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Shadows and Light: Film Noir Studio Portraits from Hollywood's Golden Age

Film noir was a genre of crime dramas that emerged in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s. These films were characterized by their dark, moody, and atmospheric style and their complex and morally ambiguous characters. Many film noir movies featured hard-boiled detectives, femme Fatales, and gritty urban settings.

During Hollywood’s Golden Age, the era between the 1930s and the 1950s, many actors and actresses who starred in film noir movies had studio portraits taken. These portraits were used for publicity and promotion of the films and were often shot in a style that reflected the aesthetic of the film noir genre. The portraits often featured the actors and actresses in character, dressed in dark clothing and set against dark, moody backgrounds.

These portraits are considered iconic today, as they capture the essence of film noir and the actors and actresses who defined the genre. They are also a reminder of Hollywood’s Golden Age when the film industry was at its peak, and the stars were larger than life.

These portraits are now considered classic images and are widely reproduced in books, exhibitions, and online galleries. They have become a part of the cultural heritage of the film noir genre and continue to be admired and studied by film enthusiasts and historians alike.

#1 The Killers (1946)

The Killers (1946)

Burt Lancaster with Ava Gardner in a portrait for the film, based on a short story by Ernest Hemingway

#3 Phantom Lady (1944)

Phantom Lady (1944)

Ella Raines as the femme fatale

#4 The Devil Thumbs a Ride (1947)

The Devil Thumbs a Ride (1947)

Lawrence Tierney as the killer Steve Morgan, the killer, in a studio portrait for The Devil Thumbs a Ride.

#5 The Maltese Falcon (1941)

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Humphrey Bogart as San Francisco private detective Sam Spade and the priceless statuette of the Maltese Falcon

#6 The Lady from Shanghai (1947)

The Lady from Shanghai (1947)

Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth by Robert Coburn

#7 The Killing (1956)

The Killing (1956)

Sterling Hayden and Marie Windsor for Stanley Kubrick’s film noir

#8 The Big Sleep (1946)

The Big Sleep (1946)

Bogart and Bacall had two years earlier on the set of To Have and Have Not and married in 1945

#9 Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Erich von Stroheim and William Holden

#11 Panic in the Streets (1950)

Panic in the Streets (1950)

Jack Palance as Blackie during the filming of Elia Kazan’s ilm noir. The portrait of Jack Palance in his first film role as the ruthless hoodlum Blackie was taken by the studio’s on-set photographer during the filming of Elia Kazan’s classis Film-Noir. It was used as one of the press stills to promote the movie and most notably used as the basis of the artwork on the exceptional original Spanish poster by illustrator Josep Soligo.

#12 Out of the Past (1947)

Out of the Past (1947)

Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer by RKO photographer Ernest A Bachrach

#13 Notorious (1946)

Notorious (1946)

Ingrid Bergman before Friedrich von Ledebur, Peter von Zerneck and EA Krumschmidt for Alfred Hitchcock’s noir thriller.

#14 Mildred Pierce (1945)

Mildred Pierce (1945)

Joan Crawford in her Oscar-winning performance as Mildred Pierce – : ‘The kind of Woman that most men want – BUT SHOULDN’T HAVE!’

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Written by Aurora Hale

I am a blogger, entrepreneur and small business coach. I'm an introvert and cat lover. My favourite hobbies are breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

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