Carol Lynley, Carroll Baker, and the dueling Jean Harlow biopics of 1965

TV Confidential with Ed Robertson

TVC 694.1: Ed welcomes back Tom Lisanti, renowned historian of sixties cinema, and the author of such books as Carol Lynley: Her Film & TV Career in Thrillers, Fantasy and Suspense and Ryan’s Hope: An Oral History of Daytime’s Groundbreaking Soap. Tom’s recent books include Dueling Harlows: The Race to Bring the Actress’s Life to the Silver Screen, everything you wanted to know about the two major motion pictures released in 1965 about screen legend Jean Harlow—both of which happened to be named Harlow—and the highly publicized efforts by rival producers Bill Sargent and Joseph Levine to out-do each other. Sargent’s Harlow, a quickly made independent movie starring Carol Lynley, was filmed in black and white, using Sargent’s patented technology Electronovision. Levine’s Harlow, a big budget biopic starring Carroll Baker, was filmed in color for Paramount Pictures. Both Harlows were originally released within a few weeks of each other in 1965; both are available now on home entertainment. Dueling Harlows is available from McFarlandPub.com. Topics this segment include why the Lynley/Sargent Harlow is much better than what the original reviews would suggest; how Lynley originally signed on because Judy Garland was attached to the project, only to remain stuck on it once Garland quit; and why the real-life story of Harlow herself generated such interest in movie makers.