Cosplay is an Art: OTAKON 2022, Washington, D.C.

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Jean Harlow

Acting Appreciation

The original bombshell was Jean Harlow, an American actress during the late 1920s. She introduced a new type of woman to Hollywood -- a blend of shock and desire.

Born in Kansas City, Missouri on March 3,1911, Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter) moved with her mom to Hollywood in 1923. Her mother, Jean Carpenter, who was 32 years-old, had hopes of becoming an actress. 

Their time in Hollywood was short-lived since their finances dwindled. They moved back to Kansas City after Jean Carpenter's father issued an ultimatum. 

While attending high school in Lake Forest, Illinois, Jean Harlow met Charles "Chuck" Fremont McGrew III. They got married in 1927, when she was 16. They would both move to Los Angeles, where Harlow thrived as a wealthy socialite. 

In 1928, she was discovered in the Fox Studios parking lot by Fox executives. At first, she was not interested in auditioning and explained that she was there helping a friend. After pressure from her mother, she auditioned and eventually accepted a role. Her first film was Honor Bound (1928) as an extra.

In December 1928, Jean Harlow signed a five-year contract with Hal Roach Studios for $100 per week (about $1,735 today). She had small roles in the 1929 Laurel and Hardy shorts: Double Whoopee, Liberty and Bacon Grabbers.

By the end of 1929, she parted ways from Hal Roach Studios and divorced her husband. She continued to work as an "extra" in films such as This Thing Called Love, Close Harmony, and The Love Parade. 

Around that time, she signed with film producer Howard Hughes, who directed her first major role in Hell's Angels (1930).  She played a flirtatious vamp. The film was a huge hit.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer bought out Harlow's contract in 1932 and cast her in leading comedic roles such as: Red-Headed Woman (1932), Red Dust (1932), Dinner at Eight (1933), and Bombshell (1933). 

Harlow's popularity rivaled and then surpassed that of MGM's top leading ladies Joan Crawford, Greta Garbo and Norma Shearer. Her platinum blond hair, seductive gaze, and 5'1" hourglass figure was revolutionary at the time when Hollywood actresses were more wholesome. Aside of her beauty, she had comedic timing and a natural charm.

While filming her final film, Saratoga, Harlow began experiencing illness. Her symptoms included fatigue, nausea, fluid retention, and abdominal pain. On May 29, 1937, while filming a scene which her character had a fever, she leaned against her co-star Clark Gabel and said, "I feel terrible! Get me back to my dressing room." 

On June 6, she was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles where she slipped into a coma. She passed away the following day of kidney failure. She was 26. Her death left the film industry in shock. 

Her on-screen chemistry with leading men like Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy helped to establish her as one of the most sought-after actresses of the decade. The legacy she left behind, breaking the mold of the traditional Hollywood glamour and introduced the "sex symbol" paved way for future generation of Hollywood stars.

Sources:

Wikipedia

Britannica.com/biography/Jean-Harlow

Jean Harlow. Pictorial. PLAYBOY, August 1994, Volume 41, No. 8, pg. 83

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Amber Smith

Actress Appreciation

As a college kid, every month, I looked forward in the cover model of Playboy. March 1995 issue featured supermodel Amber Smith wearing long yellow satin gloves and feather boa. 

That issue (vol. 42. no. 3) was filled with great stories, opinions and interviews. Really. There were  articles on a father's role in female's reproductive rights, magician David Copperfield, an interview with ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky, 20 questions with Jon Stewart, and the centerfold of Playmate Stacy Sanches. But lets focus on Amber Smith.

Born on March 2, 1971, Amber Smith started her modeling career at age 16 with South Beach model agency Irene Marie Models. Following her appearance in the 1993 and 1994 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, she modeled for Wonderbra, then posed for photographer Helmut Newton for a Wolford advertising campaign, and Playboy. She was also the spokesperson for Michelob Ultra Amber lite beer. She then landed TV and film roles like L.A. Confidential and American Beauty. 

