Jane Russell, 1921-2011

It is no wonder sex is the first thing that comes to anybody's mind when the name Jane Russell is mentioned since, for all her allegiance to Christian causes, she was after all the actress whose debut film The Outlaw was postponed three years for general release due to the display of her revealing cleavage. 

Although she was a popular actress who worked with some of Hollywood's finest directors, most notably Howard Hughes and Howard Hawks, her persona is usually associated with the pin-up photo of hers on a haystack, one of the most iconic images of heterosexual sexual desire of the 1950s, and in fact few could mention more than two films she ever was in, maybe with the exception of her debut and Hawkes Gentlemen prefer blondes, where she co-starred with Marilyn Monroe.

It is somewhat a paradox that, for someone who once epitomised sexual mainstream heterosexuality, Russell has become a gay icon of sorts, not least because of Rob Epstein's and Jeffrey Friedmann's treatment of her legendary musical number Ain't there anyone here for love (see clip below) in the film Gentlemen prefer blondes in their excellent documentary The Celluloid Closet. Admittedly, none of the muscular hunks that surround her in the number seem to take much notice of her.

Jane Russell died of a respiratory-related illness on February 28, 2011, just a few hours after the 83rd Academy Awards were announced. She was never nominated for that award. Let's hope she won't be forgotten in next year's obituaries.