From my collection: Jean Harlow poses on a streetcar in a Columbia publicity photo for Three Wise Girls (1932), taken in October of 1931 by William A. Fraker. I did a little digital cleanup (took off some dark spots, etc.) on this one, and I’m very happy with how clear this picture is in general. You can see her flyaway hairs, the texture of her earrings, and her slight overbite. I’m definitely one of the geeks who gets excited over high quality.
Three Wise Girls is one of my favorite hidden gems in Harlow’s filmography. While not exactly comparable to her later cream-of-the-crop roles at MGM, it’s is a delightful pre-Code romp with lots of amusing wisecracks between Jean and legitimately underrated co-star Marie Prevost.
You can definitely tell Harlow was making strides in honing her acting chops as well as becoming more comfortable in front of the camera—her performance as TWG’s Cassie is markedly more relaxed and confident compared to Helen of Hell’s Angels. Pretty great for just under two years of progress.
Swipe again for one of the many sass-filled interactions in this movie that make me cackle—Harlow’s delivery is impeccably saucy.
Three Wise Girls was half of Harlow’s two-picture loan-out deal at Columbia in the second half of 1931, the other being Platinum Blonde. Funnily enough, TWG’s working title was Blonde Baby and was changed to avoid confusion with the other film.
Platinum Blonde is obviously the more famous of the two, as it ushered in the moniker that defines Harlow to this day, but Three Wise Girls was the first of Harlow’s films to give her top billing—she’s billed below Loretta Young in Platinum Blonde, despite the title. The film was originally called Gallagher, after Loretta’s character, before being altered to publicize Harlow’s shocking candy-colored hair.
I’ll wrap up my laundry list of fun facts here, as I’ve written abundantly on Three Wise Girls already.
(P.S. Three Wise Girls is up to watch for free on YouTube, as of right now, so if you’re looking for something to watch tonight…)
Harlow Heaven 