HEDY LAMARR (ca. 1942) Set of 2 oversized portraits

Hedy Lamarr. Los Angeles: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, ca. 1942. Pair of vintage original 10 x 13″ (25 x 32 cm) black-and-white double weight glossy silver gelatin photos. Minor edge wear, overall near fine.

Besides making movies, Hedy Lamarr (along with composer George Antheil) received U.S. Patent No. 2,292,387 for a “Secret Communication System” — a frequency-hopping communication system developed after the two shared concerns over the looming war and “began to tinker with ideas to combat the Axis powers” according to the National Women’s History Museum. Lamarr and Antheil’s system was an early application of what came to be known as spread-spectrum technology, later used in the development of GPS and Wi-Fi.

Two spectacular photos from the grand collection of an MGM public relations manager. The image of Hedy wearing a veil includes the full typed publicity blurb on verso indicating she has just finished shooting Crossroads. The verso of the other portrait (with Hedy wearing pearls) is ink stamped “2820 V”.