Year of Ann Dvorak: Day 114

Ann Dvorak and Leslie Fenton had a notorious reputation for being reclusive. Ann was once even quoted as saying something to the extent of “we don’t have any friends nor do we need any.” I’ve come to find that the definition of reclusive is very different for movie-folk as it if for the rest of us schlubs. Maybe the Fentons weren’t being photographed on the town as much as some of the other celebs of the day, but the fact that they attended Hollywood boxing matches on almost a weekly basis means their social life was 1000% more active than mine.

It is true that there are far fewer shots of Ann & Leslie enjoying Hollywood nightlife than others. A friend of mine collects on Norma Shearer and owns hundreds of photos of Norma painting the town red, so I guess you could call them reclusive, comparatively speaking. This image is one of my favorites, where the couple is hanging out at the fabled and dearly departed Ambassador Hotel. Interestingly, I cannot remember when and where I bought it, though I suspect it was an eBay purchase. I was tempted to use it in the book, but the quality isn’t fantastic and it’s a 4×5″ print and didn’t scan too great, so it did not make the final cut. Still, no reason why we can’t enjoy it virtually!