As a 22-year old, Amber was photographed by Bert Stern, who's best known for shooting Marilyn Monroe's last nude session. Amber's photo spread captures all of her 179cm (5'10.5") of beauty wearing only jewelry, sequin shorts, and rhinestone heels. 

As explained by the article's writer Christopher Napolitano, the supermodel prepared for the photoshoot by covering her bedroom walls with classic pinups, "To prepare for her starring role in PLAYBOY, she covered her bedroom walls with posters of such pinup classics as Rita Hayworth, Jayne Mansfield and her all time idol, Marilyn Monroe."

Nightscream

Walter Iooss, Jr. / Sports Illustrated

Bert Stern / Playboy

Bert Stern / Playboy

Source: Wikipedia

Three Hours Later

"Call me when you are ready to go," I say.

"Okay," she responds.

"Like, when you have your shoes on and out the door, ready."

"Okay."

This is the conversation I constantly have with my girlfriend. Yet, when I arrive, there's been only a handful of times when she is actually ready to go. More often, I am waiting in the car for her to finally get out of the house. What's worse is when she forgets something and I have to wait another few minutes until she finally returns with whatever she forgot. 

Of course, I do appreciate that she takes the time to make herself pretty. Because in reality, she's not doing it just for herself. She's doing this for me. She wants to look her best as my arm candy. Granted, she does make us look better. 

by Enzo Comics

William Degouve de Nuncques

Art Appreciation

Born on February 28, 1867, William Degouve de Nuncques was a Belgian Symbolist painter known for his dreamlike landscapes and use of vibrant colors. 

He began his artistic training at the Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels, but left without completing his studies. He rather taught himself to paint. 

In 1883, he met Dutch artist Jan Toorop, who he shared a studio with. He would later meet Henry de Groux. Around that time, he married artist Juliette Massin. All would have an influence in his style. 

Degouve de Nuncques was heavily influenced by the Symbolist movement, which emphasized the use of symbolism and metaphors in art to evoke emotions and ideas rather than simply depicting reality.

 

The Blind House (1892)

The Angels (1894)

The Peacocks (1896)

Source: 

Wikipedia

https://www.1st-art-gallery.com/William-Degouve-De-Nuncques/The-Angels-Of-The-Night-1894.html

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Peacocks_%281896%29,_pastel_on_paper,_mounted_on_canvas,_59.5_x_99_cm.,_Royal_Museums_of_Fine_Arts_of_Belgium,_Brussels.jpg

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Istvan Banyai

Art Appreciation

Istvan Banyai is a Hungarian illustrator and animator best known for his unique and thought-provoking artwork. 

Born in February 27, 1949, he began showing his artistic abilities at a young age. He attended the Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design in Budapest where he was trained in architecture, graphic design, and illustrative drawing. After receiving his bachelors of fine arts, he began his career as a graphic designer before transitioning to illustration. 

After moving to France to work with Jean "Moebius" Giraud, he gained exposure after his illustration was featured in Le Monde magazine in 1981.

A year later, he relocated to the United States where began working in illustration and animation as a freelance artist.

Banyai's illustrations often feature simple, clean lines and bold colors, with a focus on symbolism and storytelling. One of his famous illustration is Zoom, a wordless children's book series which received praise for its ability to tell a story through a single image. He also authored Rezoom and The Other Side.

He continues to produce commercial illustrations for numerous publications like The New Yorker, Playboy, Rolling Stone, The Atlantic Monthly, and O, The Oprah Magazine.

Marilyn Monroe, The New York Times (2012)

Green! Shanghai Hemisphere Magazine (2009) 

Zoom (1995)

Sources: 

Wikipedia

https://www.illustrationhistory.org/artists/istvan-banyai

http://encantamentosdaliteratura.blogspot.com/2009/05/zoom-istvan-banyai.html

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Dance: Saweetie - My Type

Choreography: Melissa Barlow

via Melissa Barlow