

Janet Leigh is best known for her role as Marion Crane in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Though Leigh is only in the movie for less than half of it, everyone remembers her iconic shower scene vividly. The implied nudity, brutality, and convincing scream from Leigh made more than a few people frightened to shower without the doors securely locked.

Some Thought

I've been unsure about how much information to include in my posts. I didn't want to go all biographer on you but I also don't want to just describe what you can see for yourself when looking at the photos of the ladies. So, from the next post on I'll be providing more information about the women while also trying to focus on what made them so irresistible. It'll be a bit more wordy, but I believe that any readers that I might have can handle it. And if you can't, skip the words and get right to the ogling. I won't be able to tell the difference.

A Woman of Distinction

A talented comedienne with beauty to spare. Russel was not seen as a sex symbol in her day, but as a character actress. Really?

Oh look, we have created enchantment!

Best known as Scarlett O'Hara, Vivien Leigh possesses a grace and beauty that is timeless. The arch of her eyebrow seems to tease while her eyes look right through you and her full lips hint at a smile.

The Temptress

Another day, another gorgeous film icon. Garbo was declared to be the most beautiful woman that ever lived in 1954 by Guinness World Records. She is also credited as the first method actress and one of the highest paid women in the 1930s. She made over 25 films and was nominated for 4 Academy Awards.

Pandora's Box

Louise Brooks started in the silent Hollywood films of the 1920s and moved on to films in Germany. Her haircut was the "Rachel" of her time, causing many to adopt the now iconic bob.

I'm No Angel

Mae West is clearly voluptuous and sultry. She's also one of my favorites because of her sense of humor and bawdy quotes. So I'm going to accompany her photos with some of my favorite quotes from the unique Ms. West:
"A hard man is good to find."
"A man in love is like a clipped coupon--it's time to cash in."
"Good sex is like good Bridge; If you don't have a good partner, you'd better have a good hand."

Lily of the Field

Anna May Wong is another Hollywood trailblazer with talent and good looks to spare. The Los Angeles-born beauty is known for her role in Shanghai Express with Marlene Dietrich but has over sixty television and movie roles and appearances to her credit. Though Anna May struggled to win film roles, with Hollywood preferring to cast white actors in "yellow face", she worked until her death in 1961.

Easy to Love

The beautiful Josephine Baker. She broke barriers in Hollywood with her voice and acting. She broke hearts with that gorgeous face, sparkling eyes, and warm smile.

Peek-A-Boo!

Another iconic hairstyle and an enviable body. In my (limited) research, I found that Lake was referred to as The Bitch by one of her co-stars. I fear the name has more to do with that golden, wavy hair, sultry mouth, and a body that won't stop housing the personality of a spitfire.

"I Was Never the Girl Next Door"

Well, you sort of look like the girl next door here. Sweet smile, warm eyes, creamy skin, dark and luminous hair. I'm not sure what you mean by that quote, Bettie.

Schöne Münchenerin

The daughter of a shoemaker, Helene Sedlmayr, the "Beauty of Munich", caught the eye of Bavarian King Ludwig I when she was only fifteen. He ordered a painting to be made of her, so as to capture her beauty and display it in his palace. Her picture now hangs in the Munich Residenz in the Gallery of Beauties of KingLudwig I. But enough historical education! 

Look at her lovely eyes, her tiny waist and that shiny hair. Beautiful. (She was 15)

Thanks to Jen K. for the submission of Ms. Sedlmayr!

The Girl Can't Help It

Jayne Mansfield, screen siren and shunner of clothes. But with a body like that, why would you even try to contain the sexy with trifles such as pants and bras? It is madness to cover up such curves with anything that doesn't highlight them.

She's Got Legs, And She Knows How To Use Them

Look at those legs. I mean, damn. Cyd Charisse danced with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly on those heavenly gams. She captivated Hollywood with those legs and good looks. Obviously Charisse looks like a real sultry siren in that kitty-cat number up there, but she also had the innocent look of the girl next door.

Well, Princess, it looks like you managed to keep me here a while longer.

Can you believe that gorgeous face? CAN YOU? Those cheekbones, those eyes, those full, luscious lips. And she gets to be a princess? In Monaco? So not fair. But soooo sexy and beautiful. And?

L’amour est un oiseau rebelle

The beautiful and talented Dorothy Dandridge, how I envy your flawless skin and curvy body. Your voice is probably making the angels in heaven jealous, but with the flash of one of your sly smiles and a sultry wink, they get over it. I daresay you're courting some of the fine male specimens shown here while romping naked up there (everyone is naked in Heaven, right?) At least, that's what I'll be imagining. I bet I won't be the only one.

A Little Somethin' Somethin' For the Fellas*

Hello. Welcome. If you happened upon this blog via search engine then what the hell did you type in? Seriously though, welcome. Perhaps you've heard of our brother site, Handsome Men Who Are Now Dead? If not, click on over and gaze upon men who are deceased but still able to light a fire in our panties. Nice, right? Yeah. Mama like.  But this is about the ladies, so. Sit down. Grab something to drink and bathe in the beauty of yesteryear as we gaze upon the countenances of ladies who are no longer with us but still beautiful. Sexy even. Ladies that you would not hesitate to buy a drink for and drop a crappy pick-up line on if you were to find yourself traveling back in time so that you could save your future. Or something.

Luckily, I've got quite a few starting suggestions from people on the Facebook, including Kriegerfrau , the inventor of the dead sessy people blogs, and many other hot, but still very much alive, Pajibans. Those will not last forever though. So sit back, relax, and start sending in suggestions for posts to zoidbergmaybe@yahoo.com. Rawr.

*Or anyone that likes looking at sexy ladies. Which should be everyone.