In case you think that we haven't gone far enough back in the Wayback Machine recently, we present actress Anny Ondra for your viewing pleasure. I have only seen Anny Ondra in one film, Alfred Hitchcock's Blackmail (1929), but I was really impressed. Blackmail is said to be both Hitchcock's and England's first talkie, although I'm certain there are scores of film scholars out there who will debate this. Anyway, she was a Polish-Czech-Austrian-German-French singer, film and stage actress and a Hitchcock blonde. Anny Ondra started in the silent era in 1920, married Max Schmeling (the German boxer who lost the World Heavyweight title to Joe Louis), and appeared in films as late as 1951. What is it about German actresses anyway? Alas. . .
What is it about scantily clad blondes armed
with edged weapons? Remember Grace Kelly
and the scissors in Dial M for Murder? That
was made in 1954. Blackmail was 25 years
earlier. Rent it or buy it and check out the
lovely Anny Ondra.
Unfortunately her lines were dubbed in Blackmail by an English actress, but she is definitely beautiful and I think she did a great job in the film. There were a number of trappings of female leads of the time her character fell into, but overall she was an independent character who didn't seem to be comfortable falling behind her detective boyfriend, given her earlier assertiveness at being independent. I'm sure you get what I'm getting at. I just really liked the film. :)
ReplyDeleteIt's okay to "just really like the film." This is Starlet Showcase. You don't have to be sure what you're getting at. I'm hardly ever certain "what I'm getting at" either. No problem.
ReplyDeleteBtw, she was not a German, but a Czech actress. German women surnames don´t ussualy end with "ova". Anny Ondra(kova) ;o)
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