We’re going back to Marilyn’s Hollywood roots with our first guest on the All Things Marilyn podcast. We're thrilled to interview Jean Harlow author, historian and collector Darrell Rooney.
- How much do you know about Harlow?
- Was Harlow a childhood idol of Marilyn’s?
- How did Marilyn discover Jean Harlow?
- What were the similarities between the two film stars?
- Was Marilyn the first “platinum blonde,” or was it actually Jean Harlow?
- Did Marilyn recreate many of Harlow’s famous photographs?
- Did Marilyn actually want to be the new Jean Harlow?
- Did the two paths of these screen legends ever cross, even though they died 25 years apart?
Marilyn even collected Jean Harlow memorabilia! As a child, young Norma Jeane gathered cigarette cards with photos of movie stars from the golden age of Hollywood. She saved them in an album issued by John Player & Sons tobacco company. Celebrities included in the album are Jean Harlow, Clark Gable, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Gary Cooper, Greta Garbo, Robert Montgomery and many others. Marilyn saved this item from her childhood. Today, the album, which is fully complete with all cards, is a cherished artifact owned by the Marilyn Monroe Collection.
About Darrell Rooney
Darrell Rooney is an award-winning Animation Director, his most notable credit being “Lion King 2: Simba’s Pride." He has worked on everything from “Beauty and the Beast” and “Aladdin” at Disney, to “Family Dog” and “The Brave Little Toaster,” and recently, all of the “Hotel Transylvania” movies at Sony.
His interest in Jean Harlow began in the late 60s - early 70s when there was a big nostalgia boom. John Kobal glamour photography books introduced him to the radiant Jean Harlow. He thought she had a face like sunshine. He started collecting photos and anything he could find on Harlow, never dreaming that someday he would own objects that actually belonged to her. The Ignatieff mural was a 1932 gift to Jean from husband Paul Bern. He is now considered to be the custodian of this important artifact. In 2017, he rescued the long lost 1937 Harlow painting “Farewell to Earth.”
Jean Harlow’s 100th birthday was celebrated with the release of Harlow in Hollywood in 2011, which he co-authored with the talented Mark Alan Vieira. His crowning glory was mounting two popular exhibitions of Jean Harlow memorabilia at the Hollywood Museum in the historic Max Factor Building. Harlow in Hollywood is just about to be re-released in a new updated edition coming out sometime in October, 2022.
Follow Darrell online on Facebook and Instagram!
ATM Podcast: @allthingsmarilynpodcast
Scott @marilynmonroecollection
Elisa @la_woman_tours
Credits
Artwork by @marilynmexico
Soundtrack by @silver_technicolor
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