There she is with our pal, film fan extraordinaire, Donald Gordon. This shot is, of course, taken from our Donald Gord Collection. Yes, that’s Irene Dunne in mufti to the right and our man Donald, looking very preppy, to the left. Below is a more formal studio shot of Irene.
We’re of the opinion that Irene Dunne, for all her virtue, exuded real sex appeal onscreen.
She started out in “weepies,” women’s pictures for the matinee crowd, but she hit her stride in sophisticated, “screwball” comedies. But no matter what part she played Irene Dunne was always “the Lady,” both on and off the screen.
Our boldface assertion is that if you have to see only one Irene Dunne picture, make it RKO’s Love Affair, director Leo McCarey’s 1939 romantic drama in which the actress portrays an American woman romanced by a French playboy (Charles Boyer).
Both leads are superb as is a supporting character performance contributed by Maria Ouspenskaya are a kindly grandmother.
But what unmistakably registers is Dunne’s sexy performance blending rueful emotion with a light comedic touch.
Somehow, Dunne and sex are words that don’t often crop up in the same sentence. Yes, Dunne was by all means a Lady. But a surprisingly sexy one even by contemporary standards. In this film she looks terrific. It’s not surprising to learn that Love Affair is Dunne’s as well as Boyer’s favorite of their pictures.
Yes, Dunne started out as a singer. A stage performance in Show Boat led to an RKO contract and her debut in Leathernecking in 1930. Stardom was cemented when she took the reins in 1932 of John Stahl’s Back Street melodrama, firmly establishing Dunne as the queen of weepies.
Her great facility with comedy was amply displayed in 1937’s The Awful Truth costarring Cary Grant, who expressed admiration for her comic timing and something else. Grant remarked, said Dunne, that she was “the sweetest smelling actress he ever worked with.”
When it came to the Academy Awards, Dunne was nominated five times but never won. Her subtle, provocative performance in Love Affair was undoubtedly the victim of bad timing.
The film came out in the year of Gone With The Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Stagecoach, Gunga Din, Ninotchka and Mr. Smith Goes To Washington among other memorable titles. Pretty steep competition.
So, we recommend you take another look at this wonderful movie, 87 minutes of bliss. Yes, Irene Dunne reigned as Hollywood’s “Lady.” But she was also one sexy woman.
By the way, the candid shot at the beginning of today’s blog was taken, as mentioned, from our Donald Gordon Collection, named for our late friend, who was a young actor who found himself under contract at Columbia Pictures during World War II. The collection was bequeathed to us after his death. It is a gift that keeps on giving.
Great pictures of IRENE DUNNE…
And speaking of pictures, a number of them are available to watch for free on YouTube including the most iconic -LOVE AFFAIR.
I wrote a lengthy article on that very film, and it was linked to my series of articles on the man who wrote the screenplay -DELMER DAVES.
Now I know, and sadly is shown just about every single day, that literally and shamefully LESS than a handful of people ever have anything to say about any of the stars,movies and topics that Joe & Frank work hard to give you, and what I try to further supplement from my equally lifetime of experience in the business…
But DELMER DAVES so iconic, and so under-rated and over-looked career, as both writer, director and even producer, is well worth your checking out for yourself!
And just for Joe & Frank…
Guys, a famous United Artists publicist I knew from England -Charles ‘Jerry’ Juroe, had a well celebrity attended event a few weeks back for his book-
Bond, The Beatles and My Moment with Marilyn… Which should give you an idea of his fabulous career span.
Anyone else care to comment…?
Irene Dunne was a woman of my grandmother’s generation. These ladies never went anywhere that they weren’t exquisitely turned out. They exuded a ladylike persona but not a prudish one and they were generally fun as hell to be around. They taught their daughters and granddaughters to comport themselves with dignity at all times and by doing so, imbued us with a little “je ne sais quoi”, a little mystery–and there is nothing sexier than that! I’m afraid that Miss Dunne would be ill at ease living in today’s world of full-disclosure, 24/7 social media onslaught. The fact that she was a private person speaks volumes about her integrity. When she left the set, she left the set. She raised a daughter, helped raise her grandchildren and was the loving wife and life partner of the same man, Dr. Frank Griffin, for nearly 40 years. Her moniker of “the First Lady of Hollywood” fit her to a tee. She was one of a kind.