POSTCARD 1 (SOLD)
POSTCARD 2
POSTCARD 2
Postcard 1 is a vintage real photo card featuring stunning French actress, Martine Carol (1920-1967). She was France’s major sex symbol of the early 1950’s. “Sex Symbol” is an awful term, but it certainly was spoken without much controversy when this postcard was published. Her popularity was short term. She was succeeded by another beautiful French actress, Brigitte Bardot. Little is known about Carol’s childhood. A random encounter with French film and stage actor, Andre Luguet, led her to seek a career in the theatre. She made her stage debut in 1940. Her first film role was in Wolf Farm (1943) and although she was a photogenic beauty and was at ease in front of the camera; her acting ability was limited. Throughout the 1940’s Martine acted in supporting roles and became a popular pin-up. She also appeared in stage roles. Martine was often considered the French version of American actress, Marilyn Monroe. After an affair with married actor Georges Marechal ended poorly, Martine attempted suicide by overdosing on alcohol and drugs, and jumping into the Seine River. The taxi cab driver that took her to the river, rescued her. The unhappy business of her suicide attempt resulted in renewed fan interest in the actress. In 1950, she had her first major film success in “Caroline Cherie”. At least part of her success was attributed to her semi-nude scenes and displays of “seductive sexuality”. She continued to appear in several films that IMDb refers to as “costumed teasers”. Her last popular role was starring in “Lola Montes” (1955). Later roles failed to peak moviegoers interests and Martine became depressed. A severe accident, and substance abuse in the 1960’s, sabotaged her career. At age 46, Martine died of cardiac arrest in the bathroom of a Monaco hotel. News accounts suggested that she died of a drug overdose but the story was never confirmed. Martine was married and divorced three times and left her fourth husband a widower. Her longest marriage was just short of five years duration. An interesting side note is that she was once kidnapped by French gangster, Pierre Loutrel (AKA Crazy Pete). The kidnapping was brief, and the kidnapper sent her roses the next day as a gesture of apology. Martine Carol’s filmography, according to IMDb, includes 50 film credits between 1941 and 1967. The photographer of this portrait photo (Postcard 1) is Sam Levin (1904-1992). He was born in the Ukraine but emigrated to France when he was two years of age. He is famous for his stage photographs and his portraits of movie stars. His studio was in Paris. Levin was a film photographer for 75 films. He was arrested by the Nazis during World War II and was sent to a camp. His crime was, being Jewish. The fact that he was sent to a detention camp rather than a death camp, indicates there was a high ranking Nazi official acting as his guardian angel. He photographed nearly all the major French and European movie stars of the 1950’s and 1960’s. He is particularly celebrated for his photos of Brigitte Bardot. Levin did over 180 magazine covers in the United States. This postcard was published by the Globe Edition (Paris) and is part of a series (no. 132). To see a video of Miss Carol, look at the clip below which shows her in “Nana” (1955). (SOLD)
Postcard 2 is a vintage real photo card. Martine Carol is throwing a seductive gaze over her left shoulder. She is dressed in clothing that is meant to spark notice. Martine needed to perpetuate the image that made her a “sex symbol”. The postcard has an indecipherable photographer’s stamp on its reverse and is in good condition (see scan). This particular postcard portrait of Martine Carol is uncommon. (SOLD)
POSTCARD 2
Postcard collectors sometimes encounter photo postcards that heighten curiosity but defy explanation. This vintage real photo postcard is a perfect example of such a card. The image is comprised of five pretty young women wearing unusual hats. Perhaps I should say “bizarre” rather than “unusual”. I believe their hats are made of paper, although they are designed to look like feathers. Two of the hats have a design that includes a cr
This vintage real photo postcard provides a portrait of a very pretty woman. She has a wonderful smile and beautiful eyes. The photographer/publisher of this postcard is Alfred Noyer. The celebrated photographer supervised a large photo studio in Paris. The Noyer Studio operated from 1910 until the 1940’s. Many of the postcards he produced of women were nudes or risque images. Some of his postcards list his name while others are simply marked “AN”. Noyer did a number of series of postcards concerning the prettiest women of France. He did a set of postcards that presented pretty women from each province of France. He also did a series of cards that presented women representing different precious stones. This postcard is part of a series (no. 20) in which the prettiest women of France represent a color of the rainbow. The young woman subject of this postcard is repping the color red. This vintage postcard is in very good condition and has excellent clarity.
