Antedatings of "[blonde] bombshell" (UNCLASSIFIED)

[Mullins, Bill CIV (US)]

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

The San Diego _Evening Tribune_ 1 Nov 1933 p 8A col 5 has an ad for the
film (titled "Bombshell") with the line "A Blonde Bombshell in the
Picture That Has Thrown Hollywood Into Consternation!"

The _LA Times_ of that day has a small ad (sec II p 8 col 5) that reads:
"Last Times Today Jean Harlow Lee Tracy "The Blonde Bombshell" "  as if
that were the film's title.  (It also has a ad for "The Mad Racket",
with the tag line "The Snatch Racket Exposed!".  I wonder how well known
"snatch" as a slang term for vagina was back then.)


> -----Original Message-----
> From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On
> Behalf Of Hugo
> Sent: Thursday, October 24, 2013 8:10 AM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: Antedatings of "[blonde] bombshell"
>
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
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> --------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Hugo <hugovk at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Antedatings of "[blonde] bombshell"
>
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------
>
> First "bombshell" in the OED is 1708 but first in the OED referring to
> a woman is a 1942 "blonde bombshell".
>
> ---
>
> "Bombshell" was the name of a Jean Harlow film. IMDB says it was
> released 13 October 1933 in the USA. I haven't found actual evidence
of
> this, but I'm sure it can be found fairly easily.
>
> The movie was later renamed to "Blonde Bombshell", which Wikipedia
> claims was a nickname of the star Jean Harlow. Perhaps the nickname
> came from the renamed title.
>
> The earliest verifiable example I found is in the Spokane Daily
> Chronicle - Nov 24, 1933:
>
> [Begin]
> But it seems that Mr. [Lee] Tracy stepped out on a balcony in his
> pajamas and made wild gestures during a Mexico City parade, and now
Mr.
> Tracy, a star with a long list of hits from "Blessed Event" to "The
> Blonde Bombshell" behind him, is no longer with at least not until
> things are "straightened out," if they ever are.
> [End]
>
>
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ZWpWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=9fQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=
> 7159,5259478&dq=blonde-bombshell&hl=en
>
> ---
>
> And from the UK (ProQuest Historical Newspapers):
>
> R, H., 1933, Dec 09. THREE NEW FILMS. The Manchester Guardian (1901-
> 1959), 16:
>
> [Begin]
> Two of them, "The Cradle Song" and "L'Ordonnance," are by famous
> authors, the first Sierra and the second Maupassant, and have European
> stars, but the only completely successful one is the one with the
least
> pretension, "Blonde Bombshell," at the Empire.
> [End]
>
>
> --
>
> The next day's Observer (the Sunday version of the Guardian) explains
> the name change.
>
> LEJUNE, C.A., 1933, Dec 10. The Pictures. The Observer (1901- 2003),
> 12. ISSN 00297712:
>
> [Begin]
> And it is worth mentioning, in passing, that Hollywood cannot be
blamed
> for the title. It is we, the audience, who have spoilt an arresting
and
> altogether unusual title with that ridiculous adjective. When the film
> first came out in Hollywood, it was called "Bombshell," tout court.
But
> the public stayed away because they thought it was a war picture.
> "Blonde Bombshell" was the final compromise between dynamics and
> security. ...
>
> The story is nothing but a snatched handful of experiences form the
> life of Lola Burns, star of stars in the Monarch studios. She is their
> "It Girl," or, alternatively, their Blonde Bombshell--eruptive,
starry-
> eyed, warm-hearted, a little fatuous.
> [End]
>
> ---
>
> There's a number of snippets in Google Books which look good, and may
> be slight antedatings. Some are searchable in HathiTrust, but not full
> view, so I couldn't check the actual date.
>
> ---
>
> Hugo
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
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Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

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