This question's for you, readers!
Where should we go with this blog, and how do you want to take part? I'm not terribly interested in reporting Dietrich-related news nowadays, such as the upcoming Dior exhibition. If you'd like to join us and write blog entries about such news, please respond to this post or email us at lastgoddessblog@gmail.com.
I'd prefer to write more about Dietrich's movie career, share Dietrich novelties that I find online, and explore all the issues related to preserving Hollywood history. If you're more drawn to Dietrich's cabaret career, please take part in writing about it here as a blogger.
Another topic on my mind, given the number of viewers from countries where English is not the primary language, is translating blog entries or changing how I write my entries so that readers can more easily translate them with tools such as Google Translate. If you have recommendations regarding that matter, let me know.
Thanks,
Joseph
P.S. If you don't know why I chose this title, I'll let you figure it out by listening to the song below:
Where should we go with this blog, and how do you want to take part? I'm not terribly interested in reporting Dietrich-related news nowadays, such as the upcoming Dior exhibition. If you'd like to join us and write blog entries about such news, please respond to this post or email us at lastgoddessblog@gmail.com.
I'd prefer to write more about Dietrich's movie career, share Dietrich novelties that I find online, and explore all the issues related to preserving Hollywood history. If you're more drawn to Dietrich's cabaret career, please take part in writing about it here as a blogger.
Another topic on my mind, given the number of viewers from countries where English is not the primary language, is translating blog entries or changing how I write my entries so that readers can more easily translate them with tools such as Google Translate. If you have recommendations regarding that matter, let me know.
Thanks,
Joseph
P.S. If you don't know why I chose this title, I'll let you figure it out by listening to the song below:
I always think of blogging as a fun hobby, not an obligation. I say write about whatever aspect of Dietrich that interests you.
ReplyDeleteI may not comment on every post, but I do read and appreciate them all.
And yes, it is a good idea to keep your international readers in mind when wording ones posts.
I like the film-related angle, too; I'd like to learn more about Marlene's movies.
ReplyDeletelx, thanks for your kind words. Some commenters, such as Paul, know much more about Dietrich than I and would certainly be able to contribute to this blog as writers. Also, my favorite blogs are written by multiple authors or frequently feature guest writers (e.g., Womanist Musings), and I have a hope that other people's blog posts here would get me thinking about topics that I've never before considered.
ReplyDeleteVP, that'll certainly be a focus of mine. I have been meaning to write about movies that don't get much attention, such as Seven Sinners, Manpower, and The Monte Carlo Story.
I Like all things Dietrich but I'm more slanted toward the films.
ReplyDeleteThe clip was charming Aside from mentioning MD one can imagine Marie being her.
The film angel seems "extremely fertile". I have written an article on Marlene's war service which you might want.
ReplyDeleteRehan, I'd be happy to post any article you've written related to Marlene, or I could make you a blog author so that you could post your article and whatever else you'd like in the future. Let me know which option you'd prefer.
DeleteAwesome thanks, if you could make me blog author. I'll post the article on Dietrich's war service for the blog as a guest author/blogger. That would be ideal in order to maintain the correct formatting etc. Alternatively I could email the document to you and you could post it if you like.
DeleteIt has to go to her credit that she did work tirelessly for the war effort.
Hello! I'm happy to hear from you because I was looking forward to your article. I realized that I need your email to add you as a blog author. Please contact me at lastgoddesssblog@gmail.com because I don't want you getting any unwanted spam by sharing your email here.
DeleteI get a delivery failure report from that address, tried emailing twice.
DeleteBlame me for responding on my phone! Please try lastgoddessblog@gmail.com (one less "s").
DeleteA wonderful site! Please don't stop blogging!! A secret Fan!
ReplyDeleteThanks, but be a friend instead. I might start putting on airs if I think I have fans.;)
DeleteJoseph, I'm going through and enjoying all the blog archive, because I missed out on a lot by only using the labels and search button to browse.
ReplyDeleteI think you are doing a tremendous job and everytime I find myself being very much astounded with all the research you have done. I think some of you really go beyond, wow! It is much more then appreciated.
I love every aspect of Marlene, her Berlin time, hollywood film, war effort, cabaret career, impeccable style, her beauty, wit, voice and presence, hausfrau, lover, mother, independant woman, her strength and energy, reclusive with intense phone connections etc. But most of all, the sum of everything together that makes her Marlene Dietrich. I thinks she is such a fascinating human being, I find it highly interesting to see what moves her and how she lived by her own set of rules and how she believed in what she thought was doing the right thing.
