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Forever Young: The Hollywood Museum Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of Loretta Young
circa 1929: American actress Loretta Young (1913 - 2000) wearing a simple scoop-necked sports dress in heavy white crepe with a large brimmed sun hat. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
by Adrienne Dorsey/Special to LAistThe Hollywood Museum debuted the exhibition "Loretta Young: Hollywood Legend" yesterday to mark the 100th anniversary of the first actress to win both an Academy Award and Emmy Award.
Young, who passed away in 2000 at age 87, earned an Oscar for her role in The Farmer's Daughter and led an equally intriguing life offscreen. The Bishop's Wife star admitted in her posthumously published autobiography that her "adopted" daughter, Judy Lewis, was actually her biological daughter by screen legend Clark Gable.
From her beginning as a child ingénue in the silent film era to her starring roles as a romantic leading lady, Young's glamorous life is chronicled through never-displayed photographs, love letters from leading men Spencer Tracy and Clark Gable (who she had an affair with during the filming of The Call of the Wild), home movies, designer clothing from her personal wardrobe and gowns created by husband Jean Louis, the famous costume designer who also dressed Joan Crawford and Rita Hayworth.
The comprehensive exhibit, housed in the historic Max Factor building, also features Young's dressing table highlighted by photos and Max Factor's signature line of makeup designed for the brunette star. Young was the first Max Factor makeup model.
The Hollywood Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and adult admission is $15.