🎬 Movies Mates PEOPLE
Jean Harlow
Acting
Biography
Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter; March 3, 1911 – June 7, 1937) was an American actress. Known for her portrayal of "bad girl" characters, she was the leading sex symbol of the early 1930s and one of the defining figures of the pre-Code era of American cinema. Often nicknamed the "Blonde Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde", Harlow was popular for her "Laughing Vamp" screen persona. Though her screen persona changed dramatically during her career, one constant was her sense of humor. She was given superior movie roles to show off her looks and nascent comedic talent. Harlow was in the film industry for only nine years, but she became one of the biggest stars in the US, whose image …
Read full biography
Jean Harlow (born Harlean Harlow Carpenter; March 3, 1911 – June 7, 1937) was an American actress. Known for her portrayal of "bad girl" characters, she was the leading sex symbol of the early 1930s and one of the defining figures of the pre-Code era of American cinema. Often nicknamed the "Blonde Bombshell" and the "Platinum Blonde", Harlow was popular for her "Laughing Vamp" screen persona. Though her screen persona changed dramatically during her career, one constant was her sense of humor. She was given superior movie roles to show off her looks and nascent comedic talent. Harlow was in the film industry for only nine years, but she became one of the biggest stars in the US, whose image in the public eye has endured. Harlow was consistently voted one of the strongest box office draws in the United States from 1933 onward, often surpassing that of MGM's top leading ladies, such as Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford and Norma Shearer. Her movies also continued to make huge profits at the box office even during the middle of the Depression. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Harlow No. 22 on its greatest female screen legends of classical Hollywood cinema list.
Biography expanded
BODY OF WORK
Jean Harlow's Filmography
Select any movie to open its full Movies Mates details page.
The Love Story of Jean Harlow and William Powell
as Self (archive footage)
Becoming Marilyn
as (archive footage)
Jay Sebring… Cutting to the Truth
as Self(archive footage)
Discovering Jean Harlow
as Self (archive footage)
Thou Shalt Not: Sex, Sin and Censorship in Pre-Code Hollywood
as Various Roles (archive footage)
Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema
as Self (archive footage)
42nd Street: From Book to Screen to Stage
as Self (archive footage)
Beer and Blood: Enemies of the Public
as Self (archive footage)
Judy Garland: By Myself
as Self (archive footage)
No Poster
Checking Out: Grand Hotel
as Self (archive footage)
Complicated Women
as Self (archive footage)
Beyond Tara: The Extraordinary Life of Hattie McDaniel
as Self (archive footage)
Howard Hughes: His Women and His Movies
as Self (archive footage)
Clara Bow: Discovering the "It" Girl
as Self (from The Saturday Night Kid [1929]) (archive footage)
Sports on the Silver Screen
as Self (archive footage)
Jean Harlow: Platinum Bombshell
as Self (archive footage)
The Good, The Bad, and the Beautiful
as Self (archive footage)
No Poster
Legends in Light: The Photography of George Hurrell
as Self (archive footage)
Betty Boop: Queen of the Cartoons
as Self (archive footage)
The Casting Couch
That's Entertainment! III
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
Death In Hollywood
as Self (archive footage)
No Poster
Two Tragic Blondes - Marilyn Monroe And Jean Harlow
as Self (archive footage)
Death Scenes
as Self (archive footage)
Hollywood Scandals and Tragedies
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
James Stewart: A Wonderful Life
as Self (archive footage)
Marilyn Monroe: Beyond the Legend
as archive footage
The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
as Self (archive footage)
Marilyn Monroe
as archive footage
Going Hollywood: The '30s
as (archive footage)
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
as Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
That's Entertainment, Part II
as (archive footage)
Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?
as Self (archive footage)
That's Entertainment!
as (archive footage) (uncredited)
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
as Self (archive footage)
The Further Perils of Laurel and Hardy
The Big Parade of Comedy
as Ruby in 'Hold Your Man' (archive footage)
Hollywood: The Selznick Years
as Self - Actress 'Dinner at Eight' (archive footage) (uncredited)
The Golden Age of Comedy
as archive footage
Screen Snapshots (Series 25, No. 1): 25th Anniversary
as Self (archive footage)
Screen Snapshots (Series 22, No. 10)
as Self (archive footage)
Saratoga
as Carol Clayton
Personal Property
as Crystal Wetherby
Libeled Lady
as Gladys
Suzy
as Suzy
Wife vs. Secretary
as Helen 'Whitey' Wilson
Riffraff
as Hattie
China Seas
as Dolly 'China Doll' Portland
Reckless
as Mona Leslie
The Girl from Missouri
as Eadie
Dinner at Eight
as Kitty Packard
Bombshell
as Lola Burns
Hold Your Man
as Ruby Adams
Hollywood on Parade No. A-12
as Self
Red Dust
as Vantine Jefferson
Red-Headed Woman
as Lillian 'Lil' / 'Red' Andrews Legendre
Scarface
as Blonde at Paradise Club
The Beast of the City
as Daisy Stevens aka Mildred Beaumont
Three Wise Girls
as Cassie Barnes
Voice of Hollywood (Series 2, No. 3)
as Self
Beau Hunks
as Jeanie Weenie - in Photo
Platinum Blonde
as Ann Schuyler
Goldie
as Goldie
Iron Man
as Rose Mason
The Public Enemy
as Gwen Allen
The Secret Six
as Anne Courtland
Hell's Angels
as Helen
New York Nights
as Party Guest
Weak But Willing
as Blonde Night Club Patron
This Thing Called Love
as Extra
The Love Parade
as Woman in Opera Box (uncredited)
The Saturday Night Kid
as Hazel
Bacon Grabbers
as Mrs. Kennedy
Masquerade
as Spectator
Thundering Toupees
Double Whoopee
as Swanky blonde
The Unkissed Man
as Patient
Close Harmony
as Chorus Girl
Why Is a Plumber?
Why Be Good?
as Blonde on Rooftop Bench at Junior's Second Party
Fugitives
as Extra (uncredited)
Liberty
as Woman in cab (as Harlean Carpenter)
Chasing Husbands
as Bathing Beauty (uncredited)
Moran of the Marines
as Extra (uncredited)
Honor Bound
as Extra