That's for me the magic of seeing, hearing and reading about Marlene, because you can get a glimpse of all this. That's also why for instance I loved Maria's and Remarque's book or why her ABC cracked me up (I still need a new one, can't find my precious bible since I moved). I love to read anecdotes, letters and stories from other people who where close to her or who had encounters with her. Personally I'm not very much into researching pure facts (so I'm glad I can read about it in here), but I guess I do have a global idea of what is/might be true or what is complete rubbish. I like to read about her and paint a picture in my head of all the sides of her personality and how she used it to live her life to the fullest. To me that is inspiring. To see a bigger picture I also like to set this against the zeitgeist.
"would you Tell me the thoughts that surround you, I want to look inside your head, yes I do"
Love the song and how I wish I could have had a look and see what was realy going on inside her head!
Anyway about a topic that facinated me, in relation to reading, hearing and seeing Marlene, how about scents and Marlene.
Once in Paris I was searching for a perfume and came across a perfume called Robert Piguet - Bandit created by Germaine Cellier, I was intrigued, loved it, bought, wear it and started to read about this perfume, the creater and the time, cause it was for sure not a scent of today (1944). I must say I had to chuckle more then once that I managed to choose this particulair perfume, while reading about this creation and the maker (it suits perfectly ;)).
To get to the MD point. While reading about this subject, more then once I came across perfumes that where claimend to be wore by MD (Including Caron - Tabac Blond, Angelique Encens - Creed, Robert Piguet - Fracas and also the Robert Piguet - Bandit). Excuse me me for I don't have proper recources at the moment, but even hypothetically speaking. When I looked up the scents I could totally picture these scents with Marlene, I found an article dealing with zeitgeist and the so called chypre perfumes which you might like to read (it thouches on tabac blond and bandit). Is there anyone who knows more about this topic and other perfumes she might wore? Can someone confirm if these claimend perfumes are really among her favorites? Would love to read about it!
Reading about Germain Cellier I also wondered if she knew or met Marlene, she sounds like and exciting woman. I saw on wikipedia that Jean Cocteau is one of their mutual friends.
(on Germain Cellier)
http://www.fragrantica.com/news/Germaine-Cellier-1909-1976-Innovator-and-Iconoclast-1089.html
(Chypre series 5: chronology and the zeitgeist)
http://perfumeshrine.blogspot.nl/2007/10/chypre-series-5-chronology-and.html
(on Robert Piguet - Bandit)
http://boisdejasmin.com/2005/11/fragrance_revie_15-2.html
Hi Karine, Thanks for those links (the article about chypres is fascinating). You simply never know what advertisers would like you to think Marlene wore, and what she actually used!
ReplyDeleteIn one of her old make up cases from the 30s there was a half-used bottle of Mitsouko, also you can see a Guerlain box in this 1935 photo of MD with Fritz Lang:
http://divadietrich.tumblr.com/image/28202118365
The first edition of Marlene's Cafe de Paris record was scented with Arpgege, but I don't know whether that was because Marlene actually liked the perfume!
She did love the smell of tube roses though, so perhaps the Creed isn't far off. Would love if you could post your findings!
Arpege, even.
ReplyDeleteMissladiva, thanks for coming up with a photo and mentioning the make-up cases. Silly enough I never thought of it as a resource for perfume, excellent!
ReplyDeleteAs I already mentioned I don't really have proper resources, it is something I read on several blogs (some more believeble then others), that mostly don't back up their claims with resources like you do in here. But because I read it often about the perfumes mentioned above (where there's smoke, there's fire.. right?!) I started to look them up and thought they could have suited her. I didn't pick this info straight from advertisers, who would probably be happy to claim MD had this perfume as a favorite.
I just found a whole topic on her (http://www.basenotes.net/threads/269245-The-Smell-of-Marlene-Dietrich). A lot of speculation in here which also include most of the parfumes mentioned among others. I do like the post of someone called "Le Grand Duc" since he used the video of a marlene docu to look at a photo of her dressing room table. Which confirms again she at least used Mitsouko or L'Heure Bleue by Guerlain.
I know she loved tuberrose, that's why I thought Robert Piguet - Fracas could also be one. I had no idea that she had a scented record, sounds pleseant. The records I got smell like old cardboard.
To round it up, so far you came up with the most convincing claim I have read in a long time! Guerlain - Mitsouko.
I feel like looking up photo's of her dressing rooms and makeup tables, in the hope to find some answers. (Did I mentioned befored that I wasn't interested in researching facts? I'm one big contradiction!)
PS in above post I also mean your entries to blog, I love them! Just so you know.