French postcard in the Collection Magie Noire by Éditions Hazan, Paris, 1995, no. 6478.
Burt Lancaster and
Deborah Kerr in
From Here to Eternity (Fred Zinnemann, 1953).
Fame came to American film legend
Burt Lancaster (1913-1994) with his first film role, as the doomed Swede in Universal's
The Killers (1946), but the former circus acrobat knew better than to leave his career in other hands. After less than two years in Hollywood, Lancaster formed his own production company and took the lead in such popular successes as the Technicolor swashbucklers
The Flame and the Arrow (1950) and
The Crimson Pirate (1952), and the Western
Vera Cruz (1954). The athletic, savvy but passionate Lancaster remained a box office draw for 20 years, winning a 1961 Academy Award for playing the corrupt evangelist
Elmer Gantry (1960). His best work through the next decades was often in European features like Luchino Visconti's
Il gattopardo/The Leopard (1963) and
Gruppo di famiglia in un interno /Conversation Piece (1974),
Novecento/1900 (1976) and
Atlantic City (1980), which netted him an Oscar nomination.
British film star
Deborah Kerr (1921-2007) was nicknamed 'The English Rose' for her fresh natural beauty. In many films, the stage, television, and film actress played 'classic' English ladies, but during the 1950s she became known for her versatile roles in major Hollywood productions.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards. 