Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film (Screen Classics)

Hedy Lamarr's life was punctuated by salacious rumors and public scandal, but it was her stunning looks and classic Hollywood glamour that continuously captivated audiences. Born Hedwig Kiesler, she escaped an unhappy marriage with arms dealer Fritz Mandl in Austria to try her luck in Hollywood, where her striking appearance made her a screen legend. Her notorious nude role in the erotic Czech film Ecstasy (1933), as well as her work with Cecil B. DeMille ( Samson and Delilah, 1949), Walter Wanger ( Algiers, 1938), and studio executive Louis B. Mayer catapulted her alluring and provocative reputation as a high-profile sex symbol. In Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film, Ruth Barton explores the many facets of the screen legend, including her life as an inventor. Working with avant-garde composer and film scorer George Antheil, Lamarr helped to develop and patent spread spectrum technology, which is still used in mobile phone communication. However, despite her screen persona and scientific success, Lamarr's personal life caused quite a scandal. A string of failed marriages, a lawsuit against her publisher regarding her sensational autobiography, and shoplifting charges made her infamous beyond her celebrity. Drawing on extensive research into both the recorded truths of Lamarr's life and the rumors that made her notorious, Barton recognizes Lamarr's contributions to both film and technology while revealing the controversial and conflicted woman underneath. Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film illuminates the life of a classic Hollywood icon.

Hedy Lamarr's life was punctuated by salacious rumors and public scandal, but it was her stunning looks and classic Hollywood glamour that continuously captivated audiences. Born Hedwig Kiesler, she escaped an unhappy marriage with arms dealer Fritz Mandl in Austria to try her luck in Hollywood, where her striking appearance made her a screen legend. Her notorious nude role in the erotic Czech film Ecstasy (1933), as well as her work with Cecil B. DeMille (Samson and Delilah, 1949), Walter Wanger (Algiers, 1938), and studio executive Louis B. Mayer catapulted her alluring and provocative reputation as a high-profile sex symbol.

In Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film, Ruth Barton explores the many facets of the screen legend, including her life as an inventor. Working with avant-garde composer and film scorer George Antheil, Lamarr helped to develop and patent spread spectrum technology, which is still used in mobile phone communication. However, despite her screen persona and scientific success, Lamarr's personal life caused quite a scandal. A string of failed marriages, a lawsuit against her publisher regarding her sensational autobiography, and shoplifting charges made her infamous beyond her celebrity.

Drawing on extensive research into both the recorded truths of Lamarr's life and the rumors that made her notorious, Barton recognizes Lamarr's contributions to both film and technology while revealing the controversial and conflicted woman underneath. Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film illuminates the life of a classic Hollywood icon.

Biography

Ruth Barton, a lecturer in Film Studies at Trinity College Dublin, is the author of three books on Irish cinema: Jim Sheridan: Framing the Nation, Irish National Cinema, and Acting Irish in Hollywood: From Fitzgerald to Farrell.

This true story of a Hollywood sex symbol’s tumultuous life is “a real page-turner. Now, here is a book that would make a great movie” ( London Daily Mail ). Hedy Lamarr’s life was punctuated by salacious rumors and public scandal, but it was her stunning looks and classic Hollywood glamour that continuously captivated audiences. Born Hedwig Kiesler, she escaped an unhappy marriage with arms dealer Fritz Mandl in Austria to try her luck in Hollywood, where her striking appearance made her a screen legend. Her notorious nude role in the erotic Czech film Ecstasy , as well as her work with Cecil B. DeMille ( Samson and Delilah ), Walter Wanger ( Algiers ), and studio executive Louis B. Mayer catapulted her alluring and provocative reputation as a high-profile sex symbol. In this biography, Ruth Barton explores the many facets of the screen legend—including her life as an inventor. Working with avant-garde composer and film scorer George Antheil, Lamarr helped to develop and patent spread spectrum technology, which is still used in mobile phone communication. However, despite her screen persona and scientific success, Lamarr’s personal life included a string of failed marriages, a lawsuit against her publisher regarding her sensational autobiography, and shoplifting charges that made her infamous beyond her celebrity. Drawing on extensive research into both the recorded truths of Lamarr’s life and the rumors that made her notorious, Barton recognizes Lamarr’s contributions to both film and technology while revealing the controversial and conflicted woman underneath. Hedy Lamarr's life was punctuated by rumors and scandal, but it was her looks and Hollywood glamour that captivated audiences. Born Hedwig Kiesler, she escaped an unhappy marriage in Austria to try her luck in Hollywood. Her notorious nude role in the erotic Czech film Ecstasy (1933), as well as her work with Cecil B. DeMille (Samson and Delilah, 1949), Walter Wanger (Algiers, 1938), and studio executive Louis B. Mayer, catapulted her alluring and provocative reputation as a high-profile sex symbol. Film historian Ruth Barton explores her many facets, including her turn as an inventor: working with composer George Antheil, Lamarr helped to develop the basic technology behind cellular telephony. However, despite her successes, her personal life created scandals. A string of failed marriages, a lawsuit against her publisher regarding her sensational autobiography, and a shoplifting incident, made her infamous. Drawing on extensive research into both the record and the rumors, Barton recognizes Lamarr's contributions to both film and technology while revealing the conflicted woman underneath. --From publisher description Presents the life and career of the Hollywood actress, whose beauty and acting ability led to starring roles in over thirty films and who was also the co-inventor of a frequency-hopping technology still used today in cell phones.