Jane RussellToday is her 85th birthday, and so it seemed only logical that we'd give this smokin' hot starlet a little mention.
She was born Ernestine Jane Geraldine Russell in 1921. She did some modeling work and was actively sought after because of her figure.
She was ultimately signed by Howard Hughes for his production of
The Outlaw (1943), the film that was to make Jane famous. The film wasn't a classic by any means, but was geared to show off Jane's ample physical assets. Hughes invented a bra to help hold her physical endowments for the movie but Russell says she ended up not wearing a bra in the film. It was hard for the flick to pass the censorship board, but finally the film gained general release in 1946 and was a smash at the box-office.
Jane didn't make another film until 1946 when she starred in
Young Widow (1946). She had signed a seven year contract with Hughes and it seemed the only films he would put her in were those that displayed Jane in a very flattering light due to her body.
Films such as
His Kind of Woman (1951) and
The Las Vegas Story (1952) did nothing to showcase her true acting abilities. Probably the pinnacle of her career was in
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) with Marilyn Monroe. This film showed Jane's comedic side very well. Jane did continue to make films throughout the 1950s, but the films were at times not up to par, particularly with Jane's talents being wasted in forgettable movies in order to show off her sexy side.
She dabbled in movies and television throughout the 60s and even 70s, but had Jane not been wasted during the Hughes years, she could have been a bigger actress than what she was allowed to show.
[information provided by
IMDb]
Today's romance novel exerpt comes from A Vision of Splendor (and appropriate for the Fourth of July weekend):
