20 Lovely Portraits of a Very Young Shelley Fabares in the Late 1950s

Beloved actress and singer Shelley Fabares passed away at age 82 on Saturday, August 22, 2026, in Los Angeles after a brief illness. Her family, including her husband of over 40 years, MASH* star Mike Farrell, confirmed that she was surrounded by loved ones at the time of her passing.

Fabares was a fixture on American television for decades and leaves behind a celebrated legacy across music and television. During the mid-to-late 1950s, Fabares transitioned from a child actress into one of America's definitive television teenagers. Entering her early teens, she moved away from minor live modeling and television guest spots to secure permanent placement on the big screen and, eventually, a career-defining sitcom role.

In September 1958, 14-year-old Shelley Fabares landed her signature coming-of-age role as Mary Stone on The Donna Reed Show. Playing the wholesome, quintessential daughter of the ideal post-war nuclear family, she instantly captured the hearts of American households and skyrocketed to mainstream teen-idol status.

Decades later, she earned two Emmy nominations playing Christine Armstrong on the hit sitcom Coach (1989–1997). She also recurred as Francine Webster on One Day at a Time.

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24 Photos of Marlee Matlin on the Set of “Children of a Lesser God” (1986)

Marlee Matlin’s breakout performance on the set of Children of a Lesser God (1986) forever altered the landscape of Hollywood representation. At just 21 years old, Matlin made her feature film debut as Sarah Norman, a fiercely independent, non-verbal Deaf custodian at a New England school for the Deaf. Her raw, deeply emotional performance earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress, making her the first Deaf actor to win an Oscar and the youngest recipient in that category’s history.

Director Randa Haines made a critical, pioneering decision to cast an actual Deaf actress for the lead role rather than a hearing performer. This allowed American Sign Language (ASL) to take center stage as a complex, poetic, and powerful cinematic language.

Matlin starred opposite William Hurt, who played James Leeds, a charismatic hearing speech teacher. Their intense on-screen chemistry translated into a complex, off-screen romantic relationship during and after production.

Filmed primarily on location in New Brunswick, Canada, the set mirrored the isolated, close-knit environment of the fictional school. Matlin's presence and natural wit helped guide the production crew, many of whom were being introduced to Deaf culture and ASL for the very first time.

Behind the scenes, Matlin’s journey was a masterclass in resilience. While navigating her first major film set under intense media scrutiny, she laid the groundwork for a lifelong career as an activist. Children of a Lesser God remains a watershed moment for disability rights and authentic representation in media. It proved to Hollywood executives that Deaf actors could carry a major studio film both critically and commercially.

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Lynn Bari: Sultry Star of Classic Hollywood

Lynn Bari (1913–1989), born Marjorie Schuyler Fisher, was an American actress known for her glamorous looks and strong screen presence in films of the 1930s and ’40s.

Under contract to 20th Century Fox, Bari specialized in playing sophisticated and often sultry “other women” or leading ladies in both A and B pictures. With her dark beauty and statuesque figure, she became a popular pin-up during World War II, ranking just behind Betty Grable in some surveys of GIs.

Though she rarely achieved top stardom, Bari remained a familiar and stylish face of classic Hollywood throughout her long career. These vintage photos capture the sultry elegance and classic Hollywood glamour of Lynn Bari, a memorable star of the 1930s and 1940s.

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The Last Photos of Felice Schragenheim and Lilly Wust Together; Hours Later, Felice Was Captured by the Gestapo!

Felice Schragenheim and Lilly Wust, photographed by the Havel river on August 21, 1944, laughing, embracing, using a timer to photograph themselves in the sun. Hours later they went home and found the Gestapo waiting. These are the last photos ever taken of them together.

Felice Schragenheim (nicknamed “Jaguar”) and Elisabeth “Lilly” Wust (nicknamed “Aimée”) shared a passionate, high-risk lesbian relationship in Nazi Berlin during World War II. Their story is documented through surviving letters, poems, photos, diaries, and Lilly’s later recollections; it formed the basis of Erica Fischer’s 1994 book Aimée & Jaguar and the 1999 German film of the same name.

In November 1942, the two women were introduced at a café in Berlin. On the surface, they belonged to completely different, violently opposed worlds. Elisabeth Wust was a 29-year-old German woman, married to a Wehrmacht soldier who was away at the front. She was the mother of four sons and a recipient of the Nazi “Mother’s Cross,” living a relatively privileged life as an exemplar of Nazi womanhood. Felice Schragenheim was a 20-year-old Jewish woman living in hiding. After her grandmother was deported, Felice assumed a fake identity (“Felice Schrader”) and actively worked with the Jewish underground resistance. She even managed to get a job working at a Nazi-run newspaper to maintain her cover.

