Clara Bow was a popular actress in the late 1920s known for her “heart-shaped face, an hour-glass figure, and thick auburn hair dyed a flaming orange-red.”

She was the star of the film “It,” which made her a household name and solidified her reputation as the “It” girl.

Off-screen, Bow was known for her many high-profile relationships with actors, directors, and other celebrities.

She was rumored to have had affairs with Gilbert Roland, Gary Cooper, Victor Fleming, and Harry Richman, among others.

Gossip about her private life was rampant, and in 1931 a publication even ran a series of articles claiming that she had s-x in public, engaged in threesomes with prostitutes, slept with women when no man was available, and turned to animals for companionship.

Despite the rumors and gossip, Bow maintained a loyal following of fans who were captivated by her beauty and charisma. She became friends with the USC football team, and although rumors circulated that she slept with the entire team, there is no evidence to support this claim.

In reality, Bow was simply a fan of the USC football team and enjoyed spending time with the players. She attended games, hosted them at her home, and even invited them to her hotel room for dancing and swimming.

However, accounts from the players and those close to Bow suggest that these interactions were innocent and wholesome, and there is no evidence to suggest that anything inappropriate took place.

The rumor of Bow sleeping with the entire football team likely originated from gossip and speculation about her private life. Bow was known for her many high-profile relationships and was the subject of much gossip and scandal-mongering in the press.

The idea that she would take on the entire football team fit with her reputation as a wild and promiscuous woman, and it was easy for people to believe the rumors, even if there was no truth to them.

Bow’s career and personal life were both marked by controversy. She struggled with mental health issues and addiction, and her relationships were often tumultuous. Despite these challenges, she continued to act and remained a popular figure in Hollywood.

She died at the age of 31 in 1965, leaving behind a legacy as a pioneering actress and one of the most iconic figures of the silent film era.

Clara Bow’s story is a fascinating one, filled with drama and controversy. She was a pioneer in the film industry and a symbol of the glamour and excess of Hollywood in the 1920s.

Despite the challenges she faced, she remained a beloved figure and her legacy continues to be celebrated to this day.

Bio

Clara Gordon Bow, destined to become “The It Girl”, was born on July 29, 1905 in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in poverty and violence.

Her often absentee and brutish father could not or did not provide and her schizophrenic mother tried to slit Clara’s throat when the girl spoke of becoming an actress.

Bow, nonetheless, won a photo beauty contest which launched her movie career that would eventually number 58 films, from 1922 to 1933.

The movie It (1927) defined her career. The film starred Clara as a shopgirl who was asked out by the store’s owner. As you watch the silent film you can see the excitement as she prepared for her date with the boss, her friend trying hard to assist her.

She used a pair of scissors to modify her dress to try to look “sxier.” The movie did much to change society’s mores as there were only a few years between World War I and Clara Bow, but this movie went a long way in how society looked at itself.

Clara was flaming youth in rebellion. In the film she presented a worldly wisdom that somehow sx meant having a good time. But the movie shouldn’t mislead the viewer, because when her boss tries to kiss her goodnight, she slaps him.

At the height of her popularity she received over 45,000 fan letters a month. Also, she was probably the most overworked and underpaid star in the industry. With the coming of sound, her popularity waned.

Clara was also involved in several court battles ranging from unpaid taxes to being in divorce court for “stealing” women’s husbands. After the court trials, she made a couple of attempts to get back in the public eye.

One was Call Her Savage (1932) in 1932. It was somewhat of a failure at the box office and her last was in 1933 in a film called Hoopla (1933).

She then married cowboy star Rex Bell at 26 and retired from the film world at 28. She doted on her two sons and did everything to please them. Haunted by a weight problem and a mental imbalance, she never re-entered show business.

She was confined to sanitariums from time to time and prohibited access to her beloved sons. She died of a heart attack in West Los Angeles, on September 26, 1965 at age 60.

Today she is finding a renaissance among movie buffs, who are recently discovering the virtues of silent film. The actress who wanted so much to be like the wonderful young lady in It (1927) has the legacy of her films to confirm that she was a wonderful lady and America’s first sx symbol.

– IMDb Mini Biography By: Denny Jackson