Harlow and the Platinum Peony

On June 12, 1933, Harlow arrived in Chicago to attend the Century of Progress International Exhibit; also known as the 1933 World’s Fair.

Her stay was brief, but a highlight included her visit to the fair’s massive horticultural exhibit. The Garden and Flower Show spread over five acres, indoors and out.

The show was made up of themed “dioramas”. Included were a Japanese garden exhibit, a replica of an Italian villa, a succulent garden, and even an exhibit titled “Abraham Lincoln’s Indiana Home in 1820”.

Harlow toured the Garden Show on June 15, and was presented with a very special prize: The Platinum Peony, named for her unique shade of hair.

Looking so radiant! That last portrait has to be one of my all time favorites; no makeup save for lipstick and glowing in a completely non-candid way. Beautiful inside and out. Alright, I’ll stop gushing now.

This particular flower was part of the Garden Show’s peony prize contest; sadly, the win went to another peony in July. I think the platinum peony at least deserves an honorable mention.

We can clearly see from these portraits that Jean was posing on the brick wall of the California Hacienda exhibit:

Hopefully Harlow enjoyed this day, as the rest of her Chicago stay was cut short due to frenzied fans. She moved on to Kansas City days later, and so did the fanfare.

On a related note, here’s the winning peony that came away with the honors:

Amazingly, and if you’re interested, you can view one of the 1933 Garden Show’s souvenir books here. Over seventy pages describing the Century of Progress International Exhibition Horticultural Exhibit. Can you say that three times fast?

Plenty of beautiful deco stills of the gardens, and it’s very easy to imagine seeing the fair through Jean’s eyes. The awe she must have been in, as an outdoor lover, being surrounded by thousands of colorful plants. Sounds like a dream.