Da, Lottie und Jan Alexander: Bad Girls of the Silver Screen.

This lavishly illustrated book is the first to explore in words and pictures the history of wicked roles played by actresses of the American screen. Beginning with the silent films of the Nickelodeon and the urban slums of the 1900s, a "bad girl" charactertype established itself in the box office repertoire as a permanent feature of a deviant middle class. Bad Girls afthe Silver Screen is the fascinating account of how screenwriters and directors came to produce risky and audacious films that gave birth to star performers and appealed to mass audiences. At once engaging, witty, and informative, this book follows the freewheeling careers (on- and off-screen) of such early box office idols as Mae West, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Marilyn Monroe, Lana Turner, and Ingrid Bergman as well as such latter-day stars as Jane Fonda and Jodie Foster. In such settings as portrayed in Camille, Double Indemnity, How to Marry a Millionaire, Crimes of Passion and scores of other films, actresses have been cast as mistresses, seductresses, harlots, call girls, and cheating wives. Lottie Da and Jan Alexander examine those roles and demonstrate how these temptresses of the silver screen have shaped fashions, social behavior, and sexual attitudes and become a central feature of the American film. With revealing text and a broad selection of newly available photos, Bad Girls ofthe Silver Screen offers intriguing connections and insights into Holly wood`s molding and magnifying ofthe daring and the licentious.