Felice, fascinated by the danger and drawn to Lilly, took the initiative to woo her. The two began a passionate secret relationship, communicating through a flurry of love letters and poems. In their writings, they adopted the pet names that would later make their story famous: Felice became “Jaguar” and Lilly was “Aimée” (French for “beloved”).

As their relationship deepened, the stakes grew impossibly high. When Felice finally revealed her true identity as a Jewish resistance worker, Lilly did not turn her in. Instead, she vowed to protect her. Lilly filed for divorce from her husband, and in May 1943, Felice moved into Lilly’s home, ostensibly acting as a caretaker for Lilly’s children.

In June 1943, the couple drafted their own marriage contract, and a few months later, they exchanged rings, an extraordinary act of commitment and queer defiance in the heart of the Third Reich.

Lilly’s “books of tears”: Berlin, August 21, 1944 – February 28, 1945. This is the first of a total of four diaries by Lilly Wust, which she began on the day Felice was transported away, August 21, 1944. It is written in the green ink that Felice used for her letters and poems.

Marriage contract between Elisabeth Wust and Felice Schragenheim, Berlin June 26, 1943.

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Dolores del Rio at the Studio of the Artist Hugo Ballin, 1933

In 1933, artist and muralist Hugo Ballin painted a full-length portrait of Mexican-born Hollywood star Dolores del Río. This behind the scenes photograph captures Del Río in a sleeveless black gown seated beside the large canvas in Ballin’s studio as he holds his palette and brushes.

Dolores del Río was one of the major glamorous stars of Hollywood’s classic era, starring in hit musical films like Flying Down to Rio (1933). Hugo Ballin was a celebrated painter, illustrator, and former silent film director best known for his landmark Los Angeles murals, including those at the Griffith Observatory and the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.

The painting depicts Del Río posing in the same sleek dark gown on a draped couch, embodying the Art Deco visual style and Hollywood high-fashion aesthetic of the early 1930s.

Paul Gustave Mohr: Art Deco Master of French Advertising Posters

Paul Gustave Mohr (1890–1959) was a French poster artist known for his bold and colorful Art Deco advertising designs.

Active mainly between the 1920s and 1940s, Mohr created striking posters for a wide range of products, including Banania, Lustucru, Wonder bicycles, Champigneulles beer, and Dubonnet. His work is characterized by strong graphic composition, vibrant colors, and a modern, eye-catching style typical of the interwar period.

Though less widely known than some of his contemporaries, Mohr’s posters remain highly regarded by collectors for their rarity, energy, and distinctive visual flair. These vibrant vintage posters showcase the dynamic Art Deco style of Paul Gustave Mohr, a talented and underappreciated master of French advertising design.

Amer Picon, September 1922

Cherry Rocher Liqueur, 1922

Bicyclettes Dainty, 1923

Dubonnet l'Appetit Vient, circa 1923

La Cressonnée, 1923

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22 Photographs of Vera Miles as Lila Crane on the Set of Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho” (1960)

In Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 psychological masterpiece Psycho, Vera Miles plays Lila Crane, the headstrong and determined sister of the ill-fated Marion Crane. Following Marion’s abrupt disappearance, Lila pairs up with Marion’s boyfriend, Sam Loomis, to hunt for clues. Her investigation ultimately leads her straight to the eerie Bates Motel and into a terrifying face-to-face confrontation with the reality of Norman Bates and his “mother.”

While Janet Leigh’s Marion Crane draws the audience in, her shocking mid-movie death completely shifts the narrative focus. Lila Crane steps forward as the film’s true grounded investigator. Bringing sharp intelligence and cautious poise to the screen, she acts as the practical anchor that drives the mystery forward during the tense second half of the movie.

Lila is the central figure in one of the most famous climax sequences in cinematic history. While sneaking through the Bates home, she discovers a figure seated in the basement fruit cellar. Turning the chair around, she reveals the mummified skeletal corpse of Mrs. Bates. This discovery triggers her iconic horror scream just moments before Norman Bates attacks her while dressed in his mother’s clothes.

Vera Miles’ relationship with director Alfred Hitchcock was historic; she was originally intended to star in Vertigo (1958) before a pregnancy shifted those plans. Decades after the original masterpiece, Miles cemented her legacy as the ultimate survivor by returning to reprise her role as Lila Crane (now Lila Loomis) in the 1983 horror sequel Psycho II.

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