This carte de visite portrait features a young girl wearing a plaid dress and holding a hoop and stick toy. The photographer of this photo is J. Ernest Forest and he operated a studio in Bordeaux, France. Advertising on the reverse of the cdv indicates that the studio won prizes at exhibitions in Bordeaux and Paris.This photograph is in good condition (see scans). A look at the top of the backside of the cdv reveals that this photo is likely a former resident of a photo album or picture frame. 
This original carte de visite photograph features a cute little girl sitting on a fur covered chair. Judging by the expression on her face, she is not sure how to interpret the situation she finds herself in. The photographer of this cdv image is Henri Heil. He operated a studio in La Ferte-Bernard, France. This carte de visite is slightly bowed but in overall good condition (see scans).
The pretty young woman seen in this carte de visite portrait, is named Anna Lesian. An inscription on the reverse of the cdv reveals her name and the year (1890) that the photograph was taken. The photo was taken at the studio of A. Liebert, in Paris, France. The Getty Museum, located in Los Angeles, California, as well as other fine museums, have photographs in their collections by Paris photographer, Alphonse J. Liebert (1827-1913). Many of his Parisian subjects were actresses. Perhaps Miss Lesian is one of those actresses. Mr. Liebert has an interesting story. He was a photographer in Nevada City, California (1857-1862), and later, operated in Paris (1863-1890’s). He was born in France. He became an officer in the French Navy. He left the navy in 1848 to study daguerreotypy. He must have reenlisted in the navy because In 1851, he arrived in San Francisco, as a Lieutenant on a French ship. This was a time when there was much excitement about Gold mining. As a result, there was a mass desertion of the ship’s crew. The sailors joined the rush for gold. Liebert had in mind, his own venture. He and two partners decided to take on the project of refurbishing a steamship. They sought investors and hired workers to transform the ship. However, due to the partners inexperience, the venture failed. Liebert than tried gold mining but met little success. In 1857 he opened a photo gallery in Nevada City. He lost thousands of dollars after a fire in 1858. In 1859 Liebert ridiculed a former photography pupil of his, named Louis Celarie, in the press. This started a bitter professional feud. Soon after, Liebert announced that he had won a medal at the state fair. Unfortunately, there was no evidence to confirm this claim. The competition between Liebert and Celarie was fierce. Each offered special promotions to best the other. By 1861, Liebert triumphed, evidenced by the sale of Celarie’s studio. About a year later, Liebert sold his photo gallery. By 1863, he had returned to France and opened a gallery specializing in tintypes. Liebert closely identified with his photography experience in America, and as a result, he named his Paris gallery “Photographie Americaine”. That very name can be seen on the reverse of this CDV. Liebert began to write photography articles and books, and ultimately, invented a prototype solar camera. In 1867, Liebert had a problem with the law. He was sentence to two months in prison and levied a fine of 200 francs. He was charged for the intent to distribute banned post mortem photographs. These were not photos of some random person. Instead, they were images of Emperor Maximillian, who had been executed in Mexico. Liebert ultimately did exhibit these photos. Liebert was becoming more and more successful. His photo gallery was so lavish that a reviewer for the British Journal of Photography wrote that it was “worthy of the smiles of the ‘God of Light’, and a repository for some of the best productions of the photographic art”. In 1879, Liebert’s gallery was the first studio to utilize electric light. By 1880, he was considered to have the most impressive photo studio in Paris. This carte de visite portrait has excellent clarity and is in very good condition (see scans). 
THE CABINET CARD GALLERY 