Although she had a turbulent relationship with her mother (more on that later), Bow never stopped being her biggest defender. I'm a big freak, because I'm myself! [16] "I was sick to my stomach", she recalled and thought her mother was right about the movie business. This did not please her studio executive B.P. Her imagery and electric, sexy performances spoke to the flapper persona of the times. Schulberg. "[116] The film went on to win the first Academy Award for Best Picture. Rate. I knew I could never go back to being a tomboy. In the 1920s, studio systems ruled the roost, and actresses often rose or fell on the power of studio publicity sprees. She hasn't any secrets from the world, she trusts everyone she is almost too good to be true (I) only wish some reformer who believes the screen contaminates all who associate with it could meet this child. [102] Bow negotiated her Paramount contract to not have a morals clause. She had other two sisters who sadly died while they were still infants. In September 1937, she and Bell opened The 'It' Cafe in the Hollywood Plaza Hotel at 1637 N Vine Street near Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. My right arm was developed from pitching so much Once I hopped a ride on behind a big fire engine. The personal quality"It" provides the magic to make it happen. Profession: Actress Debut: Beyond the Rainbow. 111, P.S. As she slipped closer to a major breakdown her manager, B.P. 1. Tui did complain about Creepy Roberts insatiable appetite in bed, but she put up with it. [36] Bow did five scenes and impressed Cabanne with her ability to produce tears on call, but was cut from the final print. She needed specific direction and hated rehearsals, but after that shed take off. You're terrible!' Alice Joyce starred as her dancing mother, with Conway Tearle as "bad-boy" Naughton. After 1927's It, a film adapted from a Elinor Glyn novella, Clara Bow became very popular . of Children: 2 Son Son: George Beldam, Jr. , Rex Bell Jr. . I once directed Clara Bow (Wings). Both Clara and her mother nearly didnt make it, and Bow later recalled how the two of them looked death in the face that day. This family portrait of Rex Bell, cowboy actor, and his wife Clara Bow, former. Bow came to personify the . The contest earned Bow a trophy and a small film role, but no contract. Although his famous daughter supported him financially and gave him jobs, Robert always managed to be out of money. Either way, no one was surprised when it ended, but they were downright astonished by just how quickly things went south. Bow came by her famous, wild red locks naturally, but she still got a little artificial help for it. Claras Bows final public performance was not on the silver screen, but on the radio. Father: Robert Bow Mother: Sarah Bow Marital Status: Divorced Ex Spouse: Rex Bell (1931 - 1962) No. We want our readers to trust us. He was the youngest daughter of Robert and Sarah Box. They are snobs. When fans of the new star found out she put, An autographed picture of Bow is offered as a consolation prize of a beauty contest in the 1931, During her lifetime, Bow was the subject of wild rumors regarding her sex life; many of them were untrue. [16], It was snowing. Skip to the beginning of the carousel. "[85] And Louise Brooks (from 1980): "(Bow) became a star without nobody's help". She settled down with her hunky Cowboy co-star Rex Bell, moving into his ranch outside of Hollywood and marrying him in December, 1931. Sarah Bow was the mother of famed, Old Hollywood "It Girl" Clara Bow and the wife of Robert Bow. Clara Bow was born on 1905-07-29. Oh, but itll get creepier, Bow starred in the first movie to ever win Best Picture at the Oscars. In an attempt to overcome her youthful looks, Bow put her hair up and arrived in a dress she "sneaked" from her mother. I knew I would have done it differently. Usually I was too fat. Need I remind you that she was 16 years old at the time? Encouraged by her father, Bow continued to visit studio agencies asking for parts. This documentary, "Clara Bow: Discovering the It Girl" tells her personal and professional story with screen clips, photos, and interviews with family, friends, and biographer David Stenn. Entrancing Facts About Madame de Pompadour, France's Most Powerful Mistress, Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIIIs First Wife, Extravagant Facts About Mohammad Reza, The Doomed Shah, Flamboyant Facts About Bugsy Siegel, The Wiseguy Who Built Vegas, Glam Facts About Nils Asther, The Male Greta Garbo, Contradictory Facts About Jon Voight, Hollywoods Reformed Hippie. Little Clara came into the world in a "bleak, sparsely furnished room above [a] dilapidated Baptist Church," and these very humble beginnings were about to turn into an absolute nightmare. In 1925, Clara started a scandalous sensation. With her tomboy charms and expressive face, Clara Bow took Old Hollywood by storm. The studio, like any other independent studio or theater at that time, was under attack from "The Big Three", MPAA, which had formed a trust to block out Independents and enforce the monopolistic studio system. [8][9][10] Her final film, Hoop-La, was released in 1933. "I can't do it." Her maid called Bow's fianc, the cowboy film star Rex Bell, who came over, and realizing the seriousness of the situation, drove Bow to a hospital where doctors determined the actress was suffering from "shattered nerves . That very year, Bow resorted to desperate measures. Bell primarily appeared in Western films during his career. Though Bow lost her fair share of cat fights in Hollywood, she did have one secret weapon. [35] Bow later learned that one of Brewsters' subeditors had urged Clifton to give her a chance.[38]. In late 1925, Bow returned to New York to co-star in the Ibsenesque[98] drama Dancing Mothers, as the good/bad "flapperish" upper-class daughter Kittens. Clara Bow lingers in the eye, long after the picture has gone. The film actress Clara Bow is the cover girl for Motion Picture Classic magazine, published in Chicago, Illinois in April of 1931. All Rights Reserved. 9, and P.S. Its an energetic but thankless role but Bow knew full well how inessential she was in that movie. Robert Bow knew of her intentions and posed no objections whatsoever. Votes: 379. Schulberg fired Jacobson for leading his starlet into scandaland Bows unhinged reaction was one for the ages. One day on the set of her talkie The Wild Party, she had to endure retake after retake because she couldnt stop nervously glancing at the microphone above her. When she was trying to make it in movies, the petite and cute Bow said casting directors always turned her downfor one disturbing reason. She was interred in the Freedom Mausoleum, Sanctuary of Heritage at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California. In January 1929, Clara Bow received more than 45,000 letters in a single month. Miss Bow and Michael Cudahy, a witness, appear above." c.1926 Robert S. Savage, son of Duluth, Minnesota steel millionaire, was a football hero at Yale; he was known as a man who never lost his head at a crucial moment. Clara was always a charmer with men, but she was also deeply damaged. Bow was so worn down, she begged the studio to release her from her contract, and checked herself into a sanatorium. [51] But first she was lent to First National Pictures to co-star in the adaptation of Gertrude Atherton's 1923 best seller Black Oxen, shot in October, and to co-star with Colleen Moore in Painted People, shot in November. The starlet was suffering from deep and violent mental issues. Moore was married to the film's producer and Bow's protests were futile. When her friend Tui Lorraine faced exile from America and desperately needed a cash injection, Clara generously offeredher own gross father, Robert. The picture was released on March 1, 1926. Painting - Print On Paper. She was born on July 29, 1905 to Robert and Sarah Bow in Prospect Heights, New York. For a time, Bow tried to return to a normal life. 29 Jul 1905 Clara Bow Birthday Clara Bow Physical Statistics & Body Measurements She told Bow she would be better off dead than a Hollywood star, then made good on that disturbing promise. A magazine quoted her as saying: Mosta my friendsre ones I knew before I paid income tax., In a town that liked to go to bed early, Bow stayed up late. Her social decorum is of that natural, good-natured, pleasantly informal kind She can act on or off the screentakes a joyous delight in accepting a challenge to vamp any selected malethe more unpromising specimen the better. Schulberg, began referring to her as "Crisis-a-day-Clara". We study audience reactions with great care. Clara Bow Height and Physical Info Some people are indeed interested in the weight and height of celebrities, but there is a more important question to ask. Her love life was far more thrilling and varied than the films she made, and theres a reason why she negotiated not to have a morals clause in her Paramount contract. She landed a role in 1921s Beyond the Rainbow. Its contents were heartbreaking. Bow suffered from chronic sinus problems, and decided to get them fixed. Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. Bow retired from acting in 1933. "I wore sweaters and old skirts didn't want to be treated like a girl". She retired from acting in 1933, but two decades later her reputation received an extra blow with Singin in the Rain, which featured Lina Lamont, the talentless flapper with a Noo Yoik twang who cant hack it in the sound era. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. The greatest box-office draw of her dayshe once received 45,000 fan letters in a single month, Clara Bow's on screen vitality and allure that beguiled . Her pains were considered delusional and she was diagnosed with schizophrenia;[144] however, she experienced neither auditory nor visual hallucinations. [3], Bow appeared in 46 silent films and 11 talkies, including hits such as Mantrap (1926), It (1927), and Wings (1927). Bow's IQ was measured "bright normal", while others claimed she was unable to reason, had poor judgment and displayed inappropriate or even bizarre behavior. Bow asked her father, but he told her not to worry. She has a big heart, a remarkable brain, and the most utter contempt for the world in general. Im a curiosity in Hollywood, she said. After winning 1921s Fame and Fortune contest, Bow was all ready to sign a movie contract. In 1929, Bows life and stardom changed forever. Amazingly, Tui and Robert actually went through with it, but not without a handful of drama. Clara Bow was a Brooklyn girl through and through. Studio executives tried to manipulate her, calling her a birdbrain and a dumbbell while she continued to make them masses of money at the box office. If you ever felt even a little bad for Claras father, you should know one thing. [79], I worked in two and even three pictures at once. The people who are held up as examples for me? [6] At the apex of her stardom, she received more than 45,000 fan letters in a single month (January 1929).[7]. She almost never went out of the house and refused to socialize, but she also hated if her husband left her alone. Bow was an amazing looking woman - a Kewpie doll face, round, with huge, expressive eyes, a brilliant smile, and thick, luxurious hair. When she heard they were casting for the film Down the Sea in Ships, she tried to hide her offending youth by marching down to the casting couch in a grown-up dress she borrowed from her mother. Clara's mother hoped that the heat would kill both her and her child and didn't bother with a birth certificate. Clara passed away on month day 2013, at age 74 at death place, Michigan. Her reputation started slipping and gossips whispered that Clara has more ID than "It." In 1927, rumor linked not to one lover but the entire lineup of USC football team including John Wayne. This profile was written in response to a request in the comments by Dickthetag. There was always something. Bows friends wondered what Tui was possibly getting out of the marriage. In 1944, when she was still in her 30s, Clara Bow tried to commit suicide, leaving only a note. I knew that she was going to take it badly, but I had no idea about the insane lengths she would go to just to get revenge and mess with my life. But having "It" didn't . "All the time the flapper is laughing and dancing, there's a feeling of tragedy underneath, She's unhappy and disillusioned, and that's what people sense"Bow[140], Bow eventually began showing symptoms of psychiatric illness. She simply didnt have the attention span for long-form literature. Bow was a working class girl who fought her way to the top. Clara was the daughter of Robert Walter Bow (1875 - 1959) By his 1st Wife Sarah F. Gordon (1879 - 1923) Robert Walter Bow (1875 - 1959) Married 2nd Wife Idella Elizabeth Mowrey Idella Elizabeth Mowrey (c 1904 - ) Was the daughter of Ella May Cure/Curea (1886 - 1970) and husband John Mowrey (dates unknown) Ella May Cure/Curea (1886 - 1970) "[33] At 16, Bow says she "knew" she wanted to be a motion pictures actress, even if she was a "square, awkward, funny-faced kid."[16]. 6465 Clara Bow Ave UNIT 102, Las Vegas, NV 89122. 9, and P.S. Gaylor Hiram Weaver Sarah Gordon Simpson Duke 1817 - 1878 Drake Martha Yet the new talkie format still took a huge toll on the actress, In truth, Bow never liked talkies, calling them stiff and limiting and complaining that you lose your cuteness. She also never got comfortable with them. let me know below. Artist: Unknown. Except she was due for more humiliation. Meanwhile, Bell became Lieutenant Governor of Nevada in 1954. Her birthplace is Brooklyn. Her interests include the European Renaissance, popular culture, and Internet history. [145] In 1965, at age 60, she died of a heart attack, which her autopsy attributed to atherosclerosis. Please reach out to us to let us know what youre interested in reading. When she tried to talk about The Butcher Knife Episode once in an interview, she cut herself off, saying, but I cant tell you about it. She suffered seizures and psychosis from the ensuing head injury, and Bow grew up learning how to control her mother during these fits. Bow appeared in eight releases in 1924, two were released the same day. Bow agreed to the script, but eventually rejected the offer since Irving Thalberg required her to sign a long-term contract. [a][21] From her earliest years, Bow had learned how to care for her mother during the seizures, as well as how to deal with her psychotic and hostile episodes. I wanna play yours. Moores response was swift and brutal. Frightful snobs Im a curiosity in Hollywood. Clara Bow (1905-1965) F. Scott Fitzgerald said of her, "This girl was the real thing. Sarah didnt listenand the conditions of Claras birth couldnt have been worse. The October 1934, Family Circle Film Guide rated the film as "pretty good entertainment" and stated: "This is the most acceptable bit of talkie acting Miss Bow has done." Bow once quipped, I could lick any boy my size. She catapulted to fame after winning Motion Picture magazine's 1921 "Fame and Fortune" contest. Her mother, Sarah Frances Bow (ne Gordon, 1880-1923), was told by a doctor not to become pregnant again, for fear the next baby might die as well. She heard his screams and ran to his aid, rolling him up in carpet to stop the fire, he died in her arms. Hollywood Legends. Before the film was finished, Schulberg announced that Bow was given the lead in the studio's biggest seasonal assessment[clarify], Poisoned Paradise. We lay in each other's arms and cried and tried to keep warm. Despite the warning, Sarah became pregnant with Clara in late 1904. Build Voluptuous She won five medals "at the cinder tracks" and credited her cousin Homer Bakerthe national half-mile (c. 800m) champion (1913 and 1914) and 660-yard (c.600m) world-record holderfor being her trainer. Bow starred as the good-bad college girl, Cynthia Day, against Donald Keith. Sadly, more harrowing moments were in store. Call Her Savage(released Nov/32)stars,among others,Clara Bow as Nasa Springer,Gilbert Roland as Moonglow,Thelma Todd as Sunny De Lane,Monroe Owsley as Lawrence Crosby,Estelle Taylor as Ruth Springer and Weldon Heyburn as Ronasa.This Clara's second to last film and is a pre code melodrama with lots of surprises, for those use to seeing post code . Bow knew she was due for her big break, and she was absolutely determined to get it. America and desperately needed a cash injection, Clara generously offeredher own gross father, Robert Bow